Assistant City Manager Steve Herbert is one the three finalists being considered for the Suffolk’s top administrative seat.

Mayor E. Dana Dickens III confirmed that Herbert, along with city administrators from Norfolk and Fredericksburg, are the top three contenders for the position being vacated when City Manager Myles E. Standish retires next week. The three interviewed with the Suffolk City Council last week. The other candidates are Shurl Montgomery, senior assistant city manager in Norfolk, and Marvin S. Bolinger, the city manager of Fredericksburg.

*Herbert, assistant city manager for development since 1997, came to the city from Portsmouth. Herbert, whose most recent professional coup is the Hilton Garden Inn proposed for Constant’s Wharf, is considered by many to be the leading contender for the job.

In Portsmouth, Herbert was responsible for the commercial revitalization of the city’s Midtown and Old Town communities.

*Montgomery, who started his career in Norfolk in 1978 as assistant director of Norfolk’s Department of Parks and Recreation, became director of the department the next year. He was named assistant city manager in 1990.

*Bolinger, city manager of Fredericksburg for the past decade, is stepping down from that position in January. City officials say Bolinger is focused on growth.

Both Herbert and Dickens refused to make comments.

Efforts to reach the Montgomery and Bolinger on Thursday were unsuccessful.

The council is expected to make a final decision by the middle of January, with the new city manager assuming the position in early February.