It took some reflection, and a nudge from this newspaper, but Delray Beach officials made the right call.
Three city leaders refused to make it harder to dismiss the city manager by requiring a supermajority vote (four of five commissioners) to fire him. The manager will still be subject to firing by a simple majority, as it should be.
A key to the rejection on Nov. 4 was Mayor Tom Carney. He earlier voted to advance the idea, which would have needed two city commission votes and public approval in a citywide referendum. Carney was persuaded by our editorial opposition on Oct. 25 (“Reject this super-bad idea”).
Commissioner Juli Casale was already strongly against it, and Commissioner Tom Markert sealed its fate.
We said a four-vote system risks having the city unable to remove an incompetent boss.
We also opposed City Commissioner Rob Long’s plan to put this on the ballot in a city election in March, when it would be decided by a relative handful of city voters.
Long’s claim that “all we’re doing is giving a choice to residents” is disingenuous. When a city puts a question on the ballot, it clearly suggests that it has official support, or it wouldn’t be there.
Voters eliminated the supermajority requirement by a decisive 63% in 2014 after Delray struggled to part ways with City Manager Louie Chapman Jr., who had lost support.
The mayor said our argument that this change should be decided in November, not March, was persuasive. He also noted that a manager could lose support from a three-member majority yet keep his job — a situation he aptly called “untenable.”
In his fifth year, City Manager Terrence Moore said he called each of his bosses to assure them that having the “crutch” of more job security never occurred to him. So even the intended beneficiary didn’t want this.
Long, who is running in a special state House election, will leave City Hall next month, so the timing of his proposal seemed curious to say the least.
His colleagues won’t soon forget what he told them.
“The fact that we’re basing our commentary on an editorial board is a bit sad,” Long said. “We’re supposed to make our own decisions up here.”
The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Opinion Editor Steve Bousquet, Deputy Opinion Editor Dan Sweeney, editorial writers Pat Beall and Martin Dyckman, and Executive Editor Gretchen Day-Bryant. To contact us, email at letters@sun-sentinel.com.
