HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-05-16 - City Commission Special Meeting Minutes0
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NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING
CITY COUNCIL
TAMARAC, FLORIDA
Please be advised of a City Council Special Meeting to be
held on Friday, May 16, 1986, at 9:00 A.M. in the Council
Chambers at City Hall, 5811 N.W. 88 Avenue, Tamarac, Florida.
The purpose of this Special Meeting is to interview
John P. Kelly, candidate for City Manager.
FINAL ACTION:
The Interview was held between Council and Mr. John P.
Kelly, candidate for City Manager.
The public is invited to attend.
Possible action regarding
City Clerk -Discussion and
possible action.
Marilyn Bertholf CMC
City Clerk
MB : t s Pursuant to Section 286.01.05, Florida Statutes
If a person decides to appeal any decision made by the city
Council with respect to any matter considered at such meeting or
hearing, he will need a record of the proceedings and for such
purpose, he may need to ensure that a verbatim record includes
the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.
AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
POLICY OF NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF HANDICAPPED STATUS
p);..n
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P•O. BOX 25010
TAMARAC, FLORIDA 33320
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CITY OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA
SPECIAL CITY COUNC-1L MEETING
MAY 1 G., 9 .Ss. a
CALL TO ORDER: Mayor lla%t c4141'ed the rde�et aq to
order at 9:00 A.M. on Friday, May 1'6, 1986 in the
Council Chambers of City Hall.
RQLL_CALL: PRESENT: Mayor Bernard Hart
Vice Mayor Sydney M. Stein
Councilwoman Helen Massaro
Councilman 'Jack Stelzer
Councilman Arthur M. Gottesman
ALSO P E ENT: Larry Ferretti, City Manager
.Patrica Marcurio, Secjretary
Pauline Walaszek, Secretary
Mayor Hart introduced. Mr. Kelly to Council,
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly to please describe his
Management style as it relates to a Council/Manager form
of Government.
Mr. Kelly replied that his style is one of combining some
political skills and that in order to be a successful
City Manager in a progressive City, the City Manager has
to be politically astute and politically aloof. Mr.
Kelly said he thinks that the responsibility of a City
Manager is first to the City and to the Council to which
he is subordinate.
C/W Massaro asked Mr. Kelly that when he said first to
the City, what did he mean by that.
Mr. Kelly said that he meant the-=ouncil, and he hoped
that Counci3 interpreted his statement as such.
C/W Massaro said that no, she did not understand what Mr.
Kelly was saying because he made the City and the Council
separate. C/W Massaro referred to the words 'subordinate
to the Council.'
Mr. Kelly answered that the Council hires him.
C/W Massaro said she knows that and wanted to clear that
as Council went along.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to how he would
describe his work habits and personality.
Mr. Kelly replied that he thinks his personality is one
that can get along with people. He is able to make
people come together to work toward a common goal. Mr.
Kelly said he is sensitive to the departments and the
departments' demands and needs and the departments'
abf3ity to be responsible to the public. Mr. Kelly said
A his own work habits are pretty strong. Mr. Kelly
said that one o.L the problems that he has had in previous
roles is that he is not a party person. Mr. Kelly thinks
he is a nice, friendly and warm person but he is not
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party oriented. He is more professional and involved in
lot of professional organizations: the President of the
Elective Broward Counties American Society of Public
Administrators and a member of several economic
development Professional organizations. Mr. Kelly said
that he would hope that he is not a workaholic, and that
he believes that if work is done right, and if committed
to it, it can be fun.
Mayor Hart said that the City of Tamarac is basically
residential community of retirees who demand the most
efficient operation possible from their municipal
government. He asked Mr. Kelly how he would instill
confidence in the residents upon assuming the City
Manager position.
Mr. Kelly answered that he feels the first responsibility
is getting to know the residents. in each community that
he has served, he would have to go out and meet the
people and find out what the people's needs and,
concerns are and try to interact effectively with the
them. Mr. Kelly said that Tamarac is at this time
essentially a bedroom community and that one of the grime
concerns is to try and broaden and diversify the tax base
to make it more efficient so that the City can continue
to effectively be a quality bedroom community and to
allow the residents to continue in a life style to which
A are accustomed and to which their goals, aspire.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to his Management
philosophy for improving morale among City employees if
he assumed the City Manager position.
