The Confederate Flag, the TDC, and the BCC

Tags

Confederate Flag, South Walton, Walton Board of County Commissioners, Walton County, Walton Tourist Development Council

Imagine this scenario:

A citizen occupies a seat on Walton’s Board of County Commissioners. This citizen votes in 2020 to keep the Confederate flag flying over the Walton County Courthouse, in the name of protecting history. 

This citizen, along with two other commissioners, continues the legacy of the previous board, which voted in 2015 to keep the Confederate flag flying over the same courthouse. Following the 2015 decision, the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce withdrew its future plans to hold conferences in Walton County, costing this area millions in tourism dollars.

Now imagine the same citizen occupies a seat on Walton’s Tourist Development Council; a board whose mission statement is to “…take a leadership role in addressing issues that affect tourism and the quality of life in Walton County.” (From page 1 of South Walton’s 2019-2021 Strategic Plan.)

That same strategic plan for that same organization also states a desire to “Continue to Enhance Efforts to Attract More Group Business to South Walton,” (From page 4 of South Walton’s 2019-2021 Strategic Plan) with a specific focus on positioning South Walton as a unique meeting experience. 

So if you’re keeping score, the citizen voted to keep the flag, despite a knowledge that the decision has discouraged professional groups from traveling here in the past. And the same citizen serves on separate a board dedicated to convincing professional groups to travel here. 

See the problem? 

So here’s our question for the citizens of Walton County: Is this an acceptable scenario that a citizen serves with two separate organizations, despite the fact that the voting record with one of them actively undermines the mission of the other?

And here’s our question for the TDC: should it be concerned that one of its members recently cast a vote that will make the work of branding the county more difficult?

It’s an intriguing question, for sure.

Tyranny of the Majority

Tags

Bill Chapman, Confederate Flag, Danny Glidewell, Melanie Nipper, Tony Anderson, Trey Nick, Walton Board of County Commissioners

Much has been made of the fact that 65 percent of Walton County voters believe that the Confederate flag should stay in place at the county courthouse. And it is true that, in the 2018 non-binding referendum on the flag, 9,033 people voted to keep it, while 4,189 voted to take it down.

Those who believe the flag should stay are quick to point to the “will of the people” as an immovable force that the government shouldn’t override. Commissioner Danny Glidewell is one of them.

“Sixty-five percent of the people asked for that flag to stay,” he said. “To so cavalierly dismiss the will of the people for political expediency — just so we can go along with the crowd — is wrong.”

But should the government always enact the “will of the people?”

Founding father James Madison believed it was dangerous to blindly protect the will of the majority at the expense of the minority, warning against “the tyranny of the majority.” In short, when one group has the benefit of greater numbers, it’s much easier for that group to disrespect other groups.

Think of it as two wolves and a sheep trying to decide what to have for dinner.

When the people represented by a governing body fall on opposing sides of an issue, should the government always vote according to the louder voices?

Consider, for example, the customary use issue that Walton County finds itself debating. On one side of the debate, a large group of people believes that the beaches should be open to the public based upon the fact that the beaches have always been open to the public. On the other side, more than 4,000 property owners and representatives from 1,100 properties believe that beach owners have a legal right to exclude “unwanted visitors.”

So if an influential majority of stakeholders believes that the beaches should be closed to the public, should our representatives vote accordingly simply because the majority group supports it? Or is it possible that this group is using its power and influence to disrespect and disregard the minority group?

And if that’s true, does the government have an ethical responsibility to consider the needs of both groups, or only the majority group?

Consider the following facts:

1. The Florida statute that addresses public officers says that the primary concern of these “agents of the people” who “hold their positions for the benefit of the public” should be “maintaining the respect of the people in their government.”

Such officers and employees are bound to observe, in their official acts, the highest standards of ethics consistent with this code and the advisory opinions rendered with respect hereto regardless of personal considerations, recognizing that promoting the public interest and maintaining the respect of the people in their government must be of foremost concern. (Emphasis is ours.)

2. The Walton County Personnel and Policy Manual, addresses behaviors that will not be tolerated by or toward its employees, and it includes the following definition:

The following list of behaviors, while not all-inclusive, provides examples of conduct that is prohibited:…  Aggressive or hostile behavior that creates a reasonable fear of injury to another person or subjects another individual to emotional distress…  (Again, emphasis is ours.)

Commissioner Tony Anderson, who voted to remove the flag, recognizes the flag’s impact on members of the local community.

“It’s not how you or I see it as an affront, it’s how African Americans see it,” he said. “And this is an affront to their dignity.”

He also acknowledges the fact that his vote to remove the flag will probably cost him something and he understands his responsibility to make decisions regardless of personal considerations.

“I’ve got people that are probably texting me right now telling me to shut the hell up, but this is an issue that’s not going to go away and we’re going to have to confront it sooner or later.”

(Commissioner Bill Chapman recognizes that change has come, and he voted to remove the flag as well.)

And, as this community considers all sides of the issue, it’s worth considering that the DeFuniak Springs City Council moved its meetings to the Walton County Courthouse last year, meaning that the members of that council — including two African-American council members — serve in that building, under that flag, twice a month.

