City Attorney throws out Fernandez contract

 

BY PRU SOWERS

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

 

With little discussion or fanfare, City Attorney Shawn Smith on Monday threw out a controversial five-year contract employee deal with Key West’s retiring Assistant City Manager David Fernandez.

 

The deal was the cause of a unanimous vote by the City Commission just minutes earlier to sever all relations with City Manager Bob Vitas, offering him 18 months’ severance pay to walk away one year early from his contract with the city. However, voiding Fernandez’s contract didn’t even require a vote by the mayor and city commissioners, Smith told them at the special meeting Monday morning.

 

“The law states if a contract is executed outside the authority of the individual signing it, it is void. There is no additional action that is necessary,” Smith told the commission. “It is my opinion as your city attorney that the city manager acted outside his authority in executing [the Fernandez] agreement. That agreement violated a number of provisions of state law. It also violated your city charter.”

 

The contract with Fernandez called for him to take over managing multiple municipal projects currently overseen by Utilities Manager Jay Gewin. Gewin is resigning on July 3. After accepting resumes from interested candidates to replace Gewin, Vitas decided to hire Fernandez, who is retiring after 28 years working for the city, as a contract employee with an agreement that would have paid him $113,000 a year plus benefits for five years, almost double Gewin’s $61,000 annual salary. Fernandez would also have been eligible to begin receiving his pension payments on top of the contract deal.

 

Vitas said Fernandez’s extensive experience with storm water, solid waste and sewage treatment projects over the years – including holding the position of Utilities Manager himself from 1995 to 2008 – made him the best candidate. However, the two negotiated and signed the agreement without submitting it to the city attorney for review. That caused Smith to make an emotional outburst during the June 17 commission meeting, saying he was considering not renewing his contract as city attorney when it expires at the end of the year.

 

Smith’s threat to leave caused a majority of the commissioners to voice support for him and not Vitas, leading to the separation agreement. With Vitas effectively receiving a vote of no confidence, the Fernandez contract was doomed, as well.

 

“Mr. Fernandez gave 28 years of his life to the city of Key West,” said Commissioner Mark Rossi at the meeting, addressing Fernandez who was in attendance. “I respect that, David, and I want to tell you that. Thank you. I’m sorry the way this turned out.”

 

“He did such an outstanding job,” added Commissioner Jimmy Weekley.

 

But other commissioners were vocal in their criticisms of some of Fernandez’s efforts, including one controversy where Fernandez allegedly used some of the federal funds given to Key West to help repair damage from Hurricane Wilma in 2005 on projects unrelated to the storm.

 

“Yes, he got some awards,” Commissioner Clayton Lopez said, referring to awards the city received for some of its storm water and sewage projects managed by Fernandez. “But there also have been some missteps in those areas, as well.”

 

“He did some things that weren’t perhaps so wonderful, including a lot of building around the city without permits,” Commissioner Tony Yaniz said. “In the three years I’ve sat up here, I have rarely ever had a staff member give me a positive comment about Mr. Fernandez. They’ve been overwhelmingly negative… I personally believe Mr. Fernandez should step down and sail off into the sunset.”

 

“What I’ve heard is they [city employees] are basically scared of David, of the repercussions. That’s the bottom line,” said Commissioner Billy Wardlow.

 

 

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