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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-01-92 ,-". KlNUTES OF THE CITY OF OCOEE BOARD OF COKKISSIONERS REGULAR KEETING HELD December 1, 1992 The regular meeting of the Ocoee Board of City Commissioners was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Mayor Vandergrift in the commission chambers. Reverend Lester Weldon led in the prayer and Chief Boyd led in the pledge of allegiance. The roll was called and a quorum declared present. PRESENT: Mayor Vandergrift, Commissioners Combs, Foster, Johnson, and Woodson. Also present were Acting City Manager Beamer, City Attorney Rosenthal, City Engineer/Utilities Director Shira, Planning Director Behrens, Public Works Director Brenner, Building Official Flippen, Chief Boyd, Chief Strosnider, and City Clerk Grafton. ABSENT: City Manager Shapiro. PRESENTATIONS AND PROCLAMATIONS There were no presentations or proclamations made at this time. CONSENT AGENDA The proposed consent agenda consisted of items A and B. ~ Acceptance and Approval of Kinutes of Regular Commission Keeting of ~ovem.ber 17, 1992. B. Approval and Authorizati<?n to Execute Kitchell Building Contractors, Inc. Change Order 11 in the Amount of $4,022 for Withers-Kaguire House Restoration. ''-" Commissioner Woods~~conded by Commissioner Combs, moved to ap~ the consent agen~~res~nted. Motiop carried with unanimous vote in favor. COHKENTS FROK CITIZENS/PUBLIC Kr. John Terrell, 3831 McKinnon Road, Windermere, presented a basketball shootout challenge from Winter Garden Kayor and Board of City Commissioners to the Ocoee Kayor and Board of City Commissioners to be held at Vest Orange High School on December 12, 1992 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. The purpose of the Shoot-A- Thon is to raise money for shoes, balls, and uniforms for the basketball teams. Kayor Vandergrift said that he had received the packets from Mr. Terrell and would deliver them to the Commissioners. Kr. Terrell said that publicity shots will be made on Thursday at 4:20 p.m. and on Tuesday, December 22 the money should be turned in at Adams Crossing. Consensus was that this Commission will show up. Kr. Bart Rostiser, 90 E. Circle Key Drive, expressed his concern regarding the decreased value of his home and investment in Pioneer Key Park #1 brought about by the slum lords in that area. Krs. Frances Watts, 43 Shell Key Court, added her concern to Mr. Rostiser's and said that she has repeatedly called it to this Commission's attention. She also expressed concern over the possibility that the Ku Klux Klan will march in the Ocoee Christmas Parade on December 5. "--' Commissioner Combs said that he had felt for some time that the requirements regarding trailer parks should be changed and had asked Staff to rewrite the ordinance. Building Official Flippen advised that he has prepared the ordinance '-'" Page 2 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 and it is in the hands of the City Attorney. City Attorney Rosenthal said that Staff has prepared a minimum housing code and it will be before the City Manager for review within 10 days. KayorVandergrift said that the ordinance alone may not be the answer, that there is a need to sit down with the homeowners in a joint session after the first of the year and see if a creative solution can be reached. COlIIDissioner Foster said that the homeowners are not the ones at fault, but rather the problem lies with the absentee landlords, who comprise 60% of the owners in the trailer parks. Acting City Kanager Beamer said that the work session with the property owners could be held in conjunction with the minimum housing code and by consensus the date for the meeting was set for January 20, 1993 at 7:00 p.m. Mr. Walter Koore said he has fought with the Mayor and Police Department for 5 years regarding conditions in the trailer parks and things are a little better, but the real need is for a homeowners' association. PUBLIC HEARINGS - None OTHER BUSINESS City Hall/Police Department Update - C. T. Hsu, Architect ~ Acting City Kanager Beamer said that the City Commission reviewed the schematics for the project and since that time some additional review has been done as to space and location of various departments. The site plan as a whole was also considered based on what the regulatory agencies are requiring as well as the constraints of the dollars involved. Ks. Beamer asked Mr. Rick Merkle, Professional Engineering Consultants, to show the differences in the site plan that may be required which may affect the placement of the buildings and the treatment for the ditch and the retention ponds, which he did. Kayor Vandergrift asked what items will be put out to bid. Ks. Beamer advised that the demolition of both the City Hall and the Police Department Building and possibly some of the parking area, this last contingent upon whether the retention area can be downsized. Mayor Vandergrift asked if it was a matter of record whether the City Hall people would be moved into the communi ty center during the construction period. Ks. Beamer responded that the community center would be used along with some temporary structures in the parking lot. Ks. Beamer moved to the review of the schematic and asked Mr. Hsu to continue. Kayor Vandergrift asked if there were questions from the floor and Mr. R.P. Mohnacky asked several questions about the position of the buildings and the lake. ~/ Kr. C.T. Hsu said that they had met with department heads and since that time had been working on the comments received. Ks. Kari Haeflein, Director of Interior Design, said that the plan is essentially the same with minimal changes made, and she walked through the whole design. Kr. Hsu said they had studied different '-" Page 3 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 elevations and said that besides the functional and space relationship they are looking at the process to make sure the design will meet the final budget. Ks. Beamer said that Commission should give Mr. Hsu some direction regarding the type of architecture desired for the exterior so that the cost estimate produced will be based on that type of architecture. Commissioner Johnson said that he is looking for a Florida cracker type structure with a porch. Kayor Vandergrift asked Mr. Hsu to wait until the next item on the agenda was over and permit those who wished to look at the plans to do so. Kr. Hsu said that he would provide a mockup of the proposed design for the next meeting. Consensus was to have a work session on December 15, 1992 at 7:00 p.m. in order to review the mockup and cost estimates so that a d~cision can be made at the regular meetinq reqarding the desiqn documents. ~. City Kanager Contract Renewal Acting City Kanager Beamer advised that City Manager Shapiro had pulled this item from the agenda and it would be placed on the agenda for the December 15 regular meeting or a work session. Kayor Vandergrift asked City Attorney Rosenthal for his opinion on whether this item could be considered tonight even though Mr. Shapiro had pulled the item. Kr. Rosenthal explained that the chair can decide to leave the item on the agenda or any Commissioner can decide to keep it on. Kayor Vandergrift called attention to his request for information from Mr. Shapiro, and said that he had also asked Mr. Shapiro to delay placing this on an agenda for two weeks to give him an opportunity to review the material. Kayor Vandergrift said he has not yet received the information requested, and on the basis of fairness to the City Manager, he asked that this item be left on the agenda, and he asked that remarks be limited to two minutes. Kayor Vanderqrift moved to not extend City Manager Shapiro's contract beyond the expiration date, to put him on vacation. leave beginning Wednesday and put Acting Ci tyManaqe"r Beamer in his position. The motion died for lack of a second. Kayor Vandergrift asked City Attorney Rosenthal to brief the citizens on the recent