The commissioners will not be able to please everyone with this decision, but Commissioner Anderson had it right when he acknowledged that there are multiple perspectives to consider. The BCC must make responsible, ethical decisions, and its members must be willing to recognize perspectives that may not match their own. This isn’t about “being military” (Melanie Nipper’s words) or “rewriting history” (Trey Nick’s words).

Perhaps the most important words are found in Chapter 760 of the Florida Statute:

The general purposes of the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992 are to secure for all individuals within the state freedom from discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, age, handicap, or marital status and thereby to protect their interest in personal dignity…

If the commission won’t find a way to follow its own governing documents, both state and local, this will become an entirely different conversation.

 

An Open Letter to Councilman Kermit Wright

Tags

DeFuniak Springs City Council, integrity, Kermit Wright, Ron Kelley, Tilman Mears

You’ve put Ron Kelley in an impossible spot this week, Mr. Wright.

Your fellow councilman has a tough choice to make as a result of your self-inflicted controversy: he’ll either hold you accountable for your error in judgment, or he’ll sacrifice his own standing in the community by condoning your behavior. Either way, it’s a tough place to be.

You see, Mr. Wright, your words are right there in black and white.

When you and former interim city manager Tilman Mears exchanged derogatory comments about your political opponents in a private Facebook group, you belittled the very people who elected you to serve them.

When Mr. Mears posted an image of a dart board, complete with images of former city manager Kim Kirby, former council member Mac Carpenter, former mayor Harold Carpenter, sitting mayor Bob Campbell, citizen Diane Pickett, and citizen Bob McKnight, and then referred to the dart board as “cute,” he made himself look petty and unprofessional.

When you commented that you loved it, and then suggested you would buy one for yourself if it could be changed to include the members of DeFuniak’s watchdog group “C-FOWARD Gang,” (your words) you undermined your own integrity.

Then, when you referred to the group as “a team of world renowned better than thou’s” and suggested that city council hopeful Bob McKnight should “BRING IT ON!!!!” you put Mr. Kelley in a heck of a tough spot.

You see, Mr. Kelley reminded us last year that we should always seek out our council members if we wanted to know the truth about the city.

“… To find out the true state of your city, never settle for gossip, go straight to the source and contact a city council member.”

~Councilman Ron Kelley in his July 25, 2018 Dispatches from DeFuniak

So here we are, Mr. Wright, asking about the true state of the city. We want to know what it means for our city when a sitting councilman chooses to publicly ridicule his constituents.

And while you’re contemplating that statement, consider this one as well:

“… (G)ood government should begin at home. We should always ask, ‘How do I govern myself, my actions, and the things I say and do?'”

~Councilman Ron Kelley in his July 25, 2018 Dispatches from DeFuniak

If it’s true that good government begins at home, Mr. Wright, and that people should govern themselves and their actions, what should Mr. Kelley do in the face of your failure to govern your words and your actions?

Should he call you out for failing to live up to your position? Or should he refuse to take a stand and prove himself to be a politician rather than a leader?

Unfortunately, it gets worse.

Mr. Mears compounded the problem by completely disproving Mr. Kelley’s 2017 words about him:

“[Mears’] dedication and personal integrity are above reproach.” 

~Councilman Ron Kelley on Mr. Mears’ resignation as interim city manager

It seems that either Mr. Kelley was wrong in his assessment of Mr. Mears, or Mr. Kelley doesn’t understand what personal integrity means.

Either way, you and Mr. Mears have put Mr. Kelley in an impossible spot. Just as your words are there in black and white, his are too.

“Most of all, I am thankful for the people of this town. They are generous, compassionate, and hard-working. They place a high value on honor and decency….”

~Councilman Ron Kelley in his November 22, 2018 Dispatches from DeFuniak

It’s unfortunate for you that your own words might wreck your re-election campaign before it even has a chance to get underway, Mr. Wright.

The problem is that we’re seeking good government, and according to your friend Mr. Kelley, you just don’t fit the bill. 

What is the City Attorney’s Office So Afraid of?

Tags

city attorney, Clay Adkinson, Clayton Adkinson, DeFuniak Springs, DeFuniak Springs City Council

Click here to watch We The People, a video addressing the city attorney situation.

 

On July 30, the DeFuniak Springs City Council held a Special Meeting to determine the next steps in the process to hire a city manager.

These are a few of the questions that occurred to us:

1.  Why is Clayton Adkinson, city attorney, sitting in the front row of the audience answering questions about the process?

This question is packed with possibilities.

If you watch the video, you’ll notice Clay Adkinson, city attorney, is already running the show from seated at the dais. You can’t miss him, because he’s attempting to fill the role of the Human Resources Director, the city attorney, a city council member, and advisor to the council.

Who decided we needed two city attorneys at this particular meeting?

Our bold prediction is that no one asked them both to attend. They decided on their own, just as they often do. 

Like the time Clayton initiated a background investigation related to Danny Lucas without anyone’s direction. Or the time Clayton initiated a Separation Agreement for Sara Bowers without anyone’s direction. Or most recently, the time Clayton presented a document related to conduct during city council meetings that no one seemed to request.

We don’t have a problem with them both attending; we have a problem with them billing us for two attorneys without direction from an elected official. Rest assured that we will request the billing from the Adkinson Law Firm for this particular event. 

