North Myrtle Beach council names top finalists for city manager position. Who are they?
After spending hours in executive session, North Myrtle Beach city council announced their top three finalists for the open city manager role.
They are Ryan Fabbri, Edwin Madden and Tim Owens.
Fabbri is currently the second-highest paid North Myrtle Beach employee as interim city manager.
He previously was assistant city manager. Prior to working for North Myrtle Beach, Fabbri worked as the Town Administrator for Pawleys Island from 2015 to 2022. A story by the Georgetown Times at the time of Fabbri’s departure said he resigned due to “toxic” work environment.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Coastal Carolina University and a Master of Public Administration from Clemson University.
Lead spokesperson for North Myrtle Beach Lauren Jessie confirmed via text message to The Sun News that Edwin Madden is the current County Administrator for Columbus County, North Carolina and Tim Owens is the retired Wrightsville Beach Town Manager.
Madden’s LinkedIn states that he previously worked as the Town Manager for Elizabethtown, NC for 13 years. According to an article by The News Reporter, a state auditor found that the town failed to withhold $31,605 in Madden’s payroll taxes when he was town manager and that a credit card he used could’ve made non-town related purchases. In response to the allegations, Madden told the outlet that he paid the previously underpaid taxes and received a refund for overpayment, and that the town kept “meticulous” credit card records and he wasn’t the only person who used it.
He holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from Western Carolina University.
According to a news article from WCET, Owens worked for Wrightsville Beach for more than a decade before retiring in 2024. Prior to that, he also served as Town Manager for Carolina Beach and has over 30 years of local government service, the article states.
The search for a permanent city manager began after city council removed former city manager Mike Mahaney from the position last fall for allegedly not hiring a grants coordinator. Since his removal, Mahaney has announced that he will run for mayor in November 2025.
City council has another special meeting called for tomorrow, starting at 11 a.m., to vote on who the next permanent city manager will be out of the three finalists.
This story was originally published June 5, 2025 at 3:55 PM.