background of this item. ...... Kr. Rosenthal advised that he had had discussions with Mayor Vandergrift last week regarding his request for additional information from City Manager and with Mayor, City Manager and individual Commissioners throughout the day answering certain questions set forth in a memorandum regarding the City Manager's contract. Kr. Rosenthal said that he had requested that any queries regarding this issue be directed to him. He related the events of the day: that Mayor had (through him) made an appointment with Mr. Shapiro for Tuesday afternoon to discuss the Mayor's lack of support for the renewal of the contract and would discuss his resignation at that meeting; City Manager advised that unless he was prepared to resign (and at that time he was not) he did not plan on meeting with the Mayor; later on Mr. Shapiro indicated that there were some circumstances under which he would consider resigning, and he asked Mr. Rosenthal to prepare some documentations probably along the lines of those used with former City Manager Ted Ryan, which would involve six months severance pay and the accrued '-" Page 4 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 '-'" vacation. That is consistent with the provisions of the current employment contract which provides that in the event of termination of the contract without cause that there would be an entitlement for severance pay and he considers these discussions to be comparable to termination without cause. There were some discussions back and forth wi th the Mayor and Ci ty Manager regarding those provisions. We concluded it was not necessary to meet. Later in the day, City Manager advised that he had considered the matter further and he was not interested in resigning and he wanted to go forward with the consideration of his employment contract. Mr. Shapiro said he intended to be at his desk on Wednesday, but that the events of today had caused him to feel somewhat ill and he would not be present at this meeting tonight. In terms of options before the City Commission: 1) this matter could be postponed to a date certain, 2) a workshop session could be scheduled, 3) the contract could be approved, 4) the contract could be approved with modifications. The terms of the contract contemplate that within six months prior to the conclusion of the employment agreement that it would come up to the City Commission, so the City Manager is bringing it up consistent with the contract. If no action were taken to extend the contract it would expire on February 18, 1993 and Mr. Shapiro would then be enti tIed to his accrued vacation and sick leave benefits. He would not be enti tled to any severance pay due to non-renewal. If Commission wished to dismiss the City Manager there are procedures in the Charter for dismissal with or without cause which, Mr. Rosenthal said, he could brief Commission on. Without cause would involve severance pay, and with cause would not involve severance pay, along with various issues Commission might wish to consider. Kr. Rosenthal stated the highlights of the proposed renewal to the contract which expires February 19, 1993: 1) that the salary be increased from the current salary of $62,500 to $64,500, with the caveat that there is a provision in the contract that says that the base annual salary shall always be at least 10% greater than the base annual salary of all other regular employees; 2) that all of the existing benefits remain in place with two exceptions: vacation now accrues at 10 days per year and he requests that it be changed to 15 days per year accrual; 3) that deferred compensation be changed from 8% to ICMA (in lieu of contribution to the City's plan) to 11% to ICMA (which was a subject of discussion at a prior City Commission workshop several years ago); 4) other benefits which would remain in place which are similar to other City employees are sick leave, holiday pay, health insurance, continuing his automobile, dues, subscriptions, life insurance equal to double the amount of the annual base salary. '-" Kr. Rosenthal said that the current contract addresses various issues with respect to termination and severance pay which are not proposed to be changed, however, as some of the Commissioners were not here when the original contract was adopted he would go over those also. The Charter (Section C Article IV) provides provisions with respect to the removal of the City Manager and they apply without regard to the employment contract. If the City Commission wants to remove the City Manager, it takes a majority vote of the members of the City Commission to adopt a preliminary resolution which requires that you state the reasons for removal and that then allows the City Manager to be suspended for a '- "'" -..,. Page 5 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 period not to exceed 45 days. These are basically procedural due process protection. A copy of that resolution then be delivered to the City Manager and then within 5 days after the City Manager receives the resolution he can file a written reply and/or request a public hearing before the City Commission. There are then time frames for the establishment of that public hearing. There are then procedures by which a public hearing is held and the City Manager can be removed by an affirmative vote of a majority of the City Commission. Kr. Rosenthal said that he would characterize the Charter provisions as removal with cause because it requires that specific reasons be stated. There is a specific provision in the Charter that a non-renewal of a City Managers' contract with the City does not constitute a removal requiring compliance with the provisions of the Charter. A failure to renew or extend the City Manager's contract would not bring into play any of the Charter provisions. In terms of the severance provision in the agreement, at the time the current agreement was negotiated the City Manager agreed that if he were removed pursuant to the Charter provisions which would be a removal with cause and under those circumstances there would be no entitlement to severance pay, just the entitlement to accrued vacation and sick leave. There is no change with respect to that provision. Likewise, there is a provision which is outside of the Charter, and at the time it was originally adopted Mr. Rosenthal said he had pointed out that it really was not clear exactly how this provision sat consistent with the Charter, but he felt that the Ci ty Commission and the City Manager could mutually agree to the particular provision. That provision deals with the termination without cause with respect to which the Charter provisions do not apply and that involves a 5 day notice by the City Commission to the City Manager of their intention to remove him without cause which then brings into play basically 6 months of severance pay, plus accrued vacation and the like. That would then result in termination without going through the Charter provisions. And that is also currently in the proposed agreement. The term of the contract extension that the City Manager is requesting is a 3 year extension, which would take the contract to February 19, 1996, and the balance of the provisions are boilerplate provisions. In explaining how the proposed contract was put together, Kr. Rosenthal said that the City Manager marked up his existing contract, and he then reviewed the proposal as part of the agenda packet. From a legal standpoint, should a majority of the City Commission wish to approve the employment contract or amend it, it is properly placed on the agenda for Commission to take action; however, there is no requirement for Commission to take action this evening. Kayor Vandergrift explained why he had made the motion and then to Mr. Shapiro, the body of which follows: "You mentioned on the Tallahassee trip your intent to ask employment contract at a commission meeting in December. contract renewal, I request that you furnish me with the he read his memo for a renewal of your Before you seek this following: 1. 