Hilton Head suspends search for new town manager after 3 candidates drop out
The Town of Hilton Head Island has decided to suspend its search for a new town manager after a national search left the town with only two candidates, including Assistant Town Manager Josh Gruber.
“We believe that two interviewees (do) not validate the process nor the need for a town manager to take Hilton Head Island into the future,” Town Council member Tom Lennox said. “It isn’t a large enough sample to validate the process.”
The council voted unanimously Thursday morning to suspend the search and perform another in order to get more candidates.
Lennox added that the suspension does not imply that Gruber and the other candidate, Michael Bennett, are not qualified for the job.
Glenn Stanford, another Town Council member, said the situation was regrettable, but that the process is suspended until the Town Council sets the dates for a new search.
Departing Town Manager Steve Riley will retire Dec. 31. If the council has not named a new town manager by then, Gruber will act as the interim town manager. He is currently serving as town manager while Riley is on vacation until Oct. 5.
The decision comes after a contentious start to the week in which the town announced its four finalists for Riley’s job.
On Monday, the town announced its finalists only to see two of them withdraw their names on Tuesday.
Contacted Wednesday, an alternate candidate also withdrew from consideration. That left only Gruber and Bennett, who has served as city manager in Fruita, Colo. since 2014.
Some residents have complained the council is being too private in the hiring process. A candidate pool of only two has exacerbated suspicions about the process. The town paid $26,500 to hire executive search firm Colin Baenziger & Associates.
Contacted Wednesday, Baenziger said he could not comment on Gruber’s inclusion in the list, which some have speculated was a deliberate move by the Town Council.
The council holds all of its discussions about the town manager hiring process in executive session, which means members cannot share or announce efforts unless backed by an official vote on the matter, which must happen outside of executive session.
Baenziger, whose firm is responsible for placing over 70% of town managers in Florida, said it is common for a town council to add an internal candidate to the consideration process. He said he was displeased that two of his candidates withdrew their names from consideration.
The town will not have to pay for a second search, Baenziger said. The firm’s fee for a search extends “until we get a candidate,” he said.
The person chosen to be Hilton Head’s town manager will chart the course on town decisions at a crucial moment in the island’s history.
Under Riley, the town has created a robust land acquisition program and managed projects such as the Cross Island Parkway, the Lowcountry Celebration Park, Shelter Cove Towne Centre and countless road projects to handle the island’s growth.
Since Hilton Head has a part-time mayor/ full-time town manager system of government, the town manager oversees all town staff and is considered the person who turns Town Council objectives into actionable items that create material changes throughout the island.
The town manager must be responsible to the council for the proper administration of all affairs of the municipality including appointing employees, fixing salaries, preparing and executing the town’s annual budget and advising the council on future needs of the town, according to Riley’s job description on the town’s website.
Riley’s base salary, not including his benefits, is $189,426, according to the town’s Human Resources department.
The town’s job posting says the salary range for a new hire is between $158,000 and $245,000.
This story was originally published September 24, 2020 at 12:29 PM.
