Former Newport Beach city manager Dave Kiff may serve as Huntington Beach’s temporary leader

Dave Kiff, former city manager of Newport Beach, may temporarily serve in that role for Huntington Beach as the city conducts a nationwide effort to appoint a long-term leader by fall.

Lori Ann Farrell Harrison, currently Huntington Beach’s interim city manager following last week’s departure of former top administrator Fred Wilson, has been hired to be city manager of Costa Mesa. Farrell Harrison is expected to take her new post by July 1.

The Huntington Beach City Council will vote Monday on whether to appoint Kiff with hourly pay of $128.29 and no city-provided benefits.

Kiff, who left the Newport Beach city manager job at the end of August, recently served as interim executive director of the Assn. of California Cities-Orange County, a public policy group, where he helped start the Orange County Housing Finance Trust to help fund homelessness solutions and new supportive housing units.

Kiff also was tapped to provide transitional assistance to Costa Mesa at no cost in the wake of former city manager Tom Hatch’s departure in November.

Kiff’s career in Newport Beach spanned 20 years, including nine as city manager, before he left last summer. He worked on water quality, Newport Bay dredging, the annexations of Newport Coast and Santa Ana Heights, the extension of the city’s noise agreement with John Wayne Airport, pension reform and construction of the Civic Center complex.

He received a master’s degree in government administration from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s in business administration from Cal State Sacramento.

Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.