Clearwater officials embark on another city manager search

The Clearwater City Council plans to incorporate lessons learned over the last year into its third national search for a city manager since March 2021.

Monday’s work session provided an opportunity for the council to discuss what they would like to see in future candidates just four days after they fired Jon Jennings. During that meeting, Mayor Frank Hibbard noted Florida’s “sunshine laws” mandate that government proceedings and related conversations must take place in public, a source of contention with Jennings.

Councilmember Kathleen Beckman began Monday’s conversation by stating she wants the latest job description to require an understanding of the state’s open government statutes. She said living in the state would not be a prerequisite if the candidate is aware of those challenges and realizes the need for open communication.

“That’s a priority,” said Beckman. “When I look back, I think that’s part of the problem – I don’t think I was brought in along on the front end enough.”

Beckman clarified that she was referring to significant projects and expressed her belief that city officials did not give enough direction in public during Jennings’ tenure. She referred to a candidate profile in the city manager recruitment brochure issued in 2021, and said the council could “sharpen it up a little bit” according to recent experiences.

The council voted 3-2 to fire Jennings due to strategic planning issues, lack of communication and not seeking approval on major initiatives, like purchasing a $2.1 million sound system. Councilmember David Albritton voted against his termination and relayed his reluctance to impede the next city manager’s decision-making process with unwarranted specifications.

Albritton noted Jennings was free to explore deals but should have sought final approval from council members, something he hopes to remediate with the new hire.

“I want to let him be free to go out and do what he can but bring it back to us to make the final decision,” added Albritton. “And I don’t know how you put that in there (the job description).”

While the council did not establish what they would like to change in the candidate profile during the work session, they agreed to part ways with the advisory firm Baker Tilly.

The Chicago-based accounting and consulting firm led the last two city manager searches. City officials launched the first in March 2021 after Bill Horne announced his pending retirement.

However, four of five finalists withdrew their candidacy before the interviewing process, which led to a second search beginning in June 2021. Horne, who served as a city manager for 20 years, died of a suspected heart attack that August, three weeks before his retirement date.

In September 2021, the council unanimously selected Jennings to succeed Horne. Jennings held the same position for the City of Portland, Maine, and began his role as Clearwater city manager in November 2021.

Mayor Frank Hibbard explained that while he wants to learn from recent lessons, he also doesn’t want to limit the candidate pool. He noted his belief that Jennings had more upside than the other four finalists and the potential for more problems.

Hibbard thought three finalists were “caretakers – and there’s nothing wrong with that.” He elaborated that you need people to ensure everything runs according to plan, but also someone to shake things up occasionally and push for advancements.

“I’d love to have somebody that gets things done, that we understand our roles and responsibilities of us setting policy and then the manager administrating and managing the staff,” said Hibbard. “I think certainly that will be made clear even more so in this next process.”

The city council selected Assistant City Manager Jennifer Poirrier to serve as the interim city manager following Jennings’ dismissal Jan. 5. They will vote Thursday on increasing her pay by 20%.