Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed co-hosts the Black Economic Alliance Foundation’s “Architects of Change” Salon.
Following several days of pushback, Donald Watkins Jr. has withdrawn his name to be Montgomery’s next director for small and minority business development.
The decision comes after the Montgomery Personnel Board delayed a decision on whether to approve Watkins’ hiring at a salary well above the typical starting salary for the position. The decision to hire Watkins, who was convicted of one count of felony wire fraud and one count of conspiracy in a federal trial in 2019, had drawn criticism from several rightwing politicians and websites…