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Minutes 11-04-96 (2) MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING HELD IN THE LIBRARY PROGRAM ROOM, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1996, AT 6:00 P.M. PRESENT Gerald "Jerry" Taylor, Mayor Shirley Jaskiewicz, Vice Mayor Matthew Bradley, Commissioner Henderson Tillman, Commissioner Jamie Titcomb, Commissioner Wilfred Hawkins, Asst. to the City Manager James Cherof, City Attorney Sue Kruse, City Clerk CALL TO ORDER Mayor Taylor called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m. David Donaldson, of David M. Griffith & Associates, Ltd., was present. CITY MANAGER SELECTION The purpose of the meeting was to consider the selection of a City Manager following the withdrawal of Mr. White. Mayor Taylor reminded the Commissioners that four votes are required to select the City Manager. He suggested that a vote be taken on each of the four remaining candidates to determine whether any of them had the suppor~ of four Commissioners. if a candidate is selected, an offer can be made. If none of the candidates has the support of four Commissioners, it might be necessary to have Mr. Donaldson offer an additional list of names for consideration. Commissioner Tillman suggested that the Commissioners consider the remaining two candidates who were selected as finalists. He requested that the following information be reflected in the record. He reminded the Commissioners that the consultant reviewed 60 candidates who applied for the position. From that group, the Commissioners reviewed 10 candidates which represents 16%. Eighty-four percent of the candidates were not reviewed. In terms of grading, 84% is a "C". Hiring someone from that group would be less than what is currently being done. The 16% was broken down into 8% when the Commissioners selected five of the ten candidates to be interviewed. Those five candidates took the process to 92%. When the Commissioners selected the final choice, that brought the figure to 98%. The remaining two candidates represent 96% of the best candidates that were available to us. In Commissioner Tillman's opinion, seeking out candidates other than the two candidates in the 96 percentile, would be doing less than what we have already done. The Commissioners went through the process to select the best candidate. That candidate withdrew; therefore, the next person in line should receive the Commission's consideration because he represents the top of the percentile. Anything less than that would put the City in dire straits. Commissioner Tillman feels it is unethical to add names to the list at this point, and believes that at some point, the two remaining candidates may file lawsuits. The top three candidates were selected; therefore, the second person in line should now be given total and full consideration. If this does not happen, then the process is flawed. He recommended staying with the process by considering Isaac Turner. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz disagreed with Commissioner Tillman's suggestion. She has reviewed MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 available information associated with the candidates. Mr. White was not her first choice, and Mr. Turner was not her second choice. In reviewing the synopsis of the minutes of the interviews, she feels Mr. Turner is a fine man with a high level of integrity; however, he is not experienced, and he is in a totatly different work situation. She feels the remaining four candidates should be reviewed. She asked Commissioner Tillman to explain why he feels Mr. Turner is better qualified than the remaining four candidates. Commissioner Tiltman reviewed the minutes and the background on each candidate. Mr. Turner was trained at the top university in the country for City Managers. After that training he went to Fort Worth and then moved on to Dallas which is the largest organization any of the candidates dealt with. He managed a staff comparable to the size of a city. Texas is a right-to-work state, as is Florida. However, there are some situations in Florida where unions are allowed. Although he has not worked with unions, it does not mean he cannot work with personnel. In looking at the size of thb organization where he has worked, it is obvious Mr. Turner can work with personnel. He has received commendations and excellent reviews in every organization, and there is not a blemish on his record. He questioned why Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz feets he has not had the necessary experience. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz explained that Mr. Turner served as Assistant City Manager in Longview from 1991 to 1994. During that time, the City Manager was fired and he took over as City Manager for four months. He applied for the position of City Manager; however, his own district did not feel he was ready to take over that position because he was not selected as their City Manager. If the position of Assistant City Manager was open in the City of Boynton Beach, Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz would not hesitate to select Mr. Turner as her first choice. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz referred to the background booklet and questioned where the following remarks came from: "He is ready to be a City Manager, but may fit best for his first job in a community that has strong leadership under city council." "Pretty well rounded in the functions of city government..." These were direct comments Mr. Donaldson received over the telephone from the current City Manager in Longview, a current council member, and a former mayor who is now the State Treasurer for Texas. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz requested the remarks in writing. Commissioner Bradley feels the process was a good one. There was consensus on the part of the Commission in two areas. The Commissioners did not fee~ the need to bring back any candidates, and it was agreed that if Mr. White did not accept the position, the remaining two finalists would be considered. Commissioner Bradley feels that is the way to proceed this evening. If that process does not work out, then it might be necessary to look at other options. Commissioner Titcomb feels this Commission was in consensus with this process eight days ago. The interview process was extensive. He does not believe the process is flawed. He further agreed with Commissioner Bradley's remarks about the Commission agreeing to meet to reconsider the second and third candidates in the event Mr. White withdrew. Commissioner Titcomb realized that a 4-1 vote would not be forthcoming on either of the remaining candidates. Following the rules and criteria, his instinct would be to go down the list in the order that the candidates were ranked during the first meeting. He would approach Mr. Turner second, and Mr. Wagner third based on the MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 scoring. Anyone selected needs the full support of the Commission. Mayor Taylor had no objection to voting on the first two candidates first. If four votes cannot be attained for either candidate, then it may be necessary to look at the other two candidates who were part of the original five finalists. With regard to Commissioner Tillman's remarks, Mayor Taylor pointed out that the Commission did not look at 84% of the candidates. The Commissioners reviewed only those candidates that were recommended by the consultant. Out of the 60 candidates, the consultant selected the 10 he felt fit the criteria set up by the Commission. Once all of those resumes have been reviewed, if agreement cannot be reached on one candidate, then it may be necessary to look at others that at least four Commissioners can agree on. Mayor Taylor stated that it was his understanding that if Mr. White did not accept the City's offer, it would not be automatic to consider only two candidates. He recommended going through the list to see if any of the candidates has four votes. Motion Commissioner Bradley moved that we enter into negotiations with Isaac Turner as City Manager. Commissioner Tillman seconded the motion which failed 3-2. (Mayor Taylor and ViCe Mayor Jaskiewicz dissented.) Motion Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz moved to consider Warren Wagner. Mayor Taylor seconded the motion which failed 2-3. (Commissioners Bradley, Tillman and Titcomb dissented.) MOtion Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz moved to make an offer to Mr. Stunson. Mayor Taylor seconded the motion which failed 2-3. (Commissioners Bradley, Tillman and Titcomb dissented.) Motion Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz moved to make an offer to Mr. Witschen. Mayor Taylor seconded the motion which failed 2-3. (Commissioners Bradley, Tillman and Titcomb dissented.) Commissioner Titcomb feels the 60 names that have been included in this process are a good rePresentation of the active employment circle for the position of City Manager. He questioned whether it would be appropriate to have the consultant look at the entire pool, or the top candidates that were previously eliminated. Perhaps with better clarification from the Commission of what is agreeable and acceptable to them, Mr. Donaldson will be able to provide a pool. Mayor Taylor asked the Commissioners if it was their desire to look at the five candidates that were eliminated. Commissioner Titcomb pointed out that the first five candidates were ranked by the Commission. The remaining candidates were ranked by the consultant. It would be arbitrary to go to the next five on the list. MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 Mayor Taylor advised that it would be his intention for Mr. Donald to bring back a list of 10 people who fit the Commission's criteria. Mr. Donaldson will go through the remaining 50 applications and provide a list of ten. Commissioner Titcomb reminded the Commissioners that five of the 10 candidates were eliminated at the first meeting. Perhaps, under slightly altered criteria, some of the same names would emerge at the top of the list. At Commissioner Bradley's request, Mr. Donaldson explained that one of the issues that came out of this process was the difference of opinion on the salary. He does not feel the Commission will be able to negotiate with candidates #4 and #5 based on the salary. He pointed out the importance of;knowingthe amount of moneythe Commission is willing to pay for this position. Mr. Donaldson said he reviewed the resumes today. In his opinion, the top five were the five best candidates who applied. Of the remaining group, there may be five or 10 possible candidates; however, there is a large group that does not meet the criteria. Of the 46 or 47 remaining applicants, Mr. Donaldson feels there may be three or four additional candidates worth looking at. There is always the option of looking for others to apply, but that is sometimes difficult once the process has begun because it raises many questions about what happened previously. With regard to salary, Mr. Donaldson understood that the Commission wanted to took in the range of $80,000 to $95,000. However, during the process, it became evident that the Commission wanted to make an offer in the $85,000 range. Mayor Taylor explained that he assumed