2.  If our city attorneys believe so strongly in the need for decorum that they drew up a document to govern it, why do they feel so empowered to disregard it?

In the video, you’ll hear Clayton speak at the 15-second mark. You won’t initially see him, because he’s speaking from a front-row chair.

The first words you’ll hear him say are “Gimmee that…”

When citizens prompt him to follow the rules he introduced at the July 23 City Council meeting, he turns and speaks directly to the audience saying he doesn’t mind going to the mic.

When audience members prompt him to follow his document’s stated decorum by giving his name, Clay can be heard jumping to his defense in the background.

“Clayton Adkinson, City Attorney. I believe the public knows his name.”

Let us remind you, Adkinson Law Firm, you introduced these rules at the last council meeting because you wanted them to be enforceable.

Your document suggested that people should speak only from the podium after providing a name. Your document suggested that speakers shouldn’t speak to others in the audience.

As we move forward, we will continue to demand that the council members report which of them asked you to pursue this document, because we haven’t yet been able to find a record of it in a public meeting.

If no one asked you to explore it, but you pursued it on your own, we’ll file that under “The Adkinsons continue to operate according to their own set of rules.”

Again.

3.  If our city attorneys understand that a written document makes a rule more enforceable, why are they so afraid of operating under a document that outlines their own service to the council?

Oh, right. Silly question.

The Adkinson Law Firm has no contract with the city.

The City of DeFuniak Springs has no ordinance outlining the Adkinsons’ relationship with the city, and no outline of a job description.

To date, no city council member has even acknowledged the public’s call for a contract or a city ordinance to regulate the city attorney’s office. As a result, we’re left to assume this relationship developed the way things frequently do with the city attorneys: the Adkinsons decided it should be this way, and so it was.

4.  How long will the city council take a hands-off approach to the issue of the city manager?

Recognizing that a problem exists but refusing to address it suggests a few possibilities. It means the council is either ok with the city attorneys and their conduct, or it is unsure how to proceed.

We’re simply asking you, city council members, to place the issue of the city attorney on the agenda prior to the next meeting. Begin the discussion of the city attorney’s role in this city.

Here’s what we’ll be looking for:

If the Adkinsons truly care about the welfare of the city government as they would have you believe, they will absolutely understand the need for a governing document.

They will welcome an ordinance that outlines the city attorney’s role and responsibilities.

They will understand why requiring them to compete for the job against other interested firms is in the city’s best interest.

They will welcome a document that holds them accountable for their behavior (especially since they are so quick to require accountability for the public they serve).

If you’re nervous about initiating such a move, we understand, but we would remind you that you were elected by the people of this city to do the business that is best for it.

Ask yourself this simple question: who benefits from a contract with the city attorney’s office? Then ask yourself the obvious follow-on question: Who benefits from the lack of a contract?

We elected you, city council members; not the Adkinsons.

Which side will you champion?

 

 

Any Idea Who Might Benefit By Reporting Our Content to Facebook As “Unsafe”?

Tags

city attorney, Clay Adkinson, Clayton Adkinson, DeFuniak Springs, DeFuniak Springs City Council, Ron Kelley

Plot twist.

We were contacted this morning by a reader who noticed that all our recent content was missing from our Facebook page.

Like the content that called out Clayton Adkinson’s past efforts to manipulate the hiring process.

And the content that observed that the city attorney’s office appears to be running the entire city government.

And the content that points out certain government officials’ reputation for intimidating the public.

And most recently, the content that exposed Clay Adkinson’s lie during the special meeting on July 30.

All of those posts have been removed from our Facebook page, and our attempts to replace any links show up as unsafe material.

(We kind of wish we had thought of that line ourselves. Unsafe for whom?)

When a citizen tried to share a link to our material, it was blocked as spam.

Someone else who attempted to help us identify the problem sent this:

“When I opened the post from Monday about the City Council meeting, my phone sent me to your site to read it, but then a bunch of popups (the virus filled kind) started opening. I didn’t think anything about it, it happens sometimes to other pages I follow. Check your recent posts for some malicious bugs and make sure your systems antivirus software is updated. I hope that it wasn’t a deliberate attempt to silence the page, but maybe just some hacker a-holes who do this crap to everyone.”

We’ve contacted Facebook about the issue and we’re waiting to hear back. In the meantime, we’ll share a few thoughts.

Frankly, we’re surprised that it took this long for someone in leadership to tire of seeing their bad behavior documented on the internet. We expected this kind of pushback the day we launched this blog.

To those who question our decision to operate anonymously, the fact that we aren’t easily identifiable has forced our detractors to carry out their censorship publicly instead of operating behind the scenes.

The best part of this entire move is that we don’t even have to speculate about who might have initiated an effort like this. We don’t have to hint or suggest a name or speak in hushed tones.

The citizens of DeFuniak Springs know who is capable of this kind of conduct, and they know who most commonly engages in it.

The citizens of DeFuniak Springs should also know that this will not take the wind out of our sails. The party that initiated this move did what Ron Kelley repeatedly accuses us of: it underestimated the citizens.

This should absolutely set a fire in the City of DeFuniak Springs. The people have a power they don’t yet realize.

