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Jim Drumm

Third attorney opinion: Drumm’s contract ends May 18

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One of the last actions Jodi Wilkeson championed before being voted of the Zephyrhills City Council was convincing her fellow city leaders to get a third legal opinion on whether or not the city can end the tenure of City Manager Jim Drumm.

Heather Brock, an attorney with Fowler White Boggs in Tampa, agreed with two other legal opinions the city already received in recent weeks. In a letter to the city dated April 10, Brock confirmed Drumm’s employment ends May 18 when his contract expires. The only way he can continue past that is if four out of five council members renew his contract or offer him a new one.

The May 2011 contract, Brock said, is for a specific term, and there are no “evergreen” provisions that would allow the contract to automatically renew at the end of its term.

“If the city wishes for the manager to remain its employee, it will need to undertake action to renew the agreement, negotiate a new agreement, or to agree to some form of ‘at-will’ employment,” and to have four out of five council members agree, Brock said.

In forming her legal opinion, Brock said she reviewed the Zephyrhills city charter, Drumm’s contract, the employment agreement of former city manager Steve Spina, and audio recordings of two May 2011 council meetings where Drumm’s contract was discussed.

If the council had tried to terminate Drumm before his contract expired, that also would’ve required a supermajority, or four out of five council members, to make it happen.

The charter, Brock said, requires the city manager to be appointed with a four-fifths majority, and to be terminated with a four-fifths majority. However, “the charter is silent as to the expiration of an agreement with a manager for a specific term,” Brock wrote.

This almost certainly means that the council will cut ties with Drumm, and may make it official as early as Monday’s meeting. Even without the majority decision by the council, Brock pointed out Drumm was required to to notify the council 180 days before the expiration of his contract — or just before Thanksgiving last year. She had no evidence that was done.

In recent meetings, three council members — Lance Smith, Ken Burgess and Charles Proctor — said they would not support retaining Drumm. Kenneth Compton and Wilkeson wanted to explore options further before making a final decision, and pushed for the third opinion.

Experience vs. New Blood

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Three elections, six candidates, and three incumbents — all with more than a half-century of government experience.

Voters head to the polls April 8 in Dade City, St. Leo and Zephyrhills, where they will decide, among other things, whether they want to keep longevity in their city government, or find a fresh perspective.

Each of these municipalities faced controversy in recent months. Dade City abruptly turned one high-level government job into two, pushing out a longtime employee. St. Leo could see its government shaken up later this year if parts of Lake Jovita successfully de-annex itself, possibly eliminating two commission seats. And, Zephyrhills is facing a tough decision on what to do with its top executive, where one race could easily seal the fate of City Manager Jim Drumm.

Three communities have their future in the balance, and every single vote has the potential to be the ultimate decider.

Dade City: Scott Black vs. Angelica Herrera
St. Leo: Raphael Davis vs. Donna DeWitt
Zephyrhills: Alan Knight vs. Jodi Wilkeson

City manager merry-go-round returning Spina to job?

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If Jim Drumm believes some of the rumors he’s heard, then former Zephyrhills city manager Steve Spina might become the Jay Leno of local government.

Zephyrhills city manager Jim Drumm is facing a very uncertain future in his government job, something he said could be because of unsubstantiated rumors that his predecessor, Steve Spina, wants to return. (File Photo)
Zephyrhills city manager Jim Drumm is facing a very uncertain future in his government job, something he said could be because of unsubstantiated rumors that his predecessor, Steve Spina, wants to return.
(File Photo)

The late-night comedian stepped aside from “The Tonight Show” in 2009, but returned to the job a short time later after replacement host Conan O’Brien fell out of favor.

The same might be happening in Zephyrhills, Drumm told the city council last week. Hearing reports that Spina might be looking to return to city management after some time teaching, Drumm said some council members might be hoping they can get Spina to take his old job back.

In fact, it’s one of the few things Drumm says makes sense on why the council would suddenly be talking about letting him go as city manager after three years.

