Lakewood advances city manager search to five finalists

Lakewood City Council has selected five finalists in its search for the city’s next city manager, moving the leadership decision into a public-facing stage before the council makes a final appointment.

Residents are scheduled to meet the finalists and provide feedback at a public forum Aug. 6 at Belmar Park. The City of Lakewood announced the five finalists July 21 after what it described as a national search.

The city manager position is a consequential one in Lakewood government. The manager oversees day-to-day municipal administration, including the city budget and departments, and carries out policies adopted by the City Council.

Five finalists remain in the search

The council’s selection of five finalists narrows the search but does not complete it. The council is conducting the search for Lakewood’s next city manager, and no final appointment date was identified in the approved materials.

The city’s July 21 announcement confirmed that the council chose the five people following a national search. The materials available for this report did not identify the finalists by name.

That distinction matters because the five people are finalists, not the selected city manager. The council has not formally appointed a successor through the information provided in the city announcement and meeting calendar.

Public forum set for Belmar Park

The Aug. 6 forum gives Lakewood residents an opportunity to meet the finalists and offer feedback while the council’s search remains underway. It is scheduled at Belmar Park in Lakewood.

Residents who want to follow the decision can treat the forum as the next identified public step in the process. The available materials establish the date and location, but they do not establish the forum’s exact start time.

Public feedback is part of the process described for the forum, while the City Council remains the body responsible for choosing the next manager. The approved information does not describe the forum as a vote or say that resident feedback will determine the council’s eventual appointment.

What comes next

Lakewood’s meeting calendar also lists additional City Council meetings in August, including a regular council meeting Aug. 10. The calendar confirms that the council will continue to have scheduled public meetings shortly after the finalist forum, though the approved materials do not specify whether the city manager search will be on that meeting’s agenda.

For residents, the upcoming forum is the clearest known chance to see the finalist stage of the search in person before the council completes its decision. The eventual appointment will affect the official responsible for the administration of city services, the budget, city departments and the implementation of council policy.

Lakewood has not announced a final selection in the materials reviewed. Until the council formally appoints a manager, the search remains in its finalist phase.