2. A copy of your current contract: A copy of all information in your employment file including, {sic} the original contract, resume, and minutes of meetings at which your contract was discussed; A report on accumulated vacation, sick, and compensatory time pending; 3. \.. Page 6 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 4. A summary of your accomplishments while city manager, including copies of all procedures (suggested and implemented), policies, charter information, laws, and any other information you think would assist the commission in its decision; 5. Your short-term and long-term plans for the city; 6. Your request for the terms of your contract. Please provide this information to me in writing at least two weeks prior to the public meeting at which your request is to be made. This memo is a recommendation of procedures to allow you the best opportunity to qualify your request for continued employment. I assure you that you will get fair consideration in this matter." Kayor Vandergrift then read his prepared statement, which follows: THE CITY MANAGER AS I SEE HIM ELLIS SHAPIRO "On Thursday October 29, 1992, five days before the election, I received word while attending a meeting of the Concerned Citizens for Better Government, that a rumor was afloat that the City Manager had said he would resign if I were elected Mayor. '-" On Friday October 30, I met with Mr. Shapiro in his office in City Hall to clear the air regarding the rumor. He said that he had told only a few close friends and acted surprised that I had heard it. He also said that he could not serve as City Manager in a government that had a strong Mayor for the following reasons: 1. He is opposed to citizen involvement in government through volunteer committees, because they are too costly and their existence is just a nuisance and requires too much time to coordinate. 2. He didn't want anyone telling him how to do his job. 3. He was opposed to the public knowing too much about the inner workings of his government. 4. He informed me of how to be Mayor. There were other reasons that slip my mind now, but these were the hardest for me to swallow. I listened and commented that if I had heard the rumor in a meeting of non-supporters of Ellis Shapiro that I felt that it was put out as a part of a campaign to block my election as Mayor. He denied that that was true but stated he meant what he said. "- The day after the election I met with Ellis again and he informed me that he wasn't stupid and there wasn't much of a job market for City Managers and that he indented (sic) to stay and conduct himself wi thin the guidelines of the '--' Page 7 Ocoee City Commission Regular Meeting December 1, 1992 charter, and expected me to do the same. (The charter should be revised to establish a provision that says that the City Manager should not be allowed to politic for one candidate or the other and such actions be grounds for suspension or dismissal.) In subsequent meetings with the City Manager, I have been told the following: 1. I have no right to change or add to the agenda for City Council meetings; that the agenda is to be made up by the City Manager. 2. I should not take too much of employees' time talking to them. 3. I should not request a task of any employee without asking the City Manager first. 4. I have asked for a staff meeting to introduce myself and have not been invited to the regular staff meeting. Nor have I been offered a special staff meeting. 5. I have asked for an organizational chart of the people who work for the city and their positions. To date I have not received an accurate chart. '-" 6. There is no plan for newly elected officials to indoctrinate them as to the issues before us, or the issuance of papers, pamphlets, or information that would help them to come up to speed on what is before the Commission. I have had to ask for and prod to get what information that has been forthcoming and I feel a lot has been left out. In the future, within one week of election, a packet containing all the information needed to make them effective commissioners should be supplied to newly elected officials. 7. There are intimidating remarks regarding the recent election being made to city employees. These remarks must be stopped and the person or persons involved in the intimidation should be addressed in such a manner that this situation should never occur again. Every employee in the city has a right to support the candidate of his or her choice on his or her own time without fear of being persecuted by their superiors. The use of city-paid time for political purposes should be strictly prohibited. 8. The recent "secret" press conference during the campaign was pure politics, and I highly suspect that time and employees were used, with or without their knowledge, for promoting a political service. In my administration there will be no secret press conferences or the use of employees' or city time to promote any singular candidate. 9. The City Manager is using the "Sunshine Law" to divide and conquer the commission. The commissioners are not allowed to talk to each other outside meetings but the City Manager is allowed to lobby each commissioner one a time (sic), thus prevailing in matters that he deems ..... '-'" Page 8 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 important to his power base or that he deems might lessen his power to dictate over city offices. He has assured me that he has the three votes needed to renew his contract regardless of his actions toward me, other commissioners, staff, employees, or citizens. As of November 25, I requested that certain information be furnished to me two weeks before he places this important action on the agenda. He did not provide the requested information and placed this issue on the agenda anyway because of those votes and the lobbying efforts he put in. Had I not presented the memo on the 25th, I probably would not been (sic) told of the agenda item until I got my package late Friday afternoon. While running for office, I conducted a survey of citizens and, without asking them expressly about the City Manager, I received a negative opinion on the City Manager from 9 out of 10 voters who expressed an opinion. While introducing myself to employees, the same sentiment ran about 7 out of 10 of those who weren't afraid for their jobs and who were willing to talk to me. Of the staff who were willing to talk and who are not afraid of losing their jobs, more than a majority of them expressed fear, resentment, and downright distrust for the current City Manager as well as other staff members. I was told that some of the staff are ready to leave for other positions if a satisfactory ~ solution was not found (meaning a new City Manager) . I believe our city is sinking into a Machiavellian form of government under the management of Ellis Shapiro, instead of looking for ways to involve people who have idealistic values that will make this city the most forward looking form of government that taxes can pay for. I ask you to join me in the search for that kind of government of laws rather than people, of debate and not deceit, of involvement not of rigged elections. While being in office recently for just less than a month, I come to the job in my fifth year as a public servant to this community, as a past city commissioner and Mayor. In those periods of service, I tried very hard to be a team player and not to cause unrest in the community and, at the same time, I tried to speak out about unconscionable abuses of the powers of Ci ty Hall and to get the commission to plan for the future and conquer the problems of the day. I have won some and lost some in those four previous years. Some commissioners who might try to portray me as a Johnnie-come-Iately should step back and take a look at my record of firsts in the organization of this current government that were truly accomplished by prodding and continued effort in