Palm Coast council narrows city manager search to six candidates after public comment

The Palm Coast City Council on the record reached consensus to advance six finalists in the city manager recruitment after a public comment period in which residents urged a broader search and stressed financial and operational experience.

The decision followed a presentation from the councilconsultant that showed roughly 35 initial applicants and a staged "funnel" process of screening. The councilselected by consensus the following top candidates: Paul Trombino; Cara Boyles; Richard Cope; Jay Wilberding; Michael Reese; and Robert Hemager. The council asked staff and the consultant to release the remaining applicants from limbo and to continue active recruitment.

Why it matters: The city manager runs day-to-day municipal operations and oversees large budgets and infrastructure projects. Council members and residents said they want a candidate with the experience to manage Palm Coastlarger-scale operations.

Residents who spoke urged transparency and objectivity. Celia Puglisi, a longtime resident, told council "35 candidates ... it's gonna be a difficult decision" and asked that candidate materials be made available to the public. Ken McDowell said he worried that many applicants did not have experience on a scale comparable to Palm Coast and asked for a wider search. Several residents asked the council to avoid selecting a "politician" and instead choose someone with deep operations and utility experience.

The consultant described the next steps: asking the advancing candidates to complete a detailed questionnaire, requiring pre-recorded video interview responses, starting a stage-one media search, and continuing active outreach for passive candidates. The consultant said initial internet searches had flagged some issues for certain applicants but that background-screening and follow-up would be part of the deeper stages.

Council process: The consultant asked each council member to rate a long list with scores of 1 (definitely interested), 2 (okay to consider) or 3 (not interested). After tallying, the council identified 16 candidates that merited further consideration and then a top grouping of six, which the council approved by consensus. The council also asked the city clerk to receive and post the spreadsheet of rankings and requested that staff circulate the candidate materials and weekly updates as new applications arrive.

Directions and next steps: The council asked the consultant and city staff to (1) release the rest of the applicant pool so candidates are not left in limbo; (2) continue targeted outreach and recruitment; (3) start background screening and media searches for advanced candidates; (4) collect written questionnaires and pre-recorded video interviews from the six finalists; and (5) circulate the ranking spreadsheet to council members and post updates for transparency. No formal vote was recorded; the action was taken by consensus.

Public comment and concerns: Speakers repeatedly urged transparency and experience. Several residents named candidates they believed had relevant utility or finance backgrounds. Others asked the council to ensure background checks do not eliminate otherwise qualified applicants prematurely. The consultant noted that allegations found online do not always reflect final screening outcomes and that the council ultimately decides the acceptable risk tolerance.

What's next: Staff and the consultant will continue the screening sequence, provide weekly updates to council, and return with scheduling for interviews and subsequent steps as the process moves into deeper stages.