To our point: we’ve had more citizen input on our Facebook page this morning than we’ve had in a long time. Citizens are voluntarily helping us determine what our limitations are and how we can work around these blatant efforts to squash the truth.

When citizens attend meetings, ask thoughtful questions, ask follow-up questions, and share the information they have, they absolutely neutralize those who operate without transparency.

When local entities provide video coverage of the meetings, and citizens work together to review documents and research past actions, it suddenly becomes impossible to deceive the people.

Specific shout-out to WZEP for continuing to provide video recordings to allow those who couldn’t attend the meeting to monitor the city’s government proceedings.

While we figure this out, please continue to interact with us. We’ll post this to our blog, and we’ll send this out to a few key people via email with the request that they share it there. If, in fact, our blog is showing popups, the email content will be clean.

If you have an idea how to get the word out, let’s get creative. Send us an email at defuniakfreepress@gmail.com.

If you receive an email from someone local today, we humbly ask that you open it and read it. If you’re so inclined, take a few minutes to share it with other people you know in the community.

It requires more effort, but your efforts are working.

If we’re going to be tagged as unsafe, let’s continue to be unsafe for those who wish to censor the truth.

 

Notes on the Continuing Search For a DeFuniak Springs City Manager

Tags

city attorney, city council, city manager, Clay Adkinson, Clayton Adkinson, DeFuniak Springs City Council, Janie Griffith, Kermit Wright

If you didn’t make it to last night’s meeting regarding the city manager hiring process, it’s worth 47 minutes of your time to see your city government at work.

Some background:

• The City of DeFuniak Springs received 43 applications for city manager. After city staff applied its “matrix” designed to narrow the field, 33 candidates (or 77 percent) were disqualified. Twenty-five of those candidates had a bachelor’s degree or better.
• The committee designated to review the applications never saw those 33 applications. Only the 10 remaining applications were forwarded to the committee.
• The review committee narrowed the field to six, and then three of those candidates withdrew from consideration before interviews began.
• The review committee interviewed three candidates for city manager on July 25 and 26 and then recommended that two of the candidates advance to be interviewed by the city council.
• Citizens who attended the interviews claim that City Attorney Clay Adkinson told the three candidates they would be notified on Thursday or Friday (July 26 or 27) whether they were advancing to the next steps.
• After the interviews, on July 26, a special meeting was announced for July 30 to “consider scheduling interviews for the applicants for the position.”
• The two advancing candidates were not notified of their advancement on July 26 or July 27.
• One of the two candidates, Jim Hedges, withdrew his name from consideration on Saturday, July 28.
• On Monday, July 30, Mr. Hedges asked to be reinstated, presumably because he had not been notified on Thursday or Friday that he was advancing.
• At the special meeting, the city council was faced with the decision to start the entire process over again; to interview the remaining candidate; or to reinstate Mr. Hedges and interview both candidates.
• City Attorney Clay Adkinson recommended not reinstating candidates who withdraw, an answer consistent with the answer he gave to the committee during the interview process.

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A few highlights from the July 30 special meeting:

 “Our committee did what was asked of them. We need to take the recommendation of our committee because they did exactly what we asked them to do… If we don’t support the recommendation of our committee, we should not have formed a committee.”

Janie Griffith, arguing that the council should honor the remaining candidate by interviewing him. She later insisted on meeting times that would accommodate more of the public.

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“They were not told that they would be notified by a specific time.”

City Attorney Clay Adkinson, regarding whether the candidates were told to expect a call on Thursday or Friday. (around 23:11 in the audio from July 30)

“Ms. Glenn… I don’t believe I specifically said you’ll be notified on Thursday or Friday. If I’m mistaken on that, then I apologize to the candidates and the council if that was the statement that was inferred from that…” 

City Attorney Clay Adkinson, regarding whether the candidates were told to expect a call on Thursday or Friday. (around 27:54 in the audio from July 30)

“As Ms. Glenn stated, there’s no question, I told the committee, I told the candidates… that they would be notified of the next steps on either Thursday afternoon or Friday.”

City Attorney Clay Adkinson, regarding whether the candidates were told to expect a call on Thursday or Friday. (around 34:30 in the audio from July 30)

“Staff will contact immediately upon close of committee meeting tomorrow… All applicants advised what that is.”

What City Attorney Clay Adkinson actually said to Jim Hedges when Mr. Hedges specifically asked to be notified of the outcome by phone or email. (around 1:09:10 in the audio from July 25)

[Note how Clay alters his answers as the meeting goes on. Note, too, the final comment indicates what Clay actually did say to one of the candidates during the interview process.]

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• City Attorney Clayton Adkinson spoke from the front row of the audience about the remaining candidate’s availability for interview. (around the 12:00 mark) There was another speaker at the podium, and the mayor never gave him permission to speak. He spoke directly to a council member rather than speaking directly to the mayor.
• Around the 28:00 mark, Clayton spoke about the candidate who withdrew, again from his chair. When the audience reminded him to speak from the microphone, he quipped, “Gimme that… I don’t mind going to the mic,” and then launched directly into an answer without stating his name.
• When citizens reminded Clayton to provide his name, City Attorney Clay Adkinson countered with “Clayton Adkinson, City Attorney. I believe the public knows his name.”

