City Manager - Cocoa

Job Description

Rich in history and culture, the City of Cocoa is one of the oldest cities along the Indian River. Originally founded by fishermen with some of the first families arriving around 1860, the City of Cocoa was finally incorporated in 1895. Cocoa is a diverse and active community of invention, courage, and adaptation that played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights movement. Cocoa’s history sets an important context for its pursuit of sustainability and resiliency.

Today, the City of Cocoa is ideally located in Central Brevard County, accessible by Interstate 95, State Roads 528, 520 and 524 and within minutes of Port Canaveral, Kennedy Space Center, and beautiful beaches. The City is just a short drive to Orlando International Airport and area attractions. Historic Cocoa Village is a thriving downtown with special events taking place nearly every weekend.

Cocoa is a diverse and unique community with a current population of 19,328. With an aggressive focus on economic development, the City’s population has increased by 17.8% since the early 2000’s. The diverse make‐up of the community consists of 62.5% white, 29.4% black, 15.7% Hispanic and .9% Asian population. Location, history, and the potential for growth within the community are just a few aspects that set Cocoa apart as a community. Cocoa is totally unique and innovative in planning for the future. Council has set forth a vision and a plan to continue to move the community forward through decisive and calculated strategic planning.

Cocoa operates under a Council Manager form of government where the City Manager serves as the Chief Executive and the City Council serves as the Board of Directors for the City with the Mayor as the Chairman. The City currently operates with a $40 million general fund budget and a total budget of $153 million including the Water/Sewer and Utility funds. There are currently 440 full‐me and 14 part‐me employees that provide full municipal services to its residents including Police, Fire, Public Works, Utilities, Administrative Services, Finance, and Community Services.

About The Candidate

The City of Cocoa is seeking a motivated, experienced, and visionary strategic leader to be its next City Manager. The successful candidate must be able to foster effective Council relations, have strong administrative skills, maintain positive community and intergovernmental relations, and support economic development and revitalization. It will be important for the next City Manager to establish and maintain trust, integrity, and transparency to foster positive and productive relationships with City Council, staff, stakeholders, and the community. A responsive and approachable manager who can promote collaboration and communication amongst staff is ideal. Also, a manager who will communicate with Council directly and frankly but is also comfortable taking direction from Council is preferred.

The next Cocoa City Manager must possess good judgement and effective decision‐making skills and be someone who can treat others with respect and dignity. Council is seeking a candidate who is fiscally responsible with municipal finance skills and who possesses a knowledge of human resources, public works, public safety, and economic development. Experience working effectively with elected officials and community stakeholders is a must. Also, a candidate that has experience working with diverse communities with a rich historic background is preferable.

The selected candidate should possess 3‐5 years of demonstrated relevant municipal or county management experience. A Bachelor’s Degree is required but Master’s degree is preferred from an accredited college or university with a focus in public administration, management or related field. Cocoa City Council expects the successful candidate to be a member in good standing or eligible for membership with the International City/County Management Association.

The selected candidate will be required to live within the city limits of the City of Cocoa within sixty (60) days of appointment as City Manager and remain a resident throughout his tenure per the City Charter.

Compensation and Benefits

• Hiring salary will be competitive and depend on qualifications and experience with the starting salary anticipated to be approximately $155,000 per year
• 100% Medical, Dental, Vision Insurance for employee and 50% for dependents City
• Health Clinic
• Florida Retirement System (FRS) ‐ Senior Management Class
• Voluntary 457 Deferred Compensation Program
• Long Term Disability Plan
• Generous Leave Program

How to Apply

Letter of interest and resume should be sent electronically to:
Mercer Group Florida
Dona Higginbotham
Senior Vice President
DHHiggin@att.net
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