hands-on government that has helped to bring this city to the place it is today." ~ Commissioner Combs said that the Mayor's words were a shock to him and that he took offense at some of the words, particularly the statement about rigged elections. Commissioner Combs said that he thought a workShop to review the charges would be in order and started a motion regarding the time and date for the workshop. After several suggestions were incorporated (one being from Mayor '-'" Page 9 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 Vandergrift to assure that he would get the information he had requested}, the motion was as follows: Move to hold a workshop December 17, 1992 at 7:30 p.m. with Ellis Shapiro and Commission to review the proposed employment contract and charges in the Mayor's paper, and that the Mayor be provided WIth the documents he asked for. comiisiUOOler Foster seconded the motion. A lengthy session of public comment ensued which is set forth below. At the end of the session the vote was taken for this motion with Commissioners Combs, Foster, Johnson and Woodson votina "aye," and Mayor Vandergrift voting "no." Motion carried. City Attorney Rosenthal pointed out that no action could be taken at a work session, but no one moved to change this from a work session to a special session. Both Commissioner Combs and Coamissioner Woodson asked that an update on the salaries of City Manager, Administrative Services Director, City Engineer, and Planning Director be provided before the next meeting. Kayor Vandergrift asked for a recess and Commissioner Combs said that he would prefer to finish this matter before a break was taken. Kayor Vandergrift said there were three names of those who wished to speak and there was no way for him to know who was pro and who was con, but he did know the position of one of those and he would not begin with that person, and he hoped that they would understand. ~ He then called on Pat Bond. PUBLIC COHKENT REGARDING CITY KANAGER CONTRACT RENEWAL: '-' Mrs. Bond approached the podium and said, "My name is Pat Bond, I reside at 295 N. Lakeshore Drive in the City of Ocoee, and I have a couple of thoughts I want to share with everyone tonight. I'm not here to pass judgement on anyone, it's just observations on things that I hope all of you as Commissioners will take into consideration. To begin with, I think everyone needs to remember where our City was a number of years ago. I think we need to remember the quest that we had and the trials and tribulations that we had with all of our various city managers. My personal opinion is that the whole idea of non-renewal of the City Manager's contract is hasty. With all respect, Mr. Mayor, I don't think that the City Commission, the present Mayor, the Staff, and the City Manager have had enough time yet to be able to all meld together and find out how each person's personality works. It seems to me that all this is being brought about by a personality conflict. That concerns me. I'm not interested in personality conflict. Everyone should be professional enough to get past that. We are looking at each and everyone of you, Commissioners, Mayor and Staff, to be responsible to the people of the City of Ocoee, and to do your best by us. That means spending our money wisely and spending your time wisely. That's not going to happen if there are personality conflicts. I also understand, and I truly believe in the right of everyone to express what their opinion is. I recognize that I'm opinionated. However, I do feel like, in being opinionated, I have a right to it. I have paid my dues to the City. I have been on the Planning and Zoning Board, I'm a present Commissioner on that Board, I'm Past Chairman of the Merit System Board. I've tried to get involved. I have a real hard time with ~ Page 10 Ocoee City Commission Regular Meeting December 1, 1992 '-- people who give opInIons based on personality conflicts when they have not come forward and given of themselves and their time to our City. It disappoints me that we have those types of people who are trying to oust our present City Manager. Mr. Shapiro and I have not always seen eye to eye. As a matter of fact we joke about it. He tends to say to me, "Pat, the only time I hear from you is when you have a complaint." and I say to him, "Well, as long as you don't hear from me, everything's O.K." That is the way I feel about it. Mr. Shapiro has put us on a path for progress. Everyone of the decisions that he made has been censored by the City Commission as a whole in the City of Ocoee. For us to even think about taking out a City Manager when we are in the middle of the river is absurd. Instead what we need to do is sit down, iron out our differences, allow the City Manager to do his job, and have the Mayor the latitude to do his job, the documentation that needs to be provided, and I think that we can all work this out. But I don't think we need to go on a witch hunt. I don't think that we need to have to replace our City Manager three and four times at the cost (which would be pretty interesting if everyone knew what the last four managers cost us). Besides the fact, that to bring a City Manager up to speed when we are in the progressive state we are in now would be an incredible feat for any man to do. Now I've gone over my two minutes, so I thank you very much. But I do urge you, tonight before even a workshop is made, and if not then at the workshop, to put your confidence back where it belongs, to the man that you have supported in the past and retain him, continue with his salary increase the way he has requested. He is not asking anything that any other professional would not ask for and is being granted in the professional field right now. Thank you for your time." There was applause following Mrs. Bond's remarks and Mayor Vandergrift asked that everyone refrain from such demonstration, as both sides would be presented and he asked that the speakers not make this a condemnation of him for what he has done or a flowery exercise for the City Manager. Kayor Vandergrift then said that he did not know how each person was going to speak to the issue but he had some suspicions and he recognized Susan Swilley. '-'" Mrs. Swilley approached the podium and said, "I am Susan Swilley, and I reside at 1002 Malcolm Road in Ocoee. I would like to address you this evening about our City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. I do not believe that he represents or serves our City well. I call to your attention the layoffs in February which, I believe, were a direct result of his inability to formulate and administrate a balanced budget. Our City requires an expert fiscal manager, especially wi th the growth we are experiencing. Additionally, we need a good public relations manager. A mere glance at Mr. Shapiro or a few words with him should convince you to look elsewhere for this quality. I have spoken to many citizens of our community and the overwhelming consensus is that we need better representation. I have also spoken to many City employees who are tired of working for an individual who lacks quality leadership skills and has empowered our personnel director resulting in contamination of our working environment and poor morale in our employee ranks. I say our City employees deserve better. Lastly, I have spoken to all of you except one of our elected officials about this concern. Tonight, I urge you not to renew Mr. Shapiro's contract, but to dismiss him and ~ ~ ~ Page 11 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 move forward to improve the image of our City and the fiscal integrity and the working conditions of our employees. Thank you." Kayor Vandergrift said that he thought everybody was equal now and said he did not know which side Joann Drawdy was on but he would ask her to speak now. He said he had two more comment request notes and then would be closing this issue until the work session on December 17 when citizens would again be given an