Search to fill Beaufort County’s top job still shrouded in mystery

While longtime Beaufort County administrator Gary Kubic is set to retire next week, members of the Beaufort County Council say they still have no immediate plans to publicly discuss who may be tapped to replace him.

The council meets Monday and members — some of whom have said they’d welcome public input in the hiring process — expect to talk about the search for a new administrator. But Council Chairman Paul Sommerville said Friday those discussions will be held in a closed-door executive session.

Councilman Jerry Stewart said he is “not aware of anything scheduled in the future” beyond Monday’s meeting to publicly discuss the process or the identities of candidates.

The county has yet to release a finalist list for Kubic’s position. The Island Packet and Gazette first reported earlier this month that longtime Hilton Head town manager Steve Riley is believed to be a candidate, according to multiple sources. Deputy county administrator Josh Gruber confirmed he is an applicant.

The newspapers submitted a request Sept. 5 to the county under the S.C. Freedom of Information Act for the identities of any remaining candidates. The law requires that “materials relating to not fewer than the final three applicants under consideration for a position must be made available for public inspection and copying.”

Two days later, the county denied the papers’ request, claiming officials had “not yet received a list of applicants for consideration for this position” from Slavin Management Consultants, a firm hired to assist in the search process.

A second, similar Freedom of Information Act request was made Sept. 20. While the county attorney’s office has acknowledged receipt of the request, the candidate list has yet to be provided.

Although there is no state law requiring local governing bodies to hold public interviews of finalists for top public positions, officials can opt for more transparency in hiring the process.

“The public has far more faith in a search that’s conducted in maximum openness,” Bill Rogers, executive director of the South Carolina Press Association, said earlier this week.

By conducting candidate interviews in open session, “the public has some oversight over the hiring process” and governing bodies reduce the risk of “bad hires,” he said.

All of the council members reached Friday said they intend to abide by the Freedom of Information Act, but none said they plan to independently make any motions at Monday’s council meeting to hold hiring discussions during a public session.

Council plans to meet with staff from Slavin Management Consultants next month for an update on the search for Kubic’s replacement.

“I imagine after that, we will have to say something” in a public setting, Councilman Rick Caporale said Friday.

Once final candidates are identified, Caporale said he would support holding meet-and-greets with the public prior to a hiring decision.

“Why not have an evening when people can come in and talk to them?” he said.

Councilmen York Glover and Mike Covert also said they would be in favor allowing locals to meet finalists, but stopped short of calling for the interview process to be held publicly.

“I think a reception of some sort (to publicly introduce finalists) would be appropriate,” Glover said. “Anytime you can get public input, it helps with the process.”

Covert said, “The citizenry elected us to do our job and (hiring a new administrator) is part of our job.”

Councilman Brian Flewelling said a public meet-and-greet with finalists is probably unnecessary.

“I think that public notice of the names of these individuals, and giving the public the opportunity and time to investigate and make comments (at a County Council meeting) is enough,” he said.

Councilman Stu Rodman took a similar position, saying Friday, “I personally don’t see a need for it, but if we end up (holding public meet-and-greets or interviews) that would be fine.”

Councilman Tabor Vaux declined to comment Friday.

Councilwoman Alice Howard, along with Councilmen Steve Fobes and Gerald Dawson could not be reached for comment.

Hilton Head Island Town Council is currently grappling with its own issues related to transparency in personnel matters.

The board had planned earlier this week to talk publicly for the first time about Riley’s employment situation, but that discussion was later postponed.

Riley — who, at times, has had a contentious working relationship with Hilton Head Mayor David Bennett — has sought at least four out-of-state government jobs, though he was not offered any of those positions.

The town elected officials have been meeting behind closed doors periodically for more than a year to discuss Riley’s job.

The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette revealed in July that the council secretly hired the McNair Law Firm to assist council members with the matter.

This story was originally published September 22, 2017 at 3:21 PM with the headline "Search to fill Beaufort County’s top job still shrouded in mystery."