Dr. Dave Lowery officially sworn in as Lynn Haven Mayor

LYNN HAVEN, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - Tuesday marked the beginning of a new chapter for Lynn Haven.

Dr. Dave Lowery was sworn in as the city’s new mayor on Tuesday.

Commissioners recently voted unanimously to have Lowery fill the seat until the next election in 2027.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are here tonight in a largely rebuilt community, and a brand-new city hall, swearing in a new mayor, and kicking in a new chapter in the city of Lynn Haven,” said Dr. Lowery.

Dr. Lowery says he served at Tyndall Air Force Base as a lieutenant colonel and is now a college professor who teaches public administration.

He says, although being the mayor of Lynn Haven wasn’t on his bucket list, he sees it as an opportunity to make a difference in the community.

“I saw many of the things that transpired in the past year regarding the former police chief and city manager and that didn’t sit well at all with me, therefore I said something’s got to be done, and I started off as a volunteer with the recall committee, I was just literally collecting petitions for my neighborhood, my community,” said Dr. Lowery.

Dr. Lowery says that when the recall was certified, he chose to step up.

“We are a utility city, we focus on utility functions right, power, water, sewage, first responders, we need to do those core duties to the best of our ability, we have a lot of issues right now organizational, where those things have not been given the attention they need,” said Dr. Lowery.

Dr. Lowery says some of his objectives for this 15-month term are enhancing transparency and accountability in the city, focusing on a collaborative team approach with the city council, and evaluating the city’s current allocation of manpower and payroll.

Dr. Lowery plans to hire a new city clerk and invite a state-level audit agency for a comprehensive look at city records.

“One person controls the people and the operations, and one person controls the policy and the resources, and those two must strategically align perfectly, in order for resources to be approved and you need both signatures on those checks or on those authorization forms,” said Dr. Lowery.

He says he is looking forward to working alongside the new police chief and looking for a new city manager.

Dr. Dave Lowery says he also plans to effectively address the ongoing water irrigation issue and standardize it across the city using only one system.

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