opportunity to speak. Mrs. Drawdy came to the podium and said, "Good evening, I am Joann Drawdy, and I reside at 820 E. Harbour Court, here in Ocoee in the Harbour Highlands Subdivision. The primary purpose of my taking this opportunity to speak with each of you this evening is to urge you not to renew the contract of our current City Manager Ellis Shapiro. I have come before this commission in the past reference this same issue, citing Mr. Shapiro's unacceptable behavior with the public, his sleeping in the commission meetings, and so forth, stressing to each of you the urgency for new leadership for the City of Ocoee. I personally have spoken with public officials of another city where Mr. Shapiro and Ms. Psaledakis were employed. I can assure you they did not leave on a positive note. Many problems are facing our City at this time. The debt we attained is certainly in the top priority. However, I feel that more important, the employees of this City, the police officers, firefighters, secretaries, and countless other indi viduals who make up departments within the City deserve bet ter. And, I submi t, it is the responsibility of each of you to act in their behalf. I attended the commission meetings back in February when I listened to the discussions citing the need for the layoffs. Several times I heard the comment that if Mr. Shapiro had been doing his job, there would not have been a need to layoff City workers. Well, I disagree. I feel Mr. Shapiro was doing his job, that being to be rid of those individuals who dare challenge him or question his work ethics. I commend these people. Although while they were compelled to take a stand they, along with a few others who seemed to have been innocent parties, lost their jobs. On a personal note, being a former city employee, I feel sure that, had I still been with the City, I too would have been targeted. I valued my posi tion with the City and the decision to leave was not an easy one. However, I could no longer contend with the policies if the City either. There are some really great individuals who work for the City and it is unfair to expect them to continue to work in the atmosphere they have for the past several years. In closing I would like to suggest that the City move forward on a positive note. It is time for all members of this commission to work together towards a common goal. As the search for a new City Manager ensues, I would favor some citizen enrollment. Perhaps by forming a committee of citizens who could play an important role reviewing the credentials of prospective candidates, ultimately providing the Commission with recommendations for their review and consideration to ensure that the person selected is in fact the one we want to represent our City." Kayor Vandergrift said that, although he had already said there would be no more citizen comments on this issue, Mr. Robert McKey had just brought up a request to speak, and he asked for votes from the floor as to whether Mr. McKey should ~ '- Page 12 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 be permitted to speak at this time. There were no votes against Mr. McKey's speaking. Mr. McKey came to the podium and said, "My name is Robert McKey, 1110 Wineberry Court. I did not really intend to speak on this subject, but my first impression of Mr. Shapiro was not positive. The biggest thing that is bothering me (garbled words on the tape) is I cannot understand why we have a Mayor and why do we have a City Manager. Maybe the city Attorney can explain that. I see that one of you is an extra burden on the taxpayers that we don't need." Commissioner Combs interjected here "A hundred dollars a month is a burden, sir? I tell you what, next November you can jump right in for a hundred bucks." Kr. KcKey said, "I don't understand what either one of you do totally. Do we need both?" Commissioner Combs responded, "Yes sir." Mayor Vandergrift at the same time responded, "That's a whole 'nother question and it's a reform of the organization and I'm sure any commissioner up here would be glad to talk to you during the intermission." Mr. KcKey said, "Well, could you explain it for the people now?" Kayor Vandergrift asked City Attorney Rosenthal if we could do that in thirty seconds or less. City Attorney Rosenthal said he could give a thirty second summary and proceeded, "The City of Ocoee has what is called a strong city manager form of government, where the city manager is the chief administrative officer of the city. The mayor is the ceremonial head of the city government with no administrative duties but with being chairman of the city commission and having a vote on the city commission. The Charter vests certain powers in the city commission with respect to the direction and hiring and firing of the city manager, but all personnel decisions, for example, and administrative decisions are vested in the city manager under the terms of the Charter. And it exists because that's what the Charter says." Kr. KcKey asked if there was anything in there that says that one party shall supersede the other party, or if there was some clarification or balance of powers indicated. Kr. Rosenthal said that the city manager reports to the city commission and except for some.area~ where t~e ci ty commission is prohibited from taking action, (for example, duectlng certaln personnel decisions is an area of prohibition) , the city commission as a b~dY may direct the city manager. Mr. KcKey asked why there was some fee~lng ~f superiority when he heard Mr. Shapiro talk, that he had not talked wlth hlm personally but he had heard him at a homeowners' meeting last year and he was ~ot sure (more garbled words here) and he would like to see a spirit of cooperatlon from everybody who is working for the taxpayers and he was ~eallY sadd~ned to hear that there was a problem between the Mayor and Mr. Shaplro. He thlnks we should get someone in both offices who can work together as we can~ot afford to have a conflict (words garbled here). Mr. KcKey asked that the dlfferences be resolved as soon as possible. V d 'ft said that Mr. McKey had volunteered to serve on one of the Mayor an ergr1 t u his name yet Another citizen brought up commissions and he h~d n~t brOu~hMay~r Vandergrift' called for another vote from a speaker'S reservat1~n orm an ould be allowed to speak. There were more the audience to de~erml~e whether he :~uce Beatty started to speak when Mayor votes in the afhrmatlve and Mr. 't his turn to speak because he did not Vandergrift told him he w~uld have to wal know which way he was gOlng. \.., '- - Page 13 Ocoee City Commission Regular Meeting December 1, 1992 Kr. Beatty said that all those who were speaking wanted what was best for the Ci ty of Ocoee and there was no pro or con, and that people should not be segmented as to whether they were for or against this. He said that he resented the fact that the Mayor would arbitrarily limit the right of these people to speak at their city commission meeting and then he apologized for being out of line by continuing to speak when he had been advised he would have to wait his turn. Kayor Vandergrift said that he would sit there all night and listen to testimony, but that he was in hopes that the Commissioners had made themselves aware of all the issues involved as he had been informed that there were three votes already certain for the renewal of City Manager Shapiro's contract. He said that he had done everything he could to avoid this kind of thing but that he wanted to run the meeting in a way that the speakers' remarks would not be redundant. He asked Mr. Beatty if he could count Mr. Beatty's remarks as having been made and Mr. Beatty responded no. Kayor Vandergrift then called on Mr. Rick Bowen. Kr. Rick Bowen, 2614 Cedar Bluff Court, said that during the recent political campaign he had canvassed over 400 homes or individuals. The information volunteered to him was that most of the people who have had contact with the current City Commissioner were