Josh McMurray Appointed Oakley City Manager

After an extensive search, interim City Manager Joshua McMurray has been selected as the permanent City Manager for the City of Oakley. His appointment was finalized by the City Council, through a unanimous vote at their Tuesday, November 9th meeting.

“It’s a pleasure to announce Josh McMurray as Oakley’s next City Manager,” said Mayor Sue Higgins. “He’s proven to be a talented and dynamic employee and asset to us since he joined our staff back in 2008 and we can’t wait to benefit from his experience and leadership as our community continues to grow.”

McMurray has been acting as the City’s interim City Manager since May and has worked for the City of Oakley since 2008, initially as a planner and then in a variety of advanced roles before becoming the City’s Economic and Community Development Director in 2019.

“I’m very honored to be Oakley’s next City Manager,” said McMurray. “I want to thank the City Council for their confidence in me. I am looking forward to continuing the great work with the City Council, the exceptional Team Oakley Staff, and the Oakley community as a whole to make this City an even better place to live and work.”

McMurray holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from San Diego State University and is a graduate of the Contra Costa Local Government Leadership Academy. He served on the oversight board to the Successor Agency to the Oakley Redevelopment Agency. professional affiliations include membership in the American Planning Association, the International City/County Management Association, and the International Council of Shopping Centers.

In his spare time, McMurray enjoys cooking, as well as camping along the coast and at Lake Tahoe with his family.

“Oakley is a great community and I look forward to working collaboratively to create a culture built on trust, integrity and accountability, said McMurray

According to the Staff Report:

City Manager Bryan Montgomery ended his employment as City Manager, effective May 7, 2021, to take employment with another city. At its meeting on April 27, 2021, the City Council appointed Joshua McMurray to serve as Interim City Manager. The Council also directed the City Attorney to prepare a request for proposals for qualified executive search firms to facilitate the search for a new City Manager.

A request for proposals was prepared and issued, and the City Council selected Peckham & McKinney to serve as the firm to conduct the search for a new, permanent City Manager.

Maria Hurtado of this firm coordinated and supervised the recruitment, in which 36 candidates applied for the City Manager position. Of these applicants, and following a screening process, 8 candidates were presented to the City Council for consideration as finalists.

The Council chose 3 finalists. Interviews were conducted before the City’s Executive Team and the City Council on October 26, 2021. (One finalist withdrew shortly before the interviews because she had accepted employment with another city.)

Following its interviews on October 26, 2021, the City Council expressed its intention to appoint Joshua McMurray as permanent City Manager and directed the City Attorney to prepare an employment agreement with Mr. McMurray for consideration at the City Council’s regular meeting on November 9, 2021.

Mr. McMurray has been employed by the City for 13 years. He has most recently served as the Community Development and Economic Development Director.

The annual salary is $250,000, these provisions include annual benefits consistent with that received by City management employees, and a severance of eight months in the event of a not-for-cause termination.

• Staff Report:  click here
• Resolution:  click here
• Employment Agreement: click here

Editors Note:

• Antioch City Manager Ron Bernal salary is $293,712 per his contract.
• Brentwood City Manager Tim Ogden was hired in Jan. 2020 with a salary of  $246,900. However, the agreement included language ensuring the City Manager was paid a minimum five percent (5%) salary compaction above the highest paid department director. At the October 26 meeting, the council voted 3-2 (Meyer & Mendoza dissenting) in order to bring the City Manager’s pay to five percent (5%) above the highest paid department director, in this case, the Police Chief, as of July 1, 2021, the agreement (Term 3.1) requires upward salary adjustments to be approved by the City Council at a public meeting. To bring the City Manager’s salary in conformance with the employment agreement, the annual salary is  proposed to be adjusted from $259,500 to $273,565, a 5.42% increase.