(© FlaglerLive)
The official schedule lists a special workshop of the Flagler Beach City Commission scheduled for 4:30 this evening, ahead of the regularly scheduled 5:30 meeting. Three commissioners–Deborah Phillips, Ken Bryan and Jane Mealy–had called for it, to discuss Mayor Suzie Johnston’s role on the commission, seeking to have city attorney Drew Smith as the explainer.
In fact, there will be no such workshop. While there is some procedural question as to whether Bryan, the chairman of the commission, will call the workshop to order only to comply with the fact that it was posted, adjourning it immediately afterward, commissioners now agree that there won’t be such a meeting, and two commissioners–James Sherman and Eric Cooley–were planning not to attend anyway. “It isn’t productive and I dont have bandwidth for any meetings that are not necessary,” Cooley said.
Smith, for one, is absent today, attending a conference (the commission will have a substitute counsel who may not be as familiar with recent commission dynamics). Smith also spoke with every member of the commission, not so much to dissuade them from holding a special meeting, but to tell them not to act as lawyers, and to tell them that, as spelled out in the city charter, the mayor had not transgressed her role at any point.
The issue came to a head at a July 15 budget workshop. Commissioners were discussing next year’s budget for information technology services. They had previously contracted with Flagler County government, at $50,000 a year, for those services. The county was no longer willing to continue at that rate, but in an email to Johnston, County Administrator Heidi Petito said the county would be willing to offer the services for around $100,000. Johnston had sought out the information from the county and wanted it considered as part of the city’s discussions (“this is a department I actually help run at my own job,” she said), though the city had issued a request for proposal to which the county had not responded.
When Johnston insisted that the county’s proposal be considered, Bryan said “we have to be aware of what our roles are,” even as he noted that the information the mayor had could be “very beneficial.” Tensions rose. Bryan suggested he’d speak with Smith and thought “we need to have a session with the city manager” that would explain roles. The commission took a brief break. When it returned, Phillips, saying “some of us are overstepping our roles,” pitched the special workshop proposal, addressing the mayor specifically. “Budget time is for this group of people,” Phillips said, gesturing to mean herself and her four colleague commissioners, “with your–obviously additional comments.” Phillips also made a distinction between the “weak” and “strong” mayor forms of government. (See: “Flagler Beach Commission Again Clashes, Reducing Mayor to Tears and Lawyering Up Over Roles.”
Phillips was accurate about the weak-strong difference, even though the terms may rankle (as they did Johnston and Cooley). None of Flagler’s municipalities have strong mayors. But the terms are technical, not judgmental. In Florida law, a “strong” mayor fulfills the role of a city manager (as in Tampa), having authority to set meetings, budgets, hire and fire. That’s not the case in Flagler, where the mayors in Palm Coast, Bunnell and Flagler Beach are “weak” mayors. In Bunnell and Palm Coast, they get to vote. In Flagler Beach, they do not. But their roles on the commission are otherwise no different from that of their colleagues.
If anything, the mayor’s role, even in Flagler Beach, implies more authority, not less, as the charter notes, and the charter makes no distinction between the involvement of mayors as opposed to commissioners when it comes to discussions. It is also silent regarding a commissioner’s or mayor’s decision to seek out information of whatever kind outside the city, with whoever–as the mayor did.
“He told me there were no laws broken by the mayor,” Sherman said of his discussion with Smith. “She was just trying to get some information, that’s the way I saw it.” Sherman said commissioners take their annual ethics training through the Florida League of Cities, which would help clarify roles, and the timing of the proposed workshop had not been right.
Still, the agenda for the special meeting had to be posted. “The City Attorney also advised me that the agenda needed to be posted because it was called, and that they could all decide to hold that meeting if wanted, but there wasn’t as much interest to do so,” the deputy city clerk said in an email. “He spoke to each of them separately and asked them if there was still a desire to hold the workshop, that it be scheduled when he can be available. So therefore, commissioners can still decide to show and call the meeting to order and then adjourn it, or they do not have to show and there will just not be a quorum. The agenda is attached with the message for you.”
“As long as he explained it to everyone, I’m perfectly fine,” Johnston said, referring to Smith.
Some commissioners are not ruling out such a meeting in the future, signaling that at least some discomfort remains, and that the commission’s efforts to “reset,” after weeks of shifting undertows, may only go so far. But attention this evening turns back to City Manager William Whitson, who is on a 90-day probation period, whose evaluation form commissioners are set to discuss and approve before filling it out by Aug. 12.
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coyote says
*This* is a good example of why intelligent, socially-conscious people don’t get into politics anymore. You end up spending more time defending yourself against baseless obstructions than actually getting anything done. And when you *do* accomplish anything, the nay-sayers already have their t-shirts printed to diss you.