Mr. Kelly replied that the question relates back to t
previous question. The first thing that he would have
is to ascertain what the morale is. if it is less than
what it should be, then he would try to make some goal
determinations. Mr. Kelly said that the €first
responsibility is to determine the level of moral to and
elevate it through interaction with the department heads
and the personnel to make it a more pleasant work
environment. Mr. Kelly said without goals a person can
internalize his frustrations and tear himself apart.
Mayor Hart inquired about Mr. Kelly's experience in
dealing with various community groups who function in a
scrutinizing watchdog capacity over municipal government.
Mr. Kelly responded that his experience is rather
extensive. He has had eight (8) years experience in
Broward County as a Products Coordinator for the County's
Community Development Program in which this City partici-
pated some years back and received some bands. He said
one of his responsibilities was putting together a
Citizens Advisory Committee. At that time, there were 66
members on the original committee; two representing each
o€ 33 different districts in Broward County, all of whom
were buying for community development block grant funds
in Broward County. He said he had to interact as a
citizen participation coordinator for all of tho
groups. Mr. Kelly said it was the only way to get
know community by getting out there dealing and
interacting with them and going to the meeting with the
groups, not simply getting a report from a
representative, but going out there and feeling the gut
reactions of the people.
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Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly if he has had any experience
with the City Government when the Police or Fire
Departments were not under his authority.
Mr. Kelly replied that he has not had direct experience
with the Police or Fire Departments being directly under
him. He said that he has worked either as an assistant
or nominal assistant without the strict definition of
such to the City Manager, for instance, in the Town of
Davie, and in Connecticut, to the professional assistant
to the first selectman which is comparable to Mayor
there. in both instances the Police and Fire Departments
were departments with which he interacted in assisting
the administrator in dealing with them.
Mayor Hart asked which of the following, Budgeting,
Personnel, Labor Relations, Utilities, Finance, Public
safety and Engineering is Mr. Kelly's strongest and which
are his weakest fields.
Mr. Kelly replied that Personnel, Utilities, Public Works
are his good fields, however, he would line to have more
skills in Finance. He said he has worked on Capital
projects, Capital Budgeting, budgeting for departments
and assisting the City Manager. Mr. Kelly said that he
has dealt with some excellent people, and he has learned
a great deal but feels he needs to learn more.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly to describe in detail his
greatest achievement relative to a governmental
reorganization program resulting in meaningful savings
and improved delivery of governmental services.
Mr. Kelly replied that one of the efficient things he has
accomplished was getting a Capital improvements Program
put together and a Capital Budget Committee.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly if he felt it is important for
a City to have an overall plan for Parks and Recreation
facilities where condominiums flourish with their own
recreational facilities.
Mr. Kelly replied that he thinks every community is an
overall plan in that community, recreation being one of
them. Mr. Kelly said that a comprehensive plan can
combine the elements that are already provided. He said
that there should be an overall plan but that
does not have to be inconsistent with the fact that some
areas are already providing services.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to how long atenure
he is seeking with the City of Tamarac, what would be
his minimum salary requirements and what would be his
minimum benefit package.
Mr. Kelly replied that at the present time he is getting
$39,000.00 with $3,000.00 provided for car allowance, and
Council provides 11.4% for Pension plus fringe benefits.
He said that he receives $47,000.00 basic including most
of the benefits without the health programs.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly if he has a contract with the
Town of Davie. Mr. Kelly said that he does not.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly if he was selected as the City
Manager of Tamarac, how would he propose to organize the
management system and what is his personal philosophy
regarding a team management concept.
Mr. Kelly answered that he feels it would be premature to
say what management program or team he would put together
without coming in and seeing what is here. He said that
he does not know how the management program is
established now and it would certainly be premature to
tell Council what he would do. Mr. Kelly said that he
could not attempt to tell Council what he would do with
the existing team but as far as the team spirit and the
team approach he is very strong on that. Mr. Kelly feels
that it is very important to sit down with individual
department heads to determine where the department heads
are and to invite and insist on the department heads
contributions to whatever proposals that he is proposing.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to what relationships
he would establish with his department heads.
