Payne Forces Planning Board Chair To Resign

By Pru Sowers

Konk Life Staff Writer

Newly-elected Key West City Commissioner Richard Payne lost no time putting a stake in the political ground when he forced Planning Board Chairman Richard Klitenick to resign after 14 years on that board.

In the process, which got emotional at the Nov. 4 commission meeting and made several of his fellow commissioners clearly uneasy, Payne emphasized that it was his right as the newly-elected commissioner for District 4 to make his own appointment to the planning board and discard Klitenick, appointed by former Commissioner Tony Yaniz, who lost to Payne last month.

City commissioners each get one appointee to the planning board, which does not need commissioner approval. But removing an appointee before the end of his or her term must come before the commission for a vote. Despite efforts to get Payne and Klitenick together to work out a graceful solution, Payne brought forth a resolution to remove Klitenick. Reading from a lengthy prepared statement, Payne criticized the planning board chair for missing half of the board meetings this year, slamming Payne in local newspapers, and for being “pro-developer” in his planning board votes. Payne also questioned whether Klitenick could be fair in his board decisions when he has a pending lawsuit against the city for denying his company new taxi licenses.

“If I were him, I would have resigned from the planning board before filing that suit against the city,” Payne said. “He [Klitenick] does not represent my philosophy in any shape or form. I want someone who does.”

Payne then nominated Fredy Varela, Sr., to replace Klitenick. Varela originally ran to replace Yaniz in District 4 but was forced to pull out of the race this past summer due to health issues. Varela then asked Payne to run in his stead and he defeated Yaniz by a large margin.

After a lengthy discussion, the commission voted 4-3 to support Payne, pushing Klitenick off of the planning board effectively immediately. But not before some squirming by some of the commissioners, including Clayton Lopez, who called the issue “ugly” and said he didn’t understand why both Payne and Klitenick were so “dug in.” And Mayor Cates said he “was sorry it got to this point.”

“You’ve got two commissioners on the end trying to tell Mr. Payne how to run his appointees. I just think that is way overstepping your position,” he said.

Cates was referring to commissioners Sam Kaufman and Billy Wardlow, who both tried to force Payne to wait six months before making any decision on Klitenick. Other than Payne, all the other commissioners went to lengths to state that Klitenick had done a good job in his 14 years on the board. Kaufman said Payne’s removal of Klitenick was “very unfortunate, very divisive.” Wardlow agreed.

“Commissioner Payne is just jumping the gun. I’d like for him at to at least wait six months and get to know Mr. Klitenick and see what’s up. As long as he is doing a good job, I can’t see removing him,” Wardlow said.

Klitenick defended himself at the meeting, pointing out that he had been appointed and reappointed to the planning board five times by different commissioners. He then accused Payne of trying to hurt him because he supported Yaniz in the October election.

“One of the things we talk about in Key West, especially when it comes to local government, is the appearance of political payback and cronyism and quid pro quo deals. It’s just not right,” he said. “My position on the planning board is being challenged because I chose to support a candidate in the prior city commission race.”

Payne denied Klitenick’s accusation, saying that his new appointee, Fredy Varela, would represent Payne’s own views on what he considers the over-development of Key West.

“He [Varela] will stand strong for the right of property owners to protect their homes and neighborhoods from unwanted development,” Payne read from his statement. “We are both for the little guy because that is who we are. Unfortunately, Mr. Klitenick is not for the little guy.”

Klitenick, however, was backed up by letters of support from three planning board members, Michael Browning, James Gilleran and Christy Spottswood, who called him a “valuable member of the board.”

“My observation is that he has always treated everyone with respect – both his fellow Board members and city staff, but most importantly members of the public who have appeared before the Board. He is the longest tenured Board member, and this experience shows in his institutional knowledge and command of precedent,” Spottswood wrote.

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