City to interview 4 for manager
By Glenda S. Jenkins, News-Leader
Fernandina Beach Commissioners have again rejected the idea of initiating a new city manager search, discounting questions about one finalist's problems in his former job.
Commissioners voted 3-2 in a special meeting Thursday to interview four candidates on Feb. 11. Commissioners Bill Leeper and Joe Gerrity voted against the measure.
The commission will interview George Hunt and Michael Czymbor, who both applied for the city manager job after it was advertised in November.
Michel Shrum, former city manager of Winter Park, Colo., and Pamela Brangaccio, former county manager for Bay County, are recent recruits referred by the city's search consultant, Colin Baenziger. They did not apply for the post but commissioners voted to interview them based on a review of their resumes and Baenziger's recommendation.
But Leeper said a Sarasota Herald-Tribune article about Hunt received via e-mail caused him concern and he had been "rethinking the issue about readvertising."
The article describes Hunt's alleged role in the city's violation of federal Environmental Protection Agency regulations while serving as the city manager of Venice. He resigned from that job in January 2004 and became city manager of Barefoot Bay.
"We've all seen what has come out in the paper," Commissioner John Crow said. "I don't put a whole lot of weight on what the paper necessarily reports."
"I think the response or the explanation, somewhat to my satisfaction, has been answered. And I have no problem bringing him in for an interview," Mayor Ken Walker said of Hunt.
"I don't want us to settle for anything other than the best we can possibly get," Gerrity said. "I just hope there's not a feeling among some of our commissioners that we have to get this done to get it done. I think that's about the worst thing we can do for the city."
"I absolutely feel no pressure or obligation to pick a city manager just because we've invited candidates up for the interview process," Walker said.
Re-advertising the position nationally would take two and a half months, Baenziger said. A search limited to Florida would take about seven weeks.
"I'm not sure we'd get a broad enough base," he said about a Florida search.
"Re-advertising is going to do nothing (but) delay the process," Crow said. "And I think people are going to say . . . we can't seem to make up our mind."
Crow and Vice Mayor Beano Roberts, who are not seeking reelection when their terms end in April, will not work with the next city manager. But both said they would rather select a manager sooner rather than later.
"I'd rather have a voice in who's going to be there now, rather than wait for somebody else. I got more sense than a lot of people," Roberts said.
"This was the cream of the crop," he said. "There's nothing to make me think, that if you go out there tomorrow, you're going to get somebody better than the (candidates) who have already applied."
A public reception for the finalists is scheduled for 5:30-7:30 p.m. Feb. 10 at the municipal golf course clubhouse. Public interviews will convene at 1 p.m. Feb. 11 in commission chambers.
The commission is scheduled to vote on their selection for city manager in a special televised meeting at 5 p.m. Feb. 13.
gjenkins@fbnewsleader.com
Story created Feb 01, 2006 - 15:07:00 PST.
|
