Palm Coast council narrows city-manager search to two finalists, sets interview date and compensation guidance

Palm Coast council members on Oct. 14 narrowed the city-manager search to two finalists and set interviews for Nov. 13.

Council members used a ranked nomination process to reduce the earlier pool of candidates. The two finalists the council agreed to invite for in-person interviews are (as recorded in the council’s ranking) Mr. Frazier and Mr. McLaughlin. Council asked Human Resources and the city clerk to schedule the interview day, maintain the same multi-part interview format used during earlier rounds (presentation, panel interview, one-on-one sessions and a city tour), and to provide logistics for candidate travel.

During the workshop councillors reviewed background checks and reported publicly available derogatory information about some applicants; staff had previously compiled summaries of those matters for council review. Council discussed the importance of reviewing any adverse information and confirmed that staff had made that material available. No candidate was hired at the workshop; council directed staff to proceed with the scheduled interview date and to leave remaining process steps (reference checks, final negotiation) to the negotiating team.

Council also provided salary guidance for negotiation: members discussed the current manager’s compensation and suggested that the negotiating range should not exceed $250,000 (council referenced that figure as a cap for negotiation). Councilmembers asked that the compensation range be publicly reasonable and that the negotiated package be presented to council in a later closed or open session per applicable personnel rules.

Staff will coordinate interviews on Nov. 13 and return with any additional candidate materials or scheduling considerations as they arise.