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Ty Ross
City of Fernandina Beach will soon have a new manager at the helm. The city commission unanimously voted to offer the job to Ty Ross, choosing him over four other candidates.
“I am the right person at the right time to help lead this community in the future,” Ross told the city commission.
Ross was hired in a process that started earlier this year when the commission terminated the employment of Dale Martin. An executive search firm, Colin Baenziger, was engaged. That firm brought a list of candidates back to a committee made up of local residents who narrowed that field down to four. Those four candidates visited Fernandina Beach and were interviewed individually by the city commissioners and then publicly at a meeting held at City Hall Tuesday.
Commissioners were given the opportunity to ask the candidates questions, allowing the public to hear their answers and get to know a bit more about the candidates. Mayor Bradley Bean and Commissioners James Anton and Chip Ross asked the same questions of each candidate, while Vice Mayor David Sturges and Commissioner Darron Ayscue did not publicly address them.
Mayor Bean asked the candidates what they believe the city is doing well and where they believe there could be improvement. Ross said that while the city’s streetscapes are “particularly impressive,” he believes the city’s facilities could have a better appearance.
“There is some tidying up that could be done,” the candidate said. “There are some things at the water department and some public safety facilities; there is some pride that could be taken there. We have a program in Louden called ‘Looking Good Louden,’ it’s a community initiative to spruce things up and make them look better. We can certainly control our facilities and have the ability to improve them.”
Asked about accomplishments, Ross shared his experience opening what was a reservoir in Dalton Ga., which he said was closed after Sept. 11, 2001. He said it showed how to turn a “no” into a “yes.”
“Shortly after 9-11, razor wire was put around it and it was closed to the public. It was an easy decision for the utility department, not a lot of thought went into it,” Ross explained. “When we proposed the idea of opening it up for recreational use and park-type facilities, that was met with a hard ‘no.’ When you ask why, (the reply was), ‘There are regulatory reasons, EPA, or EPD.’ So, I got with those agencies, and asked what was possible. When I started talking to them, it got to ‘maybe.’ I brought them to the table with the city of Dalton and we found common ground and were able to open that reservoir and create a park for the public, which was constructed and is still in use today.”
Ross said another accomplishment he takes pride in is the repurposing of a former factory site in Louden, 12 acres of derelict property on the waterfront. He said he worked to secure the site and demolished the old factory and rezoned it, and now it is being permitted for apartments, townhomes and commercial development.
That experience also led to what he said was a negative experience that taught him a lesson. Just before the demolition, he said “a little old lady” was feeding cats in the abandoned factory, a dangerous place. He asked her to stop feeding the cats as they would keep coming back and possibly hurt or be killed by the demolition. He said the matter was posted to Facebook and “a couple of squirrely elected officials escalated it from there and it got out of hand.” He said it taught him one of principles he has used during his career: “Don’t do hard stuff alone.”
“Three tenants I have taken from what I have done over the past decade are: do no harm,” he said. “That applies to city staff as well as the municipality. Two, don’t do hard stuff alone. And three, make the person beside you proud, which means to serve. Do those three things, and you can be successful as a city manager.”
Antun asked the candidates if they have a plan for their first 90 days on the job. Ross said that after facing the challenges of moving his family (which includes his wife and 15-year-old son, he also has an 18-year-old son who is a cadet at West Point), he would get in the trenches with city staff.
“Something I have done in the past that works very well, is to spend a full eight hour working day working in each department as a front line employee,” Ross said. “For example, going on a midnight shift with the police department, getting in a ditch with the service man at the water department. Why do that? Because it shows empathy. It shows that I care about their jobs and I value them in the organization.”
Ross said he had familiarized himself with some of the inner workings of the city, and believes he is in a position to take over as city manager.
“I have looked through your budget. It’s a fine budget, a mature budget,” he said. “It has organizational charts, goals and objectives, things we can monitor and measure and things we can go back and enhance later on, as those goals and objectives are met, or not met. I have looked at your Capital Improvement Plan for the next five years. There’s nothing shocking there, nothing intimidating; it’s all things that I have handled in the past, if not larger projects.”
Ross told the News-Leader he believes he will be with the city of Fernandina Beach “many years.”
"I am honored and humbled to be selected as the next city manager of Fernandina Beach,” he said. “This is a wonderful community with a rich history and a bright future, and I am excited to be a part of it. I have been working in local government for 15 years, and have a deep understanding of the types of challenges and opportunities ahead. Moreover, I’ve got enough gas in the tank to provide many years of stability to the city. What’s particularly exciting to me though is the presence of a great team of city staff and officials I’ll get to work with. Together, we will strive to continue Fernandina Beach’s centuries-long winning streak.”
jroberts@fbnewsleader.com
