Council needs to get organized
To the editor:
What, another special meeting of the city council? This is becoming a daily event for this group who is in such a rush for change that they continue to make sloppy mistakes.
On Wednesday, June 2, council went through the selection of their applicants and wound up with a total of six candidates. Today, Friday, June 4, council needed another meeting just to discuss travel expenses for candidates living outside of Florida.
On Wednesday during the deliberation of the selection process we heard from Councilmember Pete Brandt no fewer than three specific times in trying to ram rod his process through the rest of council. Brandt’s process was that of each nomination requiring a second and a majority vote of council. Perhaps Brandt thinks the rest of council has a hearing problem since he brought it up three times. Perhaps it’s Brandt with the hearing problem since he has been told many times by the city attorney that nominations don’t require a second.
Furthermore, in spite of Brandt’s complaints about The Breeze newspaper, it has been he who has been pushing the urgency of a permanent city manager more so than any one else on council. Carl Schwing was given a one year contract and promotion to the position of City Manager on March 1. It appears that Brandt, by his actions, has been looking for Schwing to be out of the position ever since March 1.
In my opinion the public will be looking closely at the final selection process by this council especially if there is a final determination made in the first round. My math tells me that one applicant has a possibility of three votes at this point. Per our city charter no one can be approved with only three votes.
Ralph LePera
Cape Coral