LANDIS — Michael Ambrose, initially brought on as the Landis finance officer before taking on the role of interim town manager, will now officially hold the official town manager title.

Ambrose came to Landis in March. Town officials hired him to be the finance officer after the former finance officer Chase Norwood departed the role. Following the conclusion of former interim town manager Phil Conrad’s tenure with the town, Ambrose was appointed to take over the town manager position in an interim capacity.

During a meeting earlier this month, the mayor and alderman board elected to make Ambrose the full-time town manager. In doing so, Ambrose will vacate his role as the finance officer.

According to Mayor Meredith Smith, the town has posted the opening for finance director and is currently accepting applicants.

A memo outlining Ambrose’s appointment to town manager highlighted “many innovative ideas” as grounds for the promotion.

After coming on board, Ambrose made an almost immediate impact, overseeing an audit of previous utility charges dating back several years and detecting that nine customers had been overcharged since 2019. In March, the city approved a budget amendment of $22,000 to correct the mistake and issue refunds.

Ambrose cited transparency and growth promotion as the main goals for his employment with the town.

Before coming to Landis, Ambrose served as the chief financial officer for Alabaster House Recovery for Women in Easley, South Carolina, and as a staff accountant for the Town of Waxhaw.

Ambrose served his community as a law enforcement officer for 10.5 years while working towards his degree in accounting and has 14 years of local government experience. Additionally, Ambrose has experience in grant writing and administration, helping his previous employers bringing in over $1.2 million in state and federal funding.