Daniel Figueroa IV, Staff Writer | PLANT CITY OBSERVER
Quite literally, Bill McDaniel started at the bottom. Now he’s here, Plant City’s newest city manager, the top of the city’s administrative pyramid, the CEO to the commission’s executive board.
In Plant City’s commission-manager form of government, the commission is responsible for hiring three positions: city attorney, city clerk and city manager. The city manager is then responsible for the rest of the city’s approximately 400 employees, carrying out the city’s daily operations and executing the will of the commission, which is usually determined based on information and recommendations provided by the city manager.
McDaniel started his career in Plant City as a rookie cop with the Plant City Police Department in 1985, rising to become the departments chief for 16 years, until 2012 when he was selected by then-City Manager Greg Horwedel to be assistant city manager. McDaniel’s hiring as city manager marks a full rise from entry-level employment with the city to holding its top staff position.
