PHOTO BY MARK HOWELL

City Manager Bob Vitas with Christina Oxenberg of Konk Life.

 

PHOTO BY MARK HOWELL

Bob Vitas, with back to camera, faces off with Shawn Smith.

 

 

 

COMMENTARY

City Attorney: ‘The City Is Spiraling Down’

 

BY MARK HOWELL

Konk Life Staff Writer

 

When Konk Life arrived at the city commission meeting at Old City Hall on Tuesday evening, we were alarmed to witness the complexion on City Attorney Shawn Smith’s face.

In our decade-long coverage of events at 510 Greene Street, we have known and grown to like and to admire Shawn over the six years he’s held office. Usually ruddy cheeked, this week he had the pallor of a man appalled at life.

Then, on a trip to the men’s room in pursuit of Commissioner Tony Yaniz (where Gwen Filosa of the daily paper could not pursue us), we, too, were appalled to learn from the commissioner himself that City Manager Bob Vitas had installed a bolt on the door between his office and the city attorney’s. Added Fat Yaniz, “Vitas has no respect for our city and you can quote me on that. He does not like us here.”

The ruckus had begun to blow when Shawn gave his city attorney’s report immediately preceding the city manager’s report at the beginning of the meeting. He chose to open it by reminding the commission that his contract was up for renewal and that each of the commissioners must evaluate his performance and sign off on a renewed contract. His pallor gaining some red from rage, he added that he’d been reviewing the situation and “quite frankly, watched the city spiraling downward. Given the state of things, and in discussions with my family, I am not inclined to renew the contract.”

This cannonball brought declarations of pro-Smith support “100 percent!” from both Commissioner Clayton Lopez and Yaniz, and from Commissioner Billy Wardlow, “don’t even think about it!”

Then it was the turn of the city manager, Bogdan “Bob” Vitas, formerly village administrator at Lake Zurich, Illinois (where, Google informs us, he was not universally liked), to explain on at length his decision to unilaterally make a deal with David Fernandez — a 28-year employee at the city of Key West who retires as assistant city manager next month — to take a contract job as utilities director at an annual income of $114,000 plus a new pension plan. All this without first consulting the legal department.

When Vitas got to a point where he claimed the city’s policy regarding who should see and sign off on such a hiring decision were “unclear and inconsistent,” Smith turned to him from his neighboring seat and seethed, “To hear you say it’s vague and ambiguous — that’s a bald-faced false statement” (the assonance of the double “f” a commendable way to skirt the legal weight of “lie”).

Much was said from the dais thereafter, Mayor Craig Cates imploring the two of them to work together, Commissioner Jimmy Weekley invoking situations from the distant past and Commissioner Teri Johnston inexplicably explaining the city manager’s actions or lack of them (“Poppycock,” yelled Clayton Lopez).

But if we were to bet on who will win this confrontation between the city attorney and the city manager, our money is on Shawn. To David Fernandez, we wish the best of luck.

 

 

 

 

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