Mr. Kelly replied that he would have to interact very
closely with the department heads to see if their goals
are consistent with what the City would like for the
community. He said that there would have to be a close
relationship with the department heads. He said that he
is aloof and does not believe in partying with the
department heads because it could lead to a weakness and
and an imaginative style. Mr. Kelly said that the
relationship should be cordial and professional while
assuming a certain distance. He feels that it is
important to interact very effectively and closely in a
warm relationship here in the City Hall.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to what his feelings
concerning a Charter Board were.
Mr. Kelly answered he has had many committees and boards
to deal with and there is a lot of validity and value in
the contributions that boards can provide. He said that
it would take an assessment of where the City is at to
determine whether or not it would it would provide a
valuable contribution to the Community. He said that if
there is valuable contribution to the community, then he
would obviously recommend it and that it is important to
be a leader and yet still have the participation of the
people and if the Charter Board is what is in analysis,
for the effective running of the City of Tamarac, he
would recommend and support it.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly what is his attitude was
towards Unions.
Mr. Kelly replied that Unions provide very effective
roles for the labor force in this country and he has not
had any problems with the them. He said that he has
belonged to the Unions in Broward County and he can work
very effectively with them and that they can play a very
valuable role which can be a strengthening role for the
work force as a morale booster. 4 4
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly
problems a City Manager can expect
working relationship with his Police
and is a City Manager justified in
with the Police and Fire Departments
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as to what kinds of
in developing a good
and Fire Departments
not getting involved
and why.
Mr. Kelly answered that he does not see how a City
Manager can be effective and not interact with the Police
and Fire Departments. He feels that involvement with
Police and Fire Departments is vital and it would be
ridiculous to assume that the City Manager can
effectively represent the City and not interact with
those Departments.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly what method or approach would
he take in rating an employees work performance.
Mr. Kelly responded by saying that he does not evaluate
the appearance of an employee, he evaluates the
performance, the work produced and the quality and the
timeliness of the employee.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to what method or
approach he would use in establishing a fair and
equitable pay plan.
Mr. Kelly replied he would look at current and existing
market values and rates that are being paid in other
areas and come up with reasonable determinations of a pay
plan.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly for what kinds of construction
or other improvements does he think bonding is
appropriate and when is bonding inappropriate.
Mr. Kelly said that it is inappropriate when the capacity
of a Town is insufficient to sustain bonding. He has
supported bonding in capital projects such as sewers,
water and utility lines, in which that bonding can go for
all capital improvements that the community wants to put
forth. He said that with the rates being what they are
today, it is a prime time to go out for bonding.
Mayor Hart questioned Mr. Kelly as to what has been his
experience in securing grants, County, State or Federal
for a Municipality.
Mr. Kelly answered that one of his initial professional
positions was as a grants coordinator. He said his
functions were as a coordinator of Federal Products
in Griswald, Connecticut, which involved extensive work.
Mayor Hart asked Mr. Kelly if there was anything in his
background that someday could come out in which would
embarrass either Mr. Kelly or the City.
Mr. Kelly replied that the only thing would be his
Masters Degree from Southern Connecticut College and the
degree was received without benefit of doing the thesis.
He said the reason for that was when he entered the
program it was on a practicum course, practicum meaning
that he was evaluated based on his work program as
opposed to doing a thesis and during the course program
the College changed to a thesis program. The Director
recommended Mr. Kelly for the honors and the Whose Who in
American Colleges and Universities. Mr. Kelly contacted
the registrar's office and said that he appreciated the
degree at which time he brought to their attention that
he did not pass by thesis. The Director told Mr. Kelly
that he was not the Director of the Department, and the
Director thanked and congradulated him. Mr. Kelly felt
that he did not have benefit of a thesis to receive the
degree.
Mayor Hart informed Mr. Kelly that there were no more
questions and opened the questioning to Council.
C/M Gottesman said he was not sure that he heard Mr.
Kelly indicate his salary requirements for the City. C/M
Gottesman asked Mr. Kelly if he had a specific figure in
mind and also when would he be available.
