Joseph Yarbrough, City Manager retires after 31 years

Joseph Yarbrough approaches 43 years in his public service career. Joe Yarbrough started his career in 1975 as the Assistant to the Mayor of Chattanooga, TN and will complete his career on December 30^th of this year as the Manager of The City of South Daytona. Mr. Yarbrough was recognized at the last council meeting on December 11, 2018 by the Council members, along with a commemorative plaque, a presentation and well wishes from each of the Council members. Yarbrough thanked the Council, the staff, and his predecessors for all of the support through the years. He went on to praise the selection of Les Gillis and left Les with some words of wisdom. "It's a lot easier to predict the future when you create it, have a vision, stick with it and watch it come to fruition."

31 years is not your typical average career length of a City Manager nor is it typical in any one career. The City has accomplished many projects during Yarbrough’s time as City Manager. The City over saw the construction of new facilities, due to a huge part of Yarbrough’s help in procuring over $31 million dollars in grants during his tenure. A few of his accomplishments were The Piggotte Community Center, City Hall, Police and Fire Departments and other recreation facilities. He also helped with the boat launch at Riverfront Veterans Park and the sewer and water service upgrades. He helped to eliminate almost all of the flooding in the city by being a part of the flood mitigation projects as well.  Hyatt Brown, Chairman of the Volusia Managers Association who lived in South Daytona from 1939 to 1965 recognized Yarbrough’s accomplishments and his leadership in Volusia County. Brown was quoted as saying “There are some unforgettable people that you meet along the pathway of life and he is one of these people".