Failing its own goal of a short-term city manager search. City Manager Robert W. Healy announced in March 2012 that he’d retire Sept. 30 after more than three decades in office, but that came with a council vote to add nine months to his contract and have him leave at the end of June so there would be time for a short- and long-term process to find a replacement. Considering “its ongoing goal of providing fiscal stability and thoughtful strategic planning,” the council said in a policy order, “any short-term plan should be in place before the FY 2014 budget process begins.”
Skip forward eight months and it turns out that almost nothing had happened in that process, so suddenly the entire “short-term” part of the process became an 8-1 vote appointing Richard C. Rossi to a three-year term as city manager. Part of the reason? “Planning for the 2014 fiscal budget is fast approaching.” Yes, that’s the very reason they said it had been so important to keep Healy around and get a replacement policy started.
Many people spoke up to protest the council’s failure. Their criticisms of the council were portrayed as somehow impugning Rossi, even though none had, and some speakers even went out of their way to praise him. It was a transparent ploy to distract from the council’s failure.
The surprise appointment of Rossi also prompted a citizen complaint that the open meeting law has been violated – again a critique of the council, not Rossi.
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A stronger
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Excellent article. I hope voters consider all these issues in November.