This conduct is noteworthy because the city attorney’s office introduced a document at the July 23 city council meeting titled Public Meeting Participation Procedure. Clayton Adkinson asked the city council to review the document and explained that it would help the council address issues of decorum in city council meetings.

A7 in the document says this:

No person, other than a member of the Council, and the person having the floor, may be permitted to enter into any discussion, either directly or through a member of the Council, without permission of the Mayor.

A5 in the document says this:

Speakers will be acknowledged by the Mayor in an orderly manner. Speakers will address the Council from the podium at the front of the room and begin their remarks by stating their name… and whether they reside in the City…

A8 in the document says this:

Speakers will be courteous in their language and presentation. Speakers must be respectful and courteous in their remarks.

They wrote the document. They claim to want decorum in the city council meetings. Perhaps they should lead by example.

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“We’ve done this over and over and we’ve come to this end over and over and over.” 

Kermit Wright, about the city council’s track record of hiring city managers

 

 

Editor’s Note: If you access the audio files directly from the city website, you will not likely have much functionality. If you right-click on the audio link on the city website, you can download the linked file and listen to it in a program that provides the ability to fast forward or rewind. 

 

An Open Letter To City Attorney Clayton Adkinson

Tags

Adkinson Law Firm, city manager, Clay Adkinson, Clayton Adkinson, DeFuniak Springs, DeFuniak Springs City Council

We get it, Mr. Adkinson.

Life is just easier when there’s no city manager to get in the way of your agenda. We’re pretty sure it would make your life easier if we would just skip to the obvious conclusion and “let you be city manager” the same way we’ve “let you be the city attorney.”

Think about it.

• You (Clayton) could earn the $80,000 city manager’s salary WHILE Clay continues billing the city at $150 an hour. (Plus the city will still have to pay the Adkinson Law Firm its retainer fee, as well.)
• You’d finally have legitimate control over the city’s hiring and firing decisions without having to pull strings from behind the scenes. (Think Danny Lucas, Mike Standley, and countless other examples.)

But here’s why you could never really be the city manager.

The Adkinson Law Firm

You’d have to address the fact that the Adkinson Law Firm operates without any kind of contract, or any kind of ordinance that allows for its relationship with the city.

You’d also have to address the firm’s past record of initiating actions that no one asked for.

Like the time its attorney generated a separation agreement worth $53,874 for outgoing city manager Sara Bowers without the council’s direction. (We’d be curious to know who paid for the firm’s services in this transaction.)

Or the time its attorney investigated Danny Lucas’ education on behalf of the City of DeFuniak Springs even though no one asked him to do it. (Perhaps you could make the firm understand that it would better serve the city by suggesting an improved employment application that isn’t flawed and poorly-written.)

The City Attorney

Because you’d be charged with doing what’s best for the city, you’d have to insist that the city attorney role be adopted into the city’s code so that the city has some oversight over the attorney filling the position.

You’d also need to conduct a legitimate bidding process to allow other attorneys to compete for the position. Otherwise, it might look as though something less-than-transparent is happening, and that certainly isn’t in the city’s best interest.

Finally, you’d need to insist that the city attorney operate according to a contract to ensure that the city attorney’s office doesn’t operate without any checks and balances. That way, no city attorney is guaranteed to keep the job indefinitely.

You’d also have to help the city attorney understand that opening an investigation because a citizen brings something to his attention is a dangerous precedent to set. (Unless of course he’s in the business of helping people carry out personal vendettas.)

Worse yet, the city attorney could become a liability to the city, and the city would have no means to remove him.

Certainly we can agree that would never be good for the city.

City Council meetings

You’d have to address the fact that there simply isn’t sufficient seating for the citizens who attend the city council meetings. More importantly, because you’re charged with doing what’s best for the city, you’d want to make it easier for the citizens to engage.

You’d want to do something about the unreliable sound system that makes it difficult for the citizens to hear what the city attorney is saying.

If the city attorney mumbles, making it difficult for the public to understand what he’s saying, you would have to insist that he speak clearly. He would, after all, have a contract that motivates him to do his best work for the city.  

If the city attorney tells a member of the audience that she needs to “just hush,”  (around the 3:05:00 mark) you can remind him that if he expects the people to operate with a certain level of decorum, he should probably hold himself to the same standard.

You would have to remind everyone involved that the Florida law isn’t called the Sunshine Suggestion. It’s the law. It’s binding and it exists for a reason. You would want to ensure that your process demands transparency.

When citizens ask the members of the council to explain the decisions they’ve made, you would have to use your leadership to encourage the councilmembers to engage with the public. While the members might have the right to abstain from answering, you would understand that the people deserve to hear your motives. (It’s the transparency thing we mentioned above.)

If the city attorney constantly hides behind the fact that the law doesn’t require an answer, you would have to engage the power of the city attorney’s contract to seek new counsel when the contract runs out.

You see, Mr. Adkinson?

As much as you like being the de facto city manager, you simply aren’t the right guy for the job.

Instead, focus on being the city attorney that the City of DeFuniak Springs needs.

The job is yours to lose.

