David Buckingham
A former U.S. Army commander, who recently lost his post as the head of a base in Vicenza, Italy, is taking over Monday as Morro Bay’s new city manager.
In August, the Morro Bay City Council hired retired Army Colonel David Buckingham to become its new city manager. The council voted 4-1 to hire Buckingham, with Councilwoman Nancy Johnson dissenting.
Last year, Buckingham lost his position as the Army’s Vicenza garrison commander after a July 4 dust-up, in which he engaged in a verbal altercation with a military policeman. In the ensuing months, Buckingham tried to transition into a career in city management.
As Morro Bay was hiring him, Buckingham was wrapping up an employment dispute with the city of Bishop, Calif. The Bishop City Council hired Buckingham, but then backed out of the contract, prompting him to walk away with a $38,000 settlement.
In Morro Bay, Buckingham will receive a base salary of $160,000 a year.
He is the first full-time city manager to take over since the Morro Bay council majority forced out Andrea Lueker late last year.
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