SEBASTIAN — It was with apparent great pleasure and a sense of relief that the Sebastian City Council at its Wednesday meeting, voted unanimously to name Interim City Manager Joe Griffin to the job he had been performing since mid-December.
Griffin had been appointed to the interim post shortly after then-City Manager Al Minner resigned to take a similar position in Leesburg, Fla.
Although the entire Council had always held Griffin in high regard and both Councilman Richard Gillmor and Mayor Bob McPartlan had pushed for naming Griffin to the permanent position right away, the Sebastian City Council ultimately decided it would be wisest to go through the entire search process.
To that end, the City enlisted the help of the Florida City and County Management Association Range Rider Program, in which respected, retired city and county managers with lengthy experience volunteer to assist municipalities seeking new leadership.
Following a meeting with staff the previous week, Range Rider and Vero Beach resident Kurt Bressner appeared before Council to present the list of nine semi-finalists, chosen after each of the 42 submitted resumes had been carefully studied and considered.
After noting they, too, had individually perused all the resumes, the Council members, in turn, spoke of how impressed they were with Griffin’s handling of the position during the past four months, even more so in light of the fact that he continued to perform the job of Community Development Director, which also encompasses airport and golf course manager responsibilities which he has held since 2006.
Several members of the public also voiced their support of Griffin.
The Council thanked Bressner and the other Range Riders for their guidance in conducting the search in a thorough and professional manner, with complete transparency, so the business of running the City could now proceed with the best possible leadership in place.
Griffin, soft-spoken and with a reserved, military bearing reflective of his years as a Marine Corps officer, appeared moved by the many words of praise.
“I am humbled by your trust and confidence,” he said. “And I will do all I can to live up to your expectations.”