 

City Council Seems Prepared to Override Its Own City Manager Hiring Process

Tags

Danny Lucas, DeFuniak Springs City Council, Henry Ennis, integrity, Janie Griffith, Kermit Wright, Ron Kelley, Tilman Mears, Wayne Graham

The city council is conducting business as usual.

The council called a special meeting for Monday, July 30, (we’ll be sure to find out who called it) at 4:30 “relating to the City Manager application review committee short list candidates and to consider scheduling interviews for the applicants for the position.”

Here’s what you need to know.

• The committee that was appointed by the city council met on Wednesday and Thursday of this week to interview the three remaining city manager candidates. The committee was initially scheduled to interview six candidates, but three withdrew their names from consideration prior to the interviews.

• The committee recommended two candidates to be interviewed by the council and submitted their names.

• The city council scheduled a special meeting for Monday afternoon to “consider scheduling interviews.”

• The public is welcomed to attend the meeting (but not encouraged, since it’s scheduled for 4:30 on a Monday, while many people are unavailable.)

Why does this matter?

Because the process worked. The process established by the city council has done exactly what it was designed to do: it identified the best candidates of the bunch.

So what’s the problem?

It’s no accident that the announcement for Monday’s meeting says they’ll “consider scheduling interviews.” The council is leaving itself room to claim that there aren’t enough applicants to choose from before they even interview the ones that were selected by the process the council created.

The City Council of DeFuniak Springs needs one city manager. Only one. That means that, of the two candidates remaining, one of them could be the city manager this council needs to help it run effectively and efficiently.

The City Council of DeFuniak Springs wants Tilman Mears. Or at least one member of the council does.

How do we know? We requested previous copies of the Dispatches from DeFuniak that Ron Kelley generates to keep the public notified about happenings at city council, and Kelley makes no secret of his preference for Mr. Mears. (If you’ve never seen these Dispatches before, perhaps it indicates that Mr. Kelley distributes them selectively.)

“I can think of no one more dedicated to this city and its people than Tilman Mears. He continues to be a major asset to our town and a blessing to our residents.”

January 12, 2017 (18 days before Mears resigned claiming personal attacks against him)

“Much has taken place since my last dispatch. As most of you know by now, Interim City Manager Tilman Mears unex­pectedly tendered his resigna­tion due to unrelenting harass­ment and antagonism by two elected city officials. Having voiced my unwaver­ing support for Mr. Mears in media reports and a recent let­ter to the editor, I will not con­tinue to belabor the point.”

February 28, 2017 (30 days after Mears resigned)

“Since former DeFuniak Springs City Manager Tilman Mears resigned due to harassment from two elected officials, the city has certainly been experiencing interesting times.”

May 9, 2017 (99 days after Mears resigned)

“It was a terrible blow to the citizens and staff when we lost Interim City Manager Tilman Mears, but that loss was forced on us because of some other people’s private agendas.” 

May 29, 2017 (119 days after Mears resigned)

“Though Mr. Drake never sought the position, he has done an outstanding job at maintaining continuity and consistency of mission since the departure of our former Interim City Manager Til­man Mears. Both men proved they could do the job and do it well. We owe them both a very real debt of gratitude.”

September 20, 2017 (This was part of the welcome for Danny Lucas)

“We lost an excellent city manager, Tilman Mears, who was driven away by two elected officials and their followers.”

December 28, 2017 (As part of a year-end wrap up, Kelley laments the loss of Mears, praises Craig Drake, but never mentions sitting city manager Danny Lucas. Kelley also dedicates the entire second page to fault-finding of Danny Lucas’ facts in a recent council meeting. )

“Had it not been for a staff mem­ber giving former Interim City Manager Tilman Mears a copy of one of the nine letters from the state that the mayor received, we still might not know.”

February 28, 2018 (This appeared in his claim that information was withheld from the council.)

“The Council attempted to designate Assis­tant City Manager Tilman Mears as the per­manent city manager, but that move was blocked by former Councilman Mac Carpen­ter. Mears eventually resigned, citing continu­ous harassment by Carpenter and Mayor Bob Campbell.”

June 20, 2018 (In this particular piece, he acknowledges that only two administrators have been fired in 30 years, both while Kelley was on the council.)

Mr. Kelley clearly lost objectivity where Mears was concerned a long time ago.

Here’s the other problem: Mears has withdrawn his name from consideration twice, citing that he is the victim of personal attacks.

He quit. Twice.

Just as the people suspected, Mears has proven that he is not the guy to be the city manager.

Note that the council has overseen three different ordinance changes related to the city manager.

1. The council changed the residency requirements during its effort to force Mike Standley into the city manager position. (Ordinance 810)

2. The council changed the requirements of appointment so that a 4-1 vote is sufficient to hire a city manager rather than a 5-0 vote. This was in response to Councilman Mac Carpenter’s refusal to hire Mears without advertising the job to outside candidates. (Ordinance 878)

3. The council changed the experience requirements so that local government experience is sufficient rather than requiring city government experience. This was part of the current hiring process, during which the council seemed to be pushing for a return of Tilman Mears. (Ordinance 892)

The council has literally structured every part of the process. It has changed the rules, amended ordinances, chosen the committees and overseen every aspect.

