St. Augustine Beach narrows city manager search to Southeast coastal region and plans workshop with FCMA

The City of St. Augustine Beach commission narrowed the scope of its city manager search and identified a method to run it.

After reviewing options, commissioners reached consensus to ask the Florida City/County Management Association to serve as a volunteer recruiting and advisory partner and to advertise the position across the Southeast coastal region (Florida and nearby coastal states). Commissioners emphasized a preference for candidates with coastal-community experience and asked staff to request that the association lead a workshop—ideally in March or April—to help the commission refine the position description, compensation band, and timeline.

Commissioners discussed whether to expand the search nationally; most favored a Southeast coastal focus to attract candidates familiar with hurricane recovery, beach access, and local coastal challenges. The association representative and staff said the association does not charge personnel for the volunteer review but the city would be responsible for advertising and any paid background checks or executive-search services.

During public comment, longtime resident Nick Bender urged realistic salary bands and recommended a multi-year contract (three to five years) to improve retention, warning that constraining salary or contract length can shrink the applicant pool.

Next steps: staff will request cost details from the association, coordinate scheduling for a facilitated workshop, and return with a recommended timeline and advertisement language. Commissioners asked staff to include consideration of salary parity with the police chief and comparable communities when preparing compensation guidance.

Key decisions: use FCMA as the recruitment partner; advertise within the Southeast coastal region; schedule a public workshop led by the association to develop the job profile and salary guidance.