A Search for a new City Manager - Lake Worth

We have a "vision" but we haven't told anyone what it is.

Staff invited Kurt Bressner, who was the city manager of Boynton Beach for eleven years, to speak to the commission about finding a new city manager in Lake Worth. Prior to moving to Florida, he had been a city manager for several cities in Illinois, and was terminated by one of them on a 3/2 vote. He knows what politics can do. Saying it is "a big deal" to fire your chief executive, he suggested that the entire commission put it behind them and "move forward." Is there any other choice?

Bressner said that we should conduct a national search as there are plenty of applicants who would love to come to Lake Worth. I'm not so sure about that. At least they would know they would have a job for 3 years or so until they got booted out for a personality problem. A personality problem is when a city manager disagrees with a non-professional, an elected official. Haven't we had enough of these firings every three to five years of city managers and then have to start all over again so that some elected officials' ego can be fulfilled?

Thanks to Triolo, Maxwell and Amoroso, what does "moving forward" mean to Lake Worth:

• Paying Susan Stanton $124,395

• Paying an interim city manager $50,000 for four months unless they keep our Finance Director in the position giving him duel responsibilities with the chance he will get fed up and leave

• Writing the RFP and hours of staff time

• Hiring a headhunter to find a new city manager for another $15,000

• Travel and lodging expenses for candidates to come here and interview.

So the grand total is over $200,000 for a Vice Mayor, a Mayor and a new commissioner to fire our highly qualified city manager with NO reasons or explanations given. Even if it is something substantial such as the Budget vision, can anyone blame Susan Stanton for standing up for her Budget and making argument for it? All the commission had to say was, "No, we are going to look for further reductions...this budget will be changed...end of story." Instead, what they said was, "you're terminated and we don't mind spending nearly 1/4 of a million dollars of taxpayer money to kick you in the rear and to kick all of the people of Lake Worth at the same time."

Commissioner Mulvehill has asked the Mayor for an explanation as to the reasons for Stanton's firing and Triolo said that she would finally tell the people why she kicked Susan Stanton to the curb. I want to hear it from all three, especially Scott Maxwell who has been after her with a vengeance from the minute he was elected over two years ago. Women need to be silent and barefoot in some people's world.

This Saturday morning there will be a special meeting at 10am at City Hall to discuss how to proceed in hiring a city manager. I hope that they also tell us how they are going to pay for all of this spending that was absolutely unnecessary. Perhaps now Maxwell will be forced to give up that free lunch.