Mr. Kelly replied that he had already discussed his
availability with Town of Davie and they agreed that he
would be available before July. He said that he has a
number of projects to finish for the Town of Davie and
the Town Administrator is not anxious to have Mr. Kelly
leave until the projects are finished.
C/M Gottesman queried Mr. Kelly if he was saying July 1,
1986. Mr. Kelly replied no later than July 1, 1986.
Mr. Kelly said that what he would like to get in salary
from the City of Tamarac is more than what he is
presently making. Mr. Kelly said that he has told
Council his present salary at the Town of Davie, which
gave Council an idea. Mr. Kelly said that he does have
two (2) key seminars in July and August which he hopes to
attend approved by the Town of Davie. July in
Tallahassee, which is a Florida Industrial Development
Workshop, and also in Norman, Oklahoma, which he has been
accepted in the course of one (1) week, each of three (3)
years, the course is a Certification as an Industrial
Developer.
C/M Gottesman said that he still does not have a grasp of
what Mr. Kelly is expecting for salary.
Mr. Kelly said that he is being paid $39,000_.00 with
#3,000.00 for travel which is $42,000.00 on which the
pension program is based and he is hoping for more than
what he is making now.
C/M Gottesman asked Mr. Kelly if he gets the $3,000.00
whether he travels or not.
Mc. Kelly replied that yes he does get the $3,000.00,
that it is a fixed car allowance $2_5,0. 00 o 49441a.
C/M Gottesman said to Mr. Kelly that by saying the
employees work product, the City may have a demon that is
a workaholic, in which Mr. Kelly said that he is not a
workaholic, so how woul_4I Mr. Kelly rate such a person if
they do not get along with the other employees.
Mr. Kelly replied that he does not evaluate appearance,
but he is not going to let sandals, slLower clogs or
whatever come into the office, his key criteria is the
quality of the work product, the product, the timeliness
and the delivery the ability to interact together.
C/M Gottesman asked Mr. Belly if he does recognize the
tither things other than just an effective product.
Mr. -Kelly replied certainly.
Vice Mayor Stein asked Mr. Kelly to tell the Council what 44
help he would be towards the City in effort to perform
and proceed in receiving grants and help from the State
and the County.
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Mr. Kelly said that was one of the things that has
him charged and excited about coming to this
Community, the potential that the "Industrial
Development Board has. Mr. Kelly said that he
initiated or revitalized the Economic Development
Board with the Town of Davie and they have expanded
out to include some very impressive people in the
Development field. Mr. Kelly said that his
involvement in Product Horizon working closely with
Jim Gavard of the Broward Economic Development
Board in Mr. Kelly's own experience dictates that
he can be very helpful in not only the effective
operation but also the organizational structure in
which he would like to have input and advise. Mr.
Kelly said while he supports the intent and
purposes of the Sunshine Law, one of the key
emphasis that must be put on the economic
development is the requirement for strict
confidentiality among the prospective people coming
into the Community.
Mr. Kelly said that the role in the Community of
Davie has been to advise the City Council Members
on an individual basis so that they can ensure that
the confidentiality of the perspective client is
protected. He said that one of the concerns, is
when a business is looking to come into the
Community, the business will say that they are
coming into the City of Tamarac and the City will
be excited about it but they use that as leverage
to get a better package back home and were not
necessarily serious about coming into the City
in the first place. Mr. Kelly said that his
position has been with the community and to keep
the Council and the Chairman abreast of what is
happening until there is a contract with that
perspective client.
V/M Stelzer questioned Mr. Kelly about his
experience with budgeting.
Mr. Kelly answered that his work with the Town of
Davie and with the Town Administrator was putting
the budget packages together.
Councilwoman Massaro had no questions.
City Manager had no questions.
Mayor Hart suggested Mr. Kelly should get an
application from the Personnel Department for
further information.
Mayor Hart asked Council if there are any further
questions.
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Mayor Hart closed the meeting with no further
questions or response.
dAA11
MAYOR
ATTEST:
ITY CLE
CITY OF TAMARA IV`
PROVED AT MEETING OF
City Cler
This public document was promulgated at a cost of $87-=00 or
$2.43 per copy to inform the general public and public
officers and employees about recent opinions and
considerations by the City Council of the City of Tamarac.
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