North Palm manager hopefuls down to 3 2-9-89Aee.#ds'
9.09V
North Palm -mana
ter hopefuls down to 3
NORTH PALM BEACH — The Village Colin i
e m g eil�i�s narrowed the
list of village manager candidates to three.
The three finalists, selected from 84 applicants, have been
interviewed in the last two weeks. They are Dennis Kell mana e
of DeLand in Central Florida and former manager of Long g r
t
on Florida's west coast; Robert Barcinski assistantLongboat Key
Delray Beach, and Curtis Shook ma city manager of
manager of Charlestown, R.I.
Village Manager Ray Howland, 59, plans to leave the 47 700- -
year yob Feb. 25. Howland, village manager for $ a
g g nine years, has said
he is retiring because of ill health.
The council might hire a new village manager at its meeting
tonight. Mayor Craig Mundt said the selection of a new has
manager as
been placed on the agenda, but he is uncertain whether
members are ready to make a decision to interview
council
or want
additional candidates.
The three finalists were interviewed separately b each
member. The council members have not had a chance
council
cll
ance since the
interviews to discuss their preferences, Mundt said.
He said it would be advantageous if the new manager h
experience in Florida, but the goal is to find the best e g had
job, person for the
Ex -Deland
By NORV R®GGEN
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
manager picl�ed tol Arun
which has a population of about rien
NORTH PALM BEACH — Den-
nis Kelly, former city manager of
DeLand, has been selected unani-
mously by the Village Council as
village manager.
If he agrees to contract terms,
Kelly, now a city management con-
sultant, will replace Ray Howland,
who is retiring Feb. 22.
Councilmen Thursday night ap-
pointed Mayor Craig Mundt to en-
ter. negotiations with Kelly for the
job. Howland's salary is $47,700,
but Kelly has requested a starting
salary of $53,000.
Kelly, 42, who holds degrees
from Florida State and the Univer-
sity of West Florida, said Friday he
is interested in the job and is confi-
dent he will be able to reach agree-
ment on a contract with the village,
13,000.
"I saw a lot of good, positive
signs when I was there," he said.
"They appear be the kind of people
you can communicate with. I was
impressed with the council's sin-
cere interest in the quality of life
there."
Councilman Jerry Gardner,
who made the motion to hire Kelly,
said all three of the final candi-
dates were outstanding. The others
were Robert Barcinski, assistant
city manager of Delray Beach, and
Curtis Shook, manager of Charles-
town, R.I.
"Kelly was by far the most
qualified," Gardner said. "He has a
good grasp of what it takes to run a
small village."
Mundt said he would have pre-
ferred someone who also had expe-
North Palm
ce in managing golf courses.
He said Barcinski was the only
candidate with that background,
but Mundt voted with the other .four
councilmen to make Kelly the top
choice.
The North Palm Beach Country
Club, a village -owned golf course
and recreation complex, comes un-
der the village manager's responsi-
bilities and will be closed for six
months starting April 1 for renova-
tion. The $1.2 million facelift has
been opposed by some golfers.
Besides DeLand, Kelly also has
served as city manager of three
other Florida communities —
Longboat Key, St. Cloud and
Blountstown. He is a major in the
U.S. Army Reserve.
"I hope I can co,-ne in, listen and
provide a fresh look," Kelly said.
"My element is working.busi-
nesslike environment."