Council to Continue Search With Mercer 

By Steve “Stef” Stefanides 

Marco Island City Councilors on August 7th opened their meeting on a high note when they recognized two individuals for their contributions to making Marco a better community. 

The first presentation was made to Mary Husted who was retiring from her position as the Administrative Assistant with the Marco Island Fire Rescue Department after 19 years.  

The second presentation of the evening was to Abby Martin, a camp counselor at Mackle Park. Abby applied the skills she had learned as part of CPR training with the fire department to save the life of a camper during the city summer camp programs. 

Council Debates Manager Search 

The search for a new city manager has proven to be somewhat of a perplexing task for city council, with last Monday’s meeting adding but another twist in the saga. 

Council initially hired the Mercer Group from Atlanta, Georgia and they assigned W.D. Higginbotham, Jr. as the person assigned to that task. After approximately three months on the job, Higginbotham brought forth what he described as seven “top tier” candidates. 

Of those seven candidates only one was left standing, and he was found to be lacking in many of the skill sets which were originally set out as priorities in the minds of many on the board. After a 4-3 vote was taken to reject that sole candidate, Mr. Higginbotham found himself in an uncomfortable exchange with Chairman Honig, during which Higginbotham hinted he might not be returning at the next meeting. That exchange extended beyond the close of the meeting leaving the future search process in jeopardy. 

On the following Monday, Higginbotham sent the city a memo announcing that their firm had completed their process and would not be continuing. 

Some councilors in the ensuing week reached out to Higginbotham to apologize for the events of that evening’s meeting on behalf of themselves. Chairman Larry Honig also revealed he had reached out and apologized for his actions and requested that Mercer continue in their role seeking suitable candidates. 

Councilor Charlette Roman indicated her surprise to see a Resolution included on the evening’s agenda and felt it was time to move on. Councilor Howard Reed agreed with the action to request Mercer to return to the task. “I think we’ve all learned a lot during the last several months,” said Reed.  

Reed went on to make the point that whichever search firm was selected should know that they would be treated with respect and professionalism, as well as any candidate seeking to fill the position. 

Council would go on to vote 5-2 to approve a Resolution requesting the Mercer Group continue in their work to seek out a new city manager. Councilors Brown and Roman were in opposition. 

On Wednesday, August 9th Mercer confirmed with the city that they would indeed continue in the search for a new manager. The financial details concerning the continuation of their present contract were unclear and would be discussed at the next meeting of the city council on August 21st at 5:30 PM in Council Chambers.  

Council Scolded 

It was clear at Monday evening’s meeting that some in the public were willing to speak out on the issues regarding the “atmosphere” and perceived lack of civility that has been seen during recent council meetings and in some of council’s interactions with city employees and department heads. 

Longtime political observer Bill McMullan came forward to admonish Councilors Honig and Grifoni for some of their recent actions and would even call for Honig to step down as Chairman. He was followed by Raymond McChesney, who openly criticized councilors from being “absent” within the community now that they were not campaigning for office, and also on what he described as their “attitudes.” 

Nautical Garage Approved 

After a prolonged process, which saw the request for a nautical garage initially approved prior to the appropriate language being inserted within the Land Development Code (LDC), council would approve the amendment to the LDC which would allow that deviation to be proposed under a “conditional use.” Although Councilman Brown was not opposed to the concept he wanted it restricted to shoulder and abutting lots. He would move for an amendment to the original motion, which would have allowed it throughout the single-family residential areas on the island. He was joined in his attempt to modify the original language by Councilors Reed and Batte, however they would lose that motion by a 4-3 vote. The original motion allowing the construction of nautical garages throughout the residential areas would carry by a 5-2 vote, with Batte and Brown objecting. 

Budget Meeting  

Council will meet on Monday, August 14th at 5:30 PM in chambers to continue their discussions regarding the 2017-18 budget. They have set the initial millage rate for the community at $1.8976, which will bring in the same amount of revenue for the next budget cycle as did last year’s rate. They may not raise that rate, once it has been reported to the state, which will lock council into this revenue stream and may limit some of their options moving forward.