left with a negative opinion of him. At this point several people asked that "City Commissioner" be clarified and Mr. Bowen said he meant to say "City Manager." Kr. Bowen continued, saying that the personal aspect of this seems to be an issue, which is talking about a man's livelihood and also our home, the City of Ocoee. The third personal aspect is the personal problems that people have with the City Manager. He asked that everyone set aside the personal aspects and consider instead the business aspects; and the chief business aspect of this is the professional image of any manager which is vital to his/her success. The City of Ocoee deserves for a person in this position to project a professional image. This requires basic interpersonal skills and the reports from the citizens interviewed indicate that the current City Manager has demonstrated a lack of receptiveness to ideas of new residents, as well as a poor work ethic, and weak language skills. Kr. Bowen concluded with a request to not renew the current City Manager's contract and begin as soon as possible with publishing and interviewing for the position, which would raise the standard of professionalism in City Hall. Kayor Vandergrift called for Jerome T. Whitehall to speak. Mr. Jerome T. Whitehall, Sr., 2626 Coventry Lane, said that in the past 48 hours, he had collected over 200 signatures of registered voters on a petition requesting that the City Commission not renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. He submitted the petition and pointed out that the registered voters are the ones who put the Commissioners where they are now, and are constituents who wish to be heard in this vote of no-confidence for the City Manager. (The petition is attached as Exhibit A to these minutes). '-" Page 14 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 Kr. Bruce Beatty, 1327 Olympia Park Circle, said that this Mayor and this Commission has 100% of his support as a voter in this City. Speaking as chairman of the Charter Review Board, Kr. Beatty said that Mr. Rosenthal was correct in saying that we do have a strong city manager form of government as opposed to a strong mayor form of government and that this Commission's responsibility and the Mayor's responsibility to the citizens is to make sure that the City Manager employed manages this City in the most professional and best way possible. Kr. Beatty said that he was neither criticizing nor complimenting Mr. Shapiro, but was speaking only to reinforce what the Charter Review Board did and reaffirm the need for the best possible, professional city manager. If Commission finds, after reviewing the facts, that Mr. Shapiro is that person, then he will have his support 100%. Mr. Beatty said that the confidence of the citizens, as voters, is in the elected officials and the responsibility of the Commission under the Charter is to govern, not to get into the day to day management of the City. He then commented that the problem at this time appears to be a failure to communicate, and if Mr. Shapiro does stay on that he would hopefully find a way to work better with the Mayor and all the Commissioners and vice versa. Krs. Karilyn Johnson, 1400 Kimberly Street, said that she, too, went to many homes during the election campaigning period, probably 500 - 600 homes. Many of the citizens she talked to said they were not happy with Mr. Shapiro but they were satisfied with the City, and that those things they were unhappy with, such ~ as water and garbage rates, they blamed on the City Manager without even checking neighboring towns to compare rates. Krs. Johnson said there are things about Mr. Shapiro she does not like but that it would be inappropriate to let him go without giving him a chance to change. Kr. To. Kurnane, 1427 Carriage Oaks Court, said that his dealings with Mr. Shapiro have all been very positive. However, as a representative of the sheriff's department, he has been in contact with many business people who live in Ocoee and who have business here and in every case the citizens' remarks have been negative about Mr. Shapiro. KayorVandergrift called this portion of the meeting to a close and cautioned the Commissioners to limit their conversations with Mr. Shapiro to daily business rather than this issue. He then called for the vote on the motion regarding the work session called for December 17. As stated above the vote was 4-1 in favor with Mayor Vandergrift voting no. - RECESS FROK 9:45 P.K. TO 10:05 P.K. "-' Request for Transfer from Contingency Fund in Amount of $3,020 for Employee Gift Certificates in Lieu of Employee Annual Christmas Party. The results of an employee survey which had requested that each employee indicate a preference of Christmas party vs. an alternate of food or a gift certificate for food was presented in the packet along with Personnel Director psaledakis' request for authorization to issue each employee a gift certificate from publix in the amount of $20. Commissioner Woodson, seconded by Commissioner Foster, moved to authorize the expenditur~ of a total of ~020 to be taken from the '-" '-' ~. Page 15 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 contingency fund to be used as requested above by Ms. Psaledakis. Motion carried with unanimous vote in favor. Appointment to Code Enforcement Board - Jim Sills' Term Expires January 1993. Commissioner Woodson, seconded by Commissioner Combs, moved to reappoint Mr. Sills for another three year term on the Code Enforcement Board beginning January 1993. FIRST READING OF ORDINANCES. City Attorney Rosenthal read the titles of each of the following ordinances and announced the appropriate date for the second readings and public hearings both at the beginning and the end of reading each group of titles. SECOND READING AND PUBLIC HEARING WILL BE DECEKBER 15, 1992. Ordinance No. 92-22, relating to the United Telephone Company of Florida Franchise. THE SECOND READING AND PUBLIC HEARINGS FOR THE FOLLOWING 25 ORDINANCES WILL BE HELD KONDAY, DECEKBER 14, 1992, AT 7:30 P.K. OR AS SOON THEREAFTER AS PRACTICAL. Ordinance No.92-23, Case No. 2-04AR-92:Roper "James" North - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-24, Case No. 2-04AR-92:Roper "James" North - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-25, Case No. 2-05AR-92:Roper "Partner" South -Annexation. Ordinance No.92-26, Case No. 2-05AR-92:Roper "Partner" South -Zoning. Ordinance No.92-27, Case No. 2-071AR-92:Britt Farms-West - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-28, Case No. 2-071AR-92:Britt Farms-West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-29, Case No. 2-072R-92:Britt Farms-East - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-30, Case No. 2-161AR-92:Battaglia-West -Annexation. Ordinance No.92-31, Case No. 2-161AR-92:Battaglia-West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-32, Case No. 2-121AR-92:West - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-33, Case No. 2-121AR-92:West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-34, Case No. 2-122AR-92:West - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-35, Case No. 2-122AR-92:West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-36, Case No. 2-123AR-92:West - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-37, Case No. 2-123AR-92:West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-38, Case No. 2-124AR-92:West - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-39, Case No. 2-124AR-92:West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-40, Case No. 2-01AR-92:Kang - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-41, Case No. 2-01AR-92:Kang - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-42, Case No. 2-081AR-92:Barrett/Solomon - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-43, Case No. 2-081AR-92:Barrett/Solomon - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-44, Case No. 2-082AR-92:Barrett/Solomon - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-45, Case No. 