As I have said elsewhere .. Mr. Smith is no longer in Washington, and Jimmy Stewart is gone.
The older I get, the more bleak the future looks.
RitaMae says
As much as I hate to admit this about political positions here in Palm Coast and Flagler County, it is true. Trying to bring common sense and forward thinking goals to any position here is overshadowed by controversy and baseless attacks that takes away the focus of the position and the person campaigning for that position. Granted, some candidates deserve to be under the microscope (Mullins and Lowe) because their goal is not for the benefit of their constituents, but for their own personal gain. In Lowe’s case, he is a trator to our country, and will be Stanko’s puppet and will vote for whatever he votes for. As for Mullins, he needs to take his ego and go back to Georgia, but I am not sure they want him. Let’s clean up the city council and the commission, vote for Theresa Carli-Pontieri for City Council, District 2 and LeAnn Pennington for County Commissioner, District 4.
protonbeam says
Lets remind people that Cooley and the Mayor are romantically linked – the logical consequences of that relationship are disingenuous to the voters and citizens of Flagler Beach.
I truly wish them well and they both are competent in their own right, and I’m not suggesting in anyway that anything nefarious is happening, but as a matter of principle this is not good and will lead to not good things.
The Villa Beach Walker says
Following protonbeam’s logic I guess businesses run by married couples are probably ‘not good’ too. What about businesses operated by brothers and sisters? If romance introduces problems then being part of the same family is surely a formula for disaster. No. The reality is that the logic presented is wrong.
These are two people who have stood up and come forward to help all the citizens of Flagler Beach. In my opinion they have done and contnue to each do a great job. These claims that a relationship ‘is not good’ and ‘will lead to not good things’ are garbage.
Ron says
If you wish them well, why bring it up to begin with? Either they are doing a good job and get re-elected or not!
coyote says
My thoughts , exactly. Sounds a lot like Trump’s ‘I’m just saying’ or ‘lots of people have told me’ rhetoric.
I Just Love Flagler Beach says
I voted for two of the three commissioners who apparently have a personal problem with the mayor. Due to their recent behavior I am regretting those votes. I’d suggest they put on their big boy/girl panties and move on already.
Jane Gentile-Youd says
I don’t live in Flagler Beach but I love Flagler Beach and so much admire all the volunteer work for people, the environment and animal rescue ( including fabulous amimal events) that both Mayor Suzie and Commissioner Eric do. Their personal relationship has bearing on their requirements for their public offices; Ivanka Trump worked for her father for 4 years and nobody tried to castigate Trump!
Hillary worked under Hubby Billy for years! On a final note: I attended and spoke at the Flagler County Tourist Board meeting last week and spoke against awarding $736,000 to PALM COAST for a tennis center and not a dime for the boardwalk at Flagler Beach ( because the paper work was not done on time and Mayor Suzie tried her best) .
I suggested ,under citizen comments to the last Tourist Board meeting members, that Palm Coast get half of the proposed $736 on the agenda because we all know that Flagler Beach will be without a pier for 2 years,
Ken Ryan who represents Flagler Beach on the Tourist Board did not say BO – not a word .. never even suggested a modified motion – he voted YES to give all the money to Palm Coast while 2 members voted NO to giving all the money to Palm Coast.. Unfortunately it was a 4 yes vote to 2 no vote…… OH
(He did manage to get because he get $25,000 for Flagler Beach for the dunes) but not a peep – not even a thank you so me who does not live in the beach but who knows how the majority of tourists go to Flagler Beach NOT Palm Coast! And he wants the Mayor to do some explaining. In my opinion Mr. Ryan needs to do some explaining!!!!!
Concerned Citizen says
You have to wonder.
How much business could get done if our elected officials stopped all the bickering. And actually did their jobs. From the County BOCC to Palm Coast. And all the way to Flagler Beach these people spend more time fighting amongst themselves.
All of our BOCC’s need a major over haul this election cycle. Stop electing what you know and expecting different.
FB local says
Saw this coming a looong time ago. Our mayor likes to think she is above her role. Remember when she broke protocol recently? She and her boyfriend enjoy the modern social platform of getting “likes” instead of doing their job. I would love to be a fly on the wall listening to their plans with the city. Get rid of one or the other. Even better, both.
James says
Yeah, it’s pretty embarrassing, and that’s the real reason why the workshop was cancelled. The other local governments look at Flagler Beach like it’s a banana republic…because it is. Flagler Beach is all “don’t make me cross the bridge” one minute, then begging for money on the other side of the bridge the next.