City staff asked the commission to give direction on recruiting a new city manager, including whether to hire an outside executive‑search firm and what salary range and qualifications to publish. "Of course, it gets a little more extensive the higher up you go in that, position," Human Resources/Staff said while outlining options from full service to a la carte packages.
Staff reported that two firms had responded to a request for quotation and that piggyback contracts in place could price a full search at roughly $45,000 to $55,000; one firm that quoted hourly pricing (S. Renee Narlock) works on an hourly basis, staff said. City staff recommended commissioners decide whether they have internal preferred candidates because firms ask whether an entity already has finalists before investing in broad outreach.
Staff gave a proposed market salary range of $140,000 to $185,000 for the city manager salary (salary only), and noted benefits typically add about 30% on top of salary when budgeting. "I've asked Director, finance director Kiki Roman to put in 185 just to give you all some negotiation," a staff presenter said. Commissioners were asked to submit preferred qualifications, salary range and job‑description edits before the next publicly scheduled meeting.
Staff also briefed the commission on interim city manager options. Mark Ryan with the Florida City and County Managers Association has agreed to solicit retired executives for short interim stints. Staff reminded the commission that additional compensation for an internal interim doing extra duties would require commission action; staff cited a prior 15% interim bump in 2019 as precedent and warned that out‑of‑class duties could create a federal wage/compensation issue if not addressed.
No formal hiring decision or bid award was made in the excerpt. Commissioners asked for time to review and return with suggested job qualifications and salary guidance for discussion at the next meeting.