BI Council encourages input via survey for new city manager
Published 1:30 am Thursday, March 12, 2026
As Bainbridge Island leadership continue to search for a new city manager, public input is key — but it’s up to the public to provide their voice, city councilmembers say.
Deputy Mayor Kirsten Hytopoulos and Councilmembers Brenda Fantroy-Johnson and Ashley Mathews, all members of a subcommittee focused on the recruitment of a new city manager, shared an update on the logistics of the process during the March 10 council meeting.
Council issued a public survey created by the executive recruitment firm Raftelis March 6 that aimed to collect a temperature check from BI residents, assessing their values for an incoming leader, and what they want to see council consider during the interview process. The responses will inform the hiring brochure — or job posting — that the council will issue in April. The survey will be open through March 20.
Throughout recruitment, council expects robust engagement from staff and the public, both for transparency and to align hiring priorities, explained Mathews. But the public’s understanding of the timeline of the process should be clear, she added.
“We’re not surveying to hire someone. Just so the community knows, the community is going to be involved; one of the things that we’ve made sure to keep top of mind is constant touch points for both the council, but more importantly, ways that the community is involved in this process and will be going forward,” said Mathews.
Once the survey closes and input from the public, staff and consultants are compiled, the hiring brochure will be available for public review prior to its distribution.
Mathews added that she had observed a misconception from the general public that the survey was from “an unknown population of island residents that will not likely represent the island’s population.” That’s not the case, she said.
“That’s why you need to share it with your people. Share the survey with your friends and your neighbors, so that the responses to the survey are from you,” Mathews said.