2-082AR-92:Barrett/Solomon - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-46, Case No. 2-02AR-92:Russell - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-47, Case No. 2-02AR-92:Russell - Zoning. THE SECOND READINGS AND PUBLIC HEARINGS FOR THE FOLLOWING 14 ORDINANCES WILL BE HELD TUESDAY, DECEKBER 15, 1992 AT 8:30 P.K. OR AS SOON THEREAFTER AS PRACTICAL. Ordinance No.92-48, Case No. 2-09AR-92:Heidrich - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-49, Case No. 2-09AR-92:Heidrich - Zoning. '--' Page 16 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting December 1, 1992 Ordinance No.92-50, Case No. 2-21AR-92:Van Wormer - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-51, Case No. 2-21AR-92:Van Wormer - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-52, Case No. 2-061AR-92:Center Lakes-West - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-53, Case No. 2-061AR-92:Center Lakes-West - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-54, Case No. 2-062AR-92:Center Lakes-East - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-55, Case No. 2-062AR-92:Center Lakes-East - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-56, Case No. 2-14AR-92:Ravndal - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-57, Case No. 2-14AR-92:Ravndal - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-58, Case No. 2-10AR-92:Starbird - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-59, Case No. 2-10AR-92:Starbird - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-60, Case No. 2-162AR-92:Battaglia-East - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-61, Case No. 2-162AR-92:Battaglia-East - Zoning. THE SECOND READINGS UD PUBLIC HEARINGS FOR THE FOLLOWING 16 ORDINANCES WILL BE HELD WEDNESDAY, DECEKBER 16, 1992 AT 7:30 P.K., OR AS SOON THEREAFTER AS PRACTICAL. Ordinance No.92-62, Case No. 2-27AR-92:Killer - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-63, Case No. 2-27AR-92:Killer - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-64, Case No. 2-17AR-92:Sharp - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-65, Case No. 2-17AR-92:Sharp - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-66, Case No. 2-11AR-92:Geartner - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-67, Case No. 2-11AR-92:Geartner - Zoning. ~ Ordinance No.92-68, Case No. 2-25AR-92:Wingfield - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-69, Case No. 2-25AR-92:Wingfield - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-70, Case No. 2-13AR-92:Lawrence - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-71, Case No. 2-13AR-92:Lawrence - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-72, Case No. 2-03AR-92:Baker - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-73, Case No. 2-03AR-92:Baker - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-74, Case No. 2-24AR-92:Blayer - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-75, Case No. 2-24AR-92:Blayer - Zoning. Ordinance No.92-76, Case No. 2-15AR-92:Guess - Annexation. Ordinance No.92-77, Case No. 2-15AR-92:Guess - Zoning. STAFF REPORTS - There were no staff reports. COKKENTS FROK COKKISSIONERS Commissioner Combs: 1) Asked what caused the holes in the walls in the community center. Commissioner Johnson responded that it happened at a youth dance last week. Thanked Public Works Director Brenner for getting the Christmas lights up and working. Asked about the golf course contract. Administrative Services Direct~[ Beamer advised that there is a meetina Wednesday and she will give an update at the December 15__meeting. City Attorney Rosenthal advised that the financina is not yet finalized. Announced the Christmas parade Saturday, December 5 in Winter Garden at 10:00 a.m. and Ocoee at 2:00 p.m. 2) 3) 4) '-" ........... '" '-" Page 17 Ocoee City Commission Regular Keeting Deceaber 1, 1992 Commissioner Fost~f: No comments at this time. Commissioner Woodson: No comments at this time. Commissioner Johnson: No comments at this time. Mayor Vanderarift: Called attention to the memorandum from Staff responding to a request made by Commissioners during this portion of the last meeting and pointed out that this would be the custom now. ADJOURNKENT The meeting adjourned at 11:00 p.m. Approved: ~> OF O.COEE ~~' $-4t" S. Scott Vandergrift, Ma EXHIBIT A TO MINUTES OF DECEMBER 1, 1992 PETITION '-" We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone ~ ~YJ- . 67 ;2-1S-17~Y ;L t?~ 7~O 1 r2~b 13J/ d9'.::2 -5J ()0---~ ~ d.f1 - 0/ /~ -.: -, ,. ./ ~/tP-- I/CVt~ 29t.j - [gyt( '-' o ...... \..... PETITION We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone ~ a~;:z ~c- ..277 - '.2J~ A o.--U~?O - zZ- a...qCJ. 02 PETITION \..- We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address \...,.. Phone t1-..1 ~J6 . Y,f-f( 63'6- //~ ~ 56- 73 6S?:- (JO s;- ~~7g? '2- 'f.!.'2- tf), t/fr/ } / 3.;>3 .3;; ;), / , ::!!&:::z"~ ;~W~~3 "'- ~~ ~~ ~ C, ~f<'<>..-'\).~ \t7~ ~:~3 ;, ~~ 3Jr1(. ~ 6S6-34/-G; PETITION ~ We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone I C{;~ , } YJ.tI~fr)-") Ncl_ ((-" /-h -Cf 1;-1 I /?',r"? ,d? /J /, 0'/. /2 L/ // '\:) c~ "V.n;" /1...:!, ,/ ". 1 )t)-, .., f\ ?-: G '- lA/LLL.-(,.4r'L --:.\... "^ t /u-t . n\ rL-~ j gJ .rJ ,~~aA,( ;~- 0'1., &.. ( Ai -e Q '-~/, t::'f/' ,(977/ II ~ ~ '--' ~ PETITION We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone c9/-YnD . f.c67.p - ;2qq~ $b - 029 '1 1,1 ~~-1t?f b 73 6G~ ~-/993 o,e-~, ::??S-I J"~ ~ PETITION ~ We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Phone :l '7/-'8L/1 g c:?9. 1;)0 ;2. q9 -!'i~ 5i , '0 9- P77- 7 '--:3 , I) ('..eo-, J! ~..--c-e, () D ~ 8 77 7 () -.5~ .3 ~ \... ~ \w ~ PETITION We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone /' PETITION "-' We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the Ci ty Corrunission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. 01 fe5r;05~Lf. .~dZ-~,- ~..~t1~q~ ~l /";. ./ "-' \..., PETITION .... We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone Q c::J~Q , T~ \\ - \~- \~- \ \.\- \S- \\0- \,\ - \9- \~.. :la,. ~\- ~~- '-" ~3.\. PETITION ..... We, the undersigneQ citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NO~ renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. _. \.r Phone ~ 7 -:J- ~SC,~;2 S V 2- -6" --/..5'/ ~ ci '10& .LAk,v ICw'~: /117 KlY'r}(3ALL }),E1. \..... PETITION ~ We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Addre s s 1:P. j~~",-- 55'1 Pr,b.." 11J.. OCttR.-, 3'1'71.;> i C - ~'-\)~ 5<.t3\?~ bIlL O~R3'\I(qI~ ~~,t~"35 ~~ 6;1:;~()C~ ;_:s<I7b~-kb-/~- . t4.-- :2.~ #- tfl~:'" /: ~ &'7 -;;2/3 j. ~~~~':;~~~~~~~:~t~ 'frv;uw; ~ 103~ ::;.56. <<1:o.te..- - (~ f;,tf l l ~ g-l- ~UJee $77-73'1Cp t Phone \. 0<5'6 - S'8? b . ~ $:.; 9~ ;J~+ .. ."" .. /.' j /? 17'. /1" , /'. / /7/1 J';i- LrY{/{).A.v/_'(/"/ ,..r ~ I. /t i (Qc:c,--[ C. Y'/ / / - .~ -:.if C!--- O&P~ "p y; 7~ ~ -.3 0/...... &L~ ~-"~?0:/W~/72. O( o.~ f 54--/ t / Lj(;. - ~Jp.:J6 "rl ~ \r PETITION We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone Jo<-. c- 1/09 IC~n,6 cd-(. /)/2. -.- II ~/ /1 ~/ II ~ 1/, )) fif:J~ ~ /0- II~ I /, /JltJ J4~~ ~ ///tJ I~ ~~) PETITION ~ We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. Name Address Phone /' " "2 cl (/ \' /. - /, ,,' ~ '...f? (,7'. ~, b56-J6S-'r / j2 C::,5 6 ~5>6 ~ () ~~i.tt~..~. f -7/t//i?Ie It/I) X~ ft ~~i? /2# C;S~ b<j(,2 ~Q \\ J. "-.(\\~ \,) \ ~ 0 l, \ \~ ~- (X(~ee \ t:l GS;{[)-({.{if../~ ~ iJa r ,cl f,V'C ~. / CJ I (., V" t' S' r oe::: 0' e e--L. c: 5 C,- 2.c7 ~:G ',I \r L '= c-gI7- 987r Ot (J .~ ~ <s, ~.- () ~- -$ ~ t \io4 k::t-b ~ 1-. ~J? . 5it-/317 S~ -J 317 PETITION ~ We, the undersigned citizens of the city of Ocoee, request that the City Commission NOT renew the contract of the current City Manager, Ellis Shapiro. '- -)-.J '-' (0. .'-( ~ (; ~- IOd-Ji U7$&~6()(). 9 , -3(0.;) ~ MEMORANDUM TO: City Manager Ellis Shapiro Mayor Scott Vandergrift FROM: DATE: November 25, 1992 RE: EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT You mentioned on the Tallahassee trip your intent to ask for a renewal of your employment contract at a commission meeting in December. Before you seek this contract renewal, I request that you furnish me with the following: ~ 5. 