Palm Beach County's next administrator has big shoes to fill
Palm Beach County is Florida's fourth-largest. The county is home to more than 1.5 million and growing. Its 39 municipalities are varied and diverse, ranging from an island enclave of billionaires to more underprivileged rural and working-class communities. It is one of the nation's wealthiest counties, but at the same time, it struggles with ever-increasing cost of living, particularly in housing and rentals. Traffic combined with over-development is also a concern.
Its county government runs on a $9 billion budget and is one of the few counties in the nation with an AAA credit rating. Still, the county must balance a lot in meeting the demands from a variety of constituents — from residents and small business owners, to corporate interests and developers, to state and municipal governments. To put it bluntly, the next county administrator has some very big shoes to fill and had better have the credentials and experience to fit them.
County commissioners who have the final say in picking a new administrator initially passed on conducting a national search, a procedure that would assure the best available and experienced candidates. Instead, they opted to advertise the job, winnow the 200 applicants down to six finalists through the county's Human Resources office and a task force of volunteers selected by commissioners. The commission will interview them and make a final selection later in June.
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Under normal circumstances, the county's approach in choosing Baker's successor might be appropriate. But, for anyone who's been paying attention, these aren't exactly normal times. In Tallahassee, state lawmakers aren't yet close to an agreement that will guarantee the state has a new budget. The ongoing grudge match between Gov. Ron DeSantis and House Speaker Daniel Perez offers little reassurance that the county will come out whole in the process.
It's not much better in Washington, where House Republicans passed President Trump's big beautiful bill that contains major cuts in key programs that many Palm Beach County residents have come to depend on — Medicaid services, food stamps and Medicare. Add to that the ongoing chaos of executive orders and DOGE pursuits that have hollowed out several federal government services and eliminated important grants that have helped Palm Beach County.
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Closer to home, there's talk within the business community that Palm Beach County will "open up" after Baker leaves county government. In a contentious lawsuit against the county over what it should pay the county for six acres of land in West Palm Beach, the backers of Transit Village, the Miami-based BH Group, noted in a court filing that Baker's retirement could lead to a settlement. Growth and economic development remain important. However, the next county administrator shouldn't simply be a doormat for developers. There's a larger interest to be served, and it is the regard for the public that must be the priority. Any candidate failing to grasp that isn't qualified to hold the job.
Neither Baker nor her predecessor, former county administrator Bob Weisman, had a problem with keeping the county's concerns in the forefront of the many decisions they made, whether it was formulating a county budget, creating a workforce housing program or successfully getting voters to approve bond referenda for needed road improvements, school services or housing programs. That priority was shaped by years of county government service.
It's a high benchmark for any of the six finalists. Hopefully, it will be readily apparent in Baker's replacement.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County's administrator search marks new era | Editorial
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