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Safety Harbor’s City Commission held a remarkable special meeting on the evening of Friday, Sept. 29. Not only was it held when everyone present should have been relaxing for the weekend, it drew a respectable crowd of 50 or more residents who actively and passionately participated in a discussion of whether the commission should withdraw its contract for Billy Beckett to become city manager. The final vote was 4-1 to stick with the offer, despite the surprise of a federal lawsuit accusing Beckett of racial discrimination while previously serving as city manager of Riverdale, GA, an Atlanta suburb.
The crowd was racially mixed and reflected a broad cross-section of city residents, including a number of city employees. The consensus was clearly in favor of Beckett, although few could have known more about him than what had been published in a local daily newspaper. Published information about the questionable background and apparent political motivation of his accuser, however, was enough to persuade most attendees that the commission should not be hasty to judge.
The most remarkable aspect of the meeting was not the decision, but the fact a public discussion was even held. It is hard to image any city commission of recent years being as willing to open its thinking and decision-making process to such public scrutiny. Commission meetings have sacrificed some efficiency for openness, but the atmosphere is refreshing.
Also of note, as little as a day before the meeting it appeared three of the five commissioners had made up their minds not to execute the contract. Commissioner Kara Bauer was very outspoken in her concern that the city was inviting trouble by hiring as city manager a man who was accused of discrimination at a time when the city was struggling with its own accusations of a similar nature. Interim Commissioner Claude Rigsby suggested the city consider appointing a staff member as an interim city manager and postpone a hiring decision until after March elections. Interim Mayor Andy Steingold suggested Beckett should have solved the problem for the commission by withdrawing his application as soon as he knew of the pending lawsuit.
Commissioners Kathleen Earle and James McCormick were not willing to allow a knee-jerk reaction and argued that Beckett was still the best candidate and the person they were ready to hire. With Bauer resigning to move to Texas, Rigsby truly holding his seat on an interim basis and Steingold facing election in March, the commission deferred to the two commissioners who are certain to have to live with the decision. Bauer, however, still cast a negative vote as she had publicly said she would do.
Beckett will begin work on Monday, Oct. 23 and the commission will have a third interim member the following week. Rarely are city governments in such a position of making a complete fresh start. The atmosphere established in what truly was a special meeting sets a tone that promises good decision-making.
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