6. 1. 2. A copy of your current contract; A copy of all information in your employment file including, the original contract, resume, and minutes of meetings at which your contract was discussed; A report on accumulated vacation, sick, and compensatory time pending; A summary of your accomplishments while city manager, including copies of all procedures (suggested and implemented), policies, charter information, laws, and any other information you think would assist the commission in its decision; Your short-term and long-term plans for the city; Your request for the terms of your contract. 3. 4. Please provide this information to me in writing at least two weeks prior to the public meeting at which your request is to be made. This memo is a recommendation of procedures to allow you the best opportunity to qualify your request for continued employment. I assure you that you will get fair consideration in this matter. cc: Paul Rosenthal ~ c:\wpSl\ocoee\melisll.92 ~ THE CITY MANAGER AS I SEE HIM ELLIS SHAPIRO On Thursday October 29, 1992, five days before the election, I received word while attending a meeting of the Concerned Citizens for Better Government, that a rumor was afloat that the City Manager had said he would resign if I were elected Mayor. On Friday October 30, I met with Mr. Shapiro in his office in City Hall to clear the air regarding the rumor. He said that he had told only a few close friends and acted surprised that I had heard it. He also said that he could not serve as City Manager in a government that had a strong Mayor for the following reasons: 1. He is opposed to citizen involvement in government through volunteer committees, because they are too costly and their existence is just a nuisance and requires too much time to coordinate. \w 2. He didn't want anyone telling him how to do his job. 3. He was opposed to the public knowing too much about the inner workings of his government. 4. He informed me of how to be Mayor. There were other reasons that slip my mind now, but these were the hardest for me to swallow. I listened and commented that if I had heard the rumor in a meeting of non-supporters of Ellis Shapiro that I felt that it was put out as a part of a campaign to block my election as Mayor. He denied that that was true but stated he meant what he said. The day after the election I met with Ellis again and he informed me that he wasn1t stupid and there wasn't much of a job market for City Managers and that he indented to stay and conduct himself within the guidelines of the charter, and expected me to do the same. (The charter should be revised to establish a provision that says that the City Manager should not be allowed to politic for one candidate or the other and such actions be grounds for suspension or dismissal.) In subsequent meetings with the City Manager, I have been told the following: 1. I have no right to change or add to the agenda for City Council meetings; that the agenda is to be made up by the City Manager. 2. I should not take too much of employees' time talking to them. 3. I should not request a task of any employee without asking the City Manager first. 4. I have asked for a staff meeting to introduce myself and have ~ I r not been invited to the regular staff meeting. Nor have I been ~ offered a special staff meeting. 5. I have asked for an organizational chart of the people who work for the city and their positions. To date I have not received an accurate chart. 6. There is no plan for newly elected officials to indoctrinate them as to the issues before us, or the issuance of papers, pamphlets, or information that would help them to come up to speed on what is before the Commission. I have had to ask for and prod to get what information that has been forthcoming and I feel a lot has been left out. In the future, within one week of election, a packet containing all the information needed to make them effective commissioners should be supplied to newly elected officials. 7. There are intimidating remarks regarding the recent election being made to city employees. These remarks must be stopped and the person or persons involved in the intimidation should be addressed in such a manner that this situation should never occur again. Every employee in the city has a right to support the candidate of his or her choice on his or her own time without fear of being persecuted by their superiors. The use of city-paid time for political purposes should be strictly prohibited. ~ 8. The recent "secret" press conference during the campaign was pure politics, and I highly suspect that time and employees were used, with or without their knowledge, for promoting a political service. In my administration, there will be no secret press conferences or the use of employees' or city time to promote any singular candidate. 9. The City Manager is using the "Sunshine Law" to divide and conquer the commission. The commissioners are not allowed to talk to each other outside meetings but the City Manager is allowed to lobby each commissioner one a time, thus prevailing in matters that he deems important to his power base or that he deems might lessen his power to dictate over city offices. He has assured me that he has the three votes needed to renew his contract regardless of his actions toward me, other commissioners, staff, employees, or citizens. As of November 25, I requested that certain information be furnished to me two weeks before he places this important action on the agenda, He did not provide the requested information and placed this issue on the agenda anyway because of those votes and the lobbying efforts he put in. Had I not presented the memo on the 25th, I probably would not been told of the agenda item until I got my package late Friday afternoon. While running for office, I conducted a survey of citizens and, without asking them expressly about the City Manager, I received a negative opinion on the City Manager from 9 out of 10 voters who expressed an opinion. ~ 2 '--' .J \. '-" , . f While introducing myself to employees, the same sentiment ran about 7 out of 10 of those who weren't afraid for their jobs and who were willing to talk to me. Of the staff who were willing to talk and who are not afraid of losing their jobs, more than a majority of them expressed fear, resentment, and downright distrust for the current City Manager as well as other staff members. I was told that some of the staff are ready to leave for other positions if a satisfactory solution was not found (meaning a new City Manager). I believe our city is sinking into a Machiavellian form of government under the management of Ellis Shapiro, instead of looking for ways to involve people who have idealistic values that will make this city the most forward looking form of government that taxes can pay for. I ask you to join me in the search for that kind of government of laws rather than people, of debate and not deceit, of involvement not of rigged elections. While being in office recently for just less than a month, I come to the job in my fifth year as a public servant to this community, as a past city commissioner and Mayor. In those periods of service, I tried very hard to be a team player and not to cause unrest in the community and, at the same time, I tried to speak out about unconscionable abuses of the powers of City Hall and to get the commission to plan for the future and conquer the problems of the day. I have won some and lost some in those four previous years. Some commissioners who might try to portray me as a Johnnie-come- lately should step back and take a look at my record of firsts in the organization of this current government that were truly accomplished by prodding and continued effort' in hands-on government that has helped to bring this city to the place it is today. c:\wp51\ocoee\ellis12.1 3