The process isn’t working because the effort lacks integrity. When you bend the rules to fit a particular candidate, the system will fail every time because it lacks transparency. Kelley has made no secret of the fact that he wants Mears to return, and he’ll stop at nothing to make it happen.

From where we sit, though, there is still hope, and it’s this. Four members of this council have shown the courage to stand against the strong-arm tactics that have plagued this process in the past.

A quick history lesson.

• On May 1, 2018, Kermit Wright suggested that the council seek help from an outside firm. Kelley dismissed the suggestion saying that a committee of “local residents and business owners would have more knowledge as to the correct applicant for the city.”

• On April 26, 2018, Wayne Graham responded to the will of the people and voted against the firing of Danny Lucas.

• On Sept. 26, 2011, then-citizen Janie Griffith pushed back against Kelley’s move to open the city manager application to those living in Walton County rather than requiring citizenship in DeFuniak Springs.

• On Oct. 10, 2011, when the city council attempted to enter into an employment contract with Mike Standley prior to the completion of his background, Henry Ennis stood against the effort. He voted against their attempt to bypass the mayor, who disagreed with the move.

(Note that Kelley himself claimed that a committee was the best body for the job.)

You’ll also notice that in every case except one, the dissenting voice against their suggestions belongs to Ron Kelley.

Our message to Henry Ennis, Wayne Graham, Janie Griffith, and Kermit Wright is this: we see your efforts. We understand what you’re up against.

We believe the people of this city have proven their willingness to stand against this kind of conduct, and we are willing to stand alongside you now.

If each of you will commit to lead with integrity, regardless of what others around you are doing, you will demonstrate to the people of this great city that you hear their concerns. You will demonstrate a willingness to “take a breath” as one citizen suggested during the process of firing Danny Lucas.

The council missed its opportunity to pause during the firing of Danny Lucas, but it has a fresh opportunity today. Do not stray from the process you put in place. Finish what you started, and set yourself apart from the leaders who run roughshod over the system.

We believe then-resident Griffith exactly captured our sentiment in September of 2011 when she spoke out against Mike Standley’s rushed hiring process:

“Everybody should be interviewed, everybody should be treated fairly. What’s good for one person is good for all.”

 

Until the City Council Reins In the City Attorney, Its Members Will Continue to Look Weak

Tags

city attorney, Clayton Adkinson, DeFuniak Springs City Council, Ron Kelley

There’s an elephant in the room that the DeFuniak Springs City Council apparently hopes you won’t notice.

City Attorney Clayton Adkinson does, too.

Clayton (we’ll use his first name to distinguish him from Clay) has a measurable track record of initiating business without direction from anyone on the council. It’s almost as though the Adkinson Law Firm believes it operates without any oversight or any contract to keep it accountable. (Well, Ok. Maybe there are two elephants.)

During the July 23, 2018 council meeting, Clayton presented a document titled “Public Meeting Participation Procedure” and asked for the council to review its contents. He also asked for any comments, changes, or suggestions the council might have.

He then commented that the same could be true for the public “I guess, if you want to the allow the public” to be part of the conversation. (Clayton’s language suggests that he does not want the public to be part of the conversation.)

He called the document a set of procedures, and a policy that — once adopted — will allow the council to “enforce it.”

What was most interesting to us was the City Council Agenda Request that was submitted with the document. The blank that requests background information such as who initiated this effort or when it was first introduced is empty. (Click on agenda item 9A to see for yourself.)

No reference to a council member who requested this action. No hint of any conversation that led to this move. (We don’t remember any mention of this during a council meeting, but we’d love for someone to fill us in if it did.)

So without that information, we wondered who directed Mr. Adkinson to introduce this procedure. (And if someone did direct it, but it didn’t happen within the confines of a meeting, perhaps there’s a much bigger problem here.)

We will not, however, be surprised to find that he initiated it on his own because he has done it before.

1. In April of this year, Clayton took it upon himself to investigate Danny Lucas’ educational background at the urging of some unnamed citizen. Mr. Adkinson did it without the council’s stated direction, though his correspondence specifically says he was acting on behalf of the City of DeFuniak Springs.

2. Clayton also called a meeting on October 12, 2011, related to Mike Standley’s city manager contract and the corresponding background check. The problem, of course, is that the city ordinance doesn’t allow for the city attorney to call a special meeting.

The mayor can call a special meeting. The chief administrative officer can call a special meeting. Three council members together can call a meeting. There’s no mention at all of the city attorney having authority to call a meeting, yet the minutes specifically state that the city attorney called the meeting.

3. As part of the Mike Standley hiring mess, Clayton also inserted himself into the background investigation by calling the police department to inquire about the status of the process. By his own admission, he questioned the information that had been gathered as well as the process that was being followed.

As if that isn’t enough, City Marshal Mark Weeks also reported that Clayton called one of Standley’s previous employers before the police department had a chance to. Weeks referred to Clayton’s involvement as “interference.”

4. On April 11, 2016, during a discussion of the Separation and Release Agreement related to Sara Bowers, a citizen asked Clayton who directed him to prepare the agreement. Adkinson acknowledged that no one asked him to prepare the agreement.

Per the agreement, the city would pay Bowers $53,874, and we can’t help but wonder whose interests Adkinson was protecting in this transaction.