the entire package would be in the $80,000 to $95,000 range. Mr. White was aware of the fact that he would be taking a pay cut if he accepted this position. However, his proposal went beyond the top of our range. When the salary begins in the $90,000 range, and benefits are added, the figure goes over $100,000. Commissioner Bradley feels that when salary is discussed, most people are talking about the actual amount of dollars in the pay check. They never consider the benefits. The dollar amounts that appear on the resumes are the pay check amounts not including the benefits. Mr. White was very good, and therefore, was offered $91,000. Commissioner Bradley feels the $80,000 to $95,000 range is acceptable. It is unfortunate that not all of the Commissioners feel the same, because the adwas sent out containing those figures. Commissioner Tillman stated that the term inclusive was never added to the ad. That word would have covered the fringe benefits. People responded to the salary range. They did not expect those figures to include benefits. Many of the applicants Mr. Donaldson interviewed will not fit our minimum criteria. Therefore, Commissioner Tillman feels this process is contaminated because we cannot go back and offer something to a lesser candidate that was offered to our top candidate. He further questioned what this will say about our visioning process. Discussions during Visions 20/20 centered around doing the top things for this City. We are now backtracking because we do not want to pick the Number 2 candidate. Commissioner Tillman recommended offering Mr. Turner the $85,000 to see what happens. We cannot go back into the pool of candidates in the 84 percentile because we will be settling for "C" average or less. Mayor Taylor stated that if Commissioner Tillman felt the process was contaminated, then his recommendation defeats his argument. There are applicants who will accept $85,000. Mayor Taylor disagreed with Commissioner Tillman's trend of thinking. 4 MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz pointed out that Mr. Wagner is currently earning $72,000 and Mr. Turner is earning $71,000. She believes both gentlemen would gladly accept the bottom of our range. She does not feel anyone should get the high end of the range until they have proven themselves. In Mr. White's case, he is currently earning the top salary, but that is after nine years of serving as City Manager. We currently have a City Manager who is doing a fantastic job and making $75,000. While Mayor Taylor wants to pay the City Manager a good salary, $85,000 is $10,000 over what our current City Manager is making. In addition, there are people who have been with the City for many, many years who are not making this kind of a salary. Thought must be given to a salary offer because of the impact on the entire pay structure in the City. Commissioner Titcomb agreed with the comments relative to the advertised salary being dollars only. He does not feel we can now say that was inclusive because it was not the Commission's intent. It may be better for the City to hire someone for $85,000, but Mr. White fairly negotiated a $91,000 salary. Commissioner Titcomb pointed out that he asked the Commission for parameters in carrying out the negotiations with Mr. White, and he was told to stay as far away from the ceiling of $95,000 as possible. The package that was negotiated was in relationship to Mr. White's career experiences and his move to this part of the country. Messrs. Wagner and Turner each make more than $20,000 less than Mr. White currently earns. It is not fair to go back on what was advertised publicly. Mr. White and his salary range are no longer an issue. It is now time to concentrate on someone we can offer a package to. In response to Mayor Taylor's suggestion for Mr. Donaldson to bring in an additional 10 people from the list of applicants, Mr. Donaldson stated that he might be able to bring back three to five names. He is concerned about the Commission's ability to agree on the person and the salary. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz said she does not want to pay more than $85,000 unless the candidate is tremendously compatible to our district. Mayor Taylor said he is willing to go above the $85,000 range, but it also has to be in relation to the benefit package. If four Commissioners can agree on the person, Mayor Taylor will be open to discussions about salary. Mr: Donaldson offered to review the resumes to see if there are three or four candidates who meet the criteria. Mayor Taylor advised Mr. Donaldson that he would like to have his recommendations in advance of the next meeting. During the first votes, Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz would have liked the Commissioners to have discussed each candidate and offered their opinions. Perhaps such discussions would have pointed out strengths or weaknesses that were not obvious to other Commissioners. This is the top position in our City, and the path the City will follow in the future will be dependent on the decision that is made by the Commissioners. Lee Wische, 1302 SW 8 Street, feels the Commissioners made a mistake with the salary by not checking the salaries in surrounding communities before advertising for a new City Manager. He also pointed out that he had to go through the process of hiring a new City Manager when he was a Commissioner. There were over 100 applicants. Each Commissioner received the resumes of those people who applied. After weeks of review, each Commissioner submitted one name as MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 his/her favorite choice and a vote was taken. Mr. Wische suggested the Commissioners follow that same procedure since only they know the qualifications they are looking for. Melinda Collins feels the Commissioners came up with a formula they felt was best for the selection of a City Manager for this City. According to the Commissioners, the best candidates were selected. However, now the Commissioners want to look for more candidates because the formula developed does not work, or because they will not allow it to work in this case. Once rules are established, they must be followed. Ms. Collins said her remarks had nothing to do with race, creed, or color. Ms. Collins feels the Commission should now work with the top three candidates. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz explained that the Commission could not achieve a consensus of four on the remaining candidates. Our Ordinance mandates a super majority by the Commission to hire or fire a City Manager. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz advised that her top three choices were not necessarily the same top three choices of all Commissioners. Although there was agreement on the top three candidates, there was not a majority of four votes on the order. Mayor Taylor explained that the process which was used to arrive at the top three candidates was faulty from the onset because the Commissioners were not aware that a super majority was required. After Mr. White received his proposal, it was discovered that a super majority was needed to hire him. Commissioner Bradtey pointed out that a manager needs to have the unanimous support of the Commission. Mr. White withdrew because he did not feel he had that support. Mayor Taylor said he has not changed his position. The remaining two candidates were his last choices. Mayor Taylor agreed that the Commissioners could have reviewed all of the resumes; however, the Commission chose to hire a consultant to perform that task. Consultants are hired because they know how to look for managers. Some of the Commissioners may not have experience in selecting a manager. Mayor Taylor has hired and fired many managers, both Black and White. Mr. Turner will be a good manager one day; however, Mayor Taylor does not feel he is ready at this time. He pointed out that he does not feel Mr. Hawkins is ready for the City Manager position today; however, he is doing a good job learning the process and will be a good City Manager in the future. Mr. Turner is not what the City needs at this time. With regard to pay, Mayor Taylor feels that issue can be worked out. Maurice Rosenstock said he has used the services of consultants for many years. He suggested that the Commission provide the consultant with the most precise and accurate information so that he knows the specific parameters. Lillian Artis questioned why the Commissioners hired the consultant using taxpayers' dollars, and are not willing to accept his recommendations. She further inquired as to why the Commissioners did not know how many votes were necessary to seat a City Manager. She felt the City Attorney should have provided that information. Eddie Mitchell feels this City believes in wasting money. The consultant was hired to perform this service, and now the Commission has decided that the process did not work. Taxpayers' dollars MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 have been spent. Ten thousand dollars was wasted on the Police Department. Mr. Mitchell said the Number 3 candidate has not been in government since 1983. He has lost contact with what City government is all about. We want the best. A hassle is being created because the Number 2 choice is Black. Mr. Mitchell feels it is obvious that this is the only reason why the Commission is doing this. Mayor Taylor resented Mr. Mitchell's remarks and stated that he would not care if the candidate was purple. According to Mr. Mitchell, that is what the community perceives. In response to Mr. Mitchell's remark, Mayor Taylor advised that he received telephone calls at his home before any candidates' names were submitted to tell him that hiring the Black candidate from Polk County was the best thing Boynton could do. The caller suggested that we not look anywhere else. When that candidate withdrew, he received phone calls advising him that if he did not select Mr. Turner, it would be held against him in the next Mayor's election. Mayor Taylor does not feel that these remarks were the voice of the Black community. He believes the Black community wants the best person for the job. In response to remarks from the audience regarding how he could determine these were members of the Black community, Mayor Taylor confirmed that the callers identified themselves. For the edification of the audience, Commissioner Titcomb explained that all of the Commissioners voted on the five candidates out of the ten recommended by the consultant. The numerical combination of the total score created a ranking. Commissioner Tillman stated that the remaining three candidates were ranked as the Commission's top choices out of the ten suggestions recommended by the consultant. The voting was different in some instances, but they emerged as the top three. Dorothy Walker questioned how long it will take the Commissioners to arrive at a super majority. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz explained that Mr. White had a super majority on the second ballot. In response to Mr. Donaldson's question, Commissioner Bradley preferred that he review the resumes and return to the Commission with his list of preferences. With regard to the salary, Commissioner Bradley believes an $85,000 salary may not give us the best candidate. Messrs. Stunson and Witschen have already advised that they will not accept the job for under $90,000. Commissioner Tillman feels this process is comical and contaminated. He reminded the Commissioners that when he became a member of the Commission, there was talk about moving forward, becoming aggressive and moving to the top. The discussion now is about going to the 84 percentile because the Commissioners do not want to follow the process they developed. A super majority cannot be attained because of nit-picking. Commissioner Tillman stated that he has been asked to come to consensus at times, and questioned why he cannot get a consensus this evening. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz advised that she does not agree with Commissioner Tillman's choice and cannot support it. Mr. Mitchell reminded the Commissioners that the consultant was paid to come up with the best candidates possible for the City Manager position. The Commissioners spent two days selecting their top five choices. The remaining choices are the best candidates according to the consultant. 7 MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 Micheline Many advised that when she was in charge of hiring in her field, she looked at attitude. The job can be learned, but you either have the right attitude, or you don't. tn response to Mrs. Artis' question regarding salary, Mayor Taylor stated that we do not expect to find a City Manager for $75,000 inclusive, nor do we expect to find someone for $85,000 inclusive. He is willing to negotiate the City Manager's salary. He is not opposed to the deferred payment of 7.5% and four months' severance. He could even negotiate the four months' severance up to six months if it is a top candidate. However, he will not agree to more than six months. He supports paying a dislocation allowance, and insurance. He opposed paying Mr. White $200,000 in life insurance when the rest of the employees are getting $25,000 worth of insurance. Mayor Taylor supported offering two weeks vacation, and would consider more if the Commissioners wanted to discuss that option. Although he would like to pay a saiary of $85,000, he is willing to consider more if necessary. COmmissioner Titcomb explained that while Mr. White had a super majority, he had concerns beCause he did not have the Mayor's full support. Mayor Taylor said he spoke with Mr. White and offered his support. However, Mr. White wanted unconditionat support. When the salary discussions took place, agreement could not be reached. Commissioner Titcomb does not believe the process was flawed. He relied on the expertise of the co!nsultant. Mr. Turner was Commissioner Titcomb's second choice, but a super majority cannot be achieved. He feels it is now necessary to review the resumes to try to find someone everyone can agree on. Mr. Donaldson recommended that he return on Monday, November 18, at 6:30 p.m., to review his preferences. He will attempt to get the background material to the Commissioners on Friday, November 15. Commissioner Bradley questioned whether the remaining candidates of the original 10 preferences would be included, or whether Mr. Donaldson would be reviewing the resumes to find 10 new candidates. Mayor Taylor advised that that would be his preference. Mr. Donaldson stated that he would not have a great deal of time available to do that. He will look atlthe resumes again. The original top five choices had very good backgrounds. He has concerns about some of the remaining candidates. He offered to try to make some telephone calls and come up with some additional people. In response to Commissioner Titcomb's question regarding whether or not the original four would b~ included in the new list, Commissioner BradIey does not feel they should be eliminated from consideration. Although they did not get four votes this evening, they can be considered as part of th~ group that comes back. Commissioner Titcomb recommended including them in the group because if more information is brought forward, it is possible that the vote could change. Commissioner Bradley also pointed out that as other candidates come forward, the original four candidates may begin to look better. He is confident Mr. Donaldson brought forth the best people. Mayor Taylor does not believe there are only five very good City Manager candidates available in the country. Mr. Donaldson said that affer reviewing the resumes of the 60 candidates, if quality is not available, we will have to go outside again. MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA NOVEMBER 4, 1996 Stormet Norem said every business in this country today has the problem of not setting its sights high enough. It seems in this case, the Commission has its sights set high enough, but is either unwilling or unable to afford that person. If the consultant was given the salary figure of $80,000 or $85,000, the field of candidates will be limited. More businesses need to hire someone experienced and able to take the business into the next decade. He recommended that this City not look at neighboring cities. He feels it might be necessary to increase the salary tevel to $100,000. If that person is good, he/she will make up that difference in salary within the first few months of employment. Managers pay for themselves if they are the right people. Mayor Taylor reminded Mr. Norem that the taxpayers have to pay that salary. The Commissioners have to determine what the taxpayers are willing to pay. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Commission, the meeting properly adjourned at 7:15 p.m. ATTEST: City ~le-rk' ..... ...... .... ~e~cording Secretary "~'wo Tapes) ~ommissioner ,~missioner