We figure the city council should consider the position it finds itself in. By allowing the Adkinson Law Firm to conduct business this way, the council is condoning the behavior.

Each time the city attorney’s office runs roughshod over the council’s process, the council looks weak and unable (or unwilling) to stand up for itself.

Clayton grows bolder because the council allows him to operate without oversight. The council hasn’t bothered to address the lack of a contract, and it hasn’t bothered to force him to compete to keep his job.

Citizens have repeatedly asked the council to address the situation, and the council has opted, instead, to stay with the status quo.

As a result, Councilman Ron Kelley can preach about transparency as often as he likes, but it falls on deaf ears because his words and his actions don’t correspond.

Consider yourself on notice, DeFuniak Springs City Council. You can align yourself with the city attorney’s office or you can align yourself with the people who elected you.

If nothing changes, we’ll know exactly where your loyalties lie.

 

Tilman Mears Withdraws His City Manager Application

Tags

city manager, DeFuniak Springs City Council, Kermit Wright, Ron Kelley, Tilman Mears

You’ve no doubt heard by now that Tilman Mears has withdrawn himself from consideration for the city manager position.

In his announcement to the community, he indicates that he will take legal action against those who attacked him and his education in public.

We believe there are some valuable takeaways from this situation for everyone involved.

We’ll go first.

For our part, we reported what Mr. Mears’ original email said, reported that Mr. Kelley changed the text of the original email (and we linked to both original documents). Then we suggested that perhaps education is more important to Mr. Kelley than he had previously suggested.

It wasn’t our intention to embarrass Mr. Mears;  simply to shed light on Mr. Kelley’s seemingly contradictory behavior.

While we disagree with Mr. Mears’ suggestion that he was attacked, we will acknowledge this: we were so intent on disproving Ron Kelley’s statements about education that we failed to consider how our statements would impact Mr. Mears.

Moving forward, we will consider this a learning opportunity.

For the council:

When you consistently try to force your will onto the people by paving the road for one particular candidate, clearly disregarding other capable candidates, you undermine the public’s trust. You absolutely guarantee that the candidate you’re installing, and the council itself, will be at odds with the public.

If you want your city manager to succeed, appoint with integrity. Operate in the open. Otherwise, expect to be doing this again in the near future.

You are at a crossroads.

Allow the system to work with integrity: trust the people you’ve appointed to the hiring committees and do not try to influence the outcome. Then hire the best person for the city.

Begin today, and seize the opportunity to prove us wrong. It might sound crazy, but we’ve never wanted to be wrong about anything as much as we want to be wrong about you.

For Mr. Mears:

Nothing that was said about you on this blog rises to the threshold of legal prosecution. Furthermore, when you claim you’re being attacked each time you encounter resistance, you’re in danger of becoming the boy who cried wolf.

Perhaps without realizing it, you’re continuing the legacy of intimidation that exists in DeFuniak Springs by threatening action against those who disagree with you.

We’ve lost count of the stories we’ve heard about threats and intimidation by those in power. If even one of them is true (and it’s usually true that where there’s smoke, there’s fire) then your threat to pursue legal action for a factual (albeit unflattering) statement on a blog is simply continuing that tradition.

We still believe that we got it right when we indicated that the council was putting you in an impossible position by paving the road for your hiring.

We also haven’t lost sight of the fact that when the council considered hiring you the first time, there were many people who believed you did a fantastic job at public works but you weren’t the right guy for the city manager job.

For the people of DeFuniak Springs:

Pressure works.

When people in the community stay engaged in the process of government and keep themselves updated on the city’s activities, they create a system of checks and balances on the government.

The citizens of DeFuniak Springs have shown up at meetings, shared information, engaged in respectful dialogue, and worked together to monitor the city’s decisions.

YOU are the best defense against strong-arm tactics that bypass the will of the people.

Of course, the council can claim now that it wasn’t engaged in that kind of behavior. But remember the track record of the players involved:

• Mr. Mears’ trouble started August 29, 2016, when the council sought to hire him for the city manager position without advertising the job to outside candidates. (Reminiscent of when the council tried to hire Mike Standley without proper vetting.)
• After Mr. Mears’ hiring was held up by a lone councilman, the council moved to change the ordinance so that only 4 votes were necessary to hire a city manager. (What’s to stop them from requiring a vote of only 3?)
• Prior to this round of hiring, the council moved to broaden the acceptable experience for the position, effectively watering-down the requirements.
• Kermit Wright was quoted as saying that he would “take one like Tilman Mears over a dozen of the best that Harvard ever spit out.” (This is the problem, Mr. Wright: you’re allowing your personal feelings to drive your decisions. What if the “best that Harvard ever spit out” were the right candidates for the job? Your own words indicate it wouldn’t matter to you because you’re determined to pursue your own agenda.)
• Ron Kelley threw his “unwavering support” behind Mr. Mears in one issue of Dispatches from DeFuniak, falsely implying that Mears’ lone shortcoming was a lack of a college degree. (The problem was the council’s unwillingness to competitively advertise the job.)

When you see this kind of conduct happening, recognize it as “business as usual,” and vow to hold your government accountable.

For our part, we’ll continue watching, and we’ll ask that you do the same. And if this council gets it right, we’ll be among the first to say so.