“I have great respect for Dr. Spina,” Drumm said in a prepared letter to the council March 24. “I have not had his long tenure to compete with his knowledge and his many contacts. If it is not the intent of the city council to hire Dr. Spina, then I remain perplexed by the issues that warrant me to not continue working together to improve Zephyrhills.”

Spina, who retired as city manager in 2011, told The Laker after last week’s meeting that he wasn’t commenting on such rumors, except to say that they are not accurate.

Three city council members have expressed a desire to part ways with Drumm, and feel now is the best time since his contract runs out in May. To renew that contract would require a supermajority on the council — four votes — they say, and those votes just aren’t there.

Drumm disagrees with that interpretation of the city’s charter. His contract might have a set beginning and end date, but the charter is clear that it takes four votes to appoint a city manager, and four votes to remove him. And whether Drumm has a contract or not, without those four votes, the council can’t force him out.

“My take is that I would remain a city manager without a contract,” Drumm said, adding that there were times in Spina’s 15-year tenure where he worked without a contract, too, protected by the four-votes clause of the city charter.

Both City Attorney Joe Poblick and outside labor attorney Brian Koji agreed that Drumm has a finite contract with the city. If four council members don’t vote to renew it, then Drumm is out of a job.

Councilman Kenneth Compton, however, doesn’t have a lot of confidence in the track record of the city attorney and lawyers he may consult when it comes to labor issues. Compton, who has pushed for more discussion on Drumm’s employment situation, said the city took heavy financial losses from two recent labor disputes. He fears that forcing Drumm out could result in another legal dispute, one that could be yet another loss for Zephyrhills in front of a judge.

“The contract has a term limit, but the charter doesn’t,” Compton said, adding that the charter would supersede any contract the council writes, since the charter is essentially Zephyrhills’ constitution. “I don’t like ending this, but if we’re going to do it, I want to make sure we are as accurate as possible.”

The battle lines over Drumm have been drawn, it seems, as far as the council is concerned. Lance Smith and Ken Burgess originally recommended cutting Drumm loose, and last week, had Charles Proctor join their side. That leaves just Compton and Jodi Wilkeson in support of Drumm, or at the very least, gathering more information on making sure the city is protected legally.

Wilkeson suggested a third legal opinion be sought, something Mayor Danny Burgess was against.

“How much weight are we going to give this third opinion?” Burgess asked. “We had two attorneys that we paid for opinions who are very qualified and very good at what they do. And here we’re just going with a firm (for a third opinion) based on name recognition.”

Compton and Wilkeson picked out the Tampa firm Fowler White as one they recognized from a list of potential firms Poblick shared at the council meeting, and chose that firm for the third opinion.

Seeking that additional legal counsel does buy Drumm more time as it delayed a decision to the April 14 council meeting. However, that pushes the meeting until after the upcoming municipal election where Wilkeson is defending her seat against former high school football coach Alan Knight.

If Knight wins the election and decides against retaining Drumm, he would be the fourth vote and would likely make any legal questions moot.

Published April 2, 2014

Zephyrhills tests whether everybody knows your name

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Finding success in politics most definitely is a game of “who you know,” or at the very least when a voter is looking at a long list of names, “who has heard of you.”

If familiarity is key to winning a seat on the Zephyrhills city council, former Pasco County educator Alan Knight may have this one in the bag.

The moment people drive into Zephyrhills, they know there’s an election brewing between Alan Knight and incumbent Jodi Wilkeson. Who will win is decided April 8. (Photo by Michael Hinman)
The moment people drive into Zephyrhills, they know there’s an election brewing between Alan Knight and incumbent Jodi Wilkeson. Who will win is decided April 8. (Photo by Michael Hinman)

“Being in education, I would honestly think I have touched the lives of at least 75 percent of the people of this town — either as students, athletes, church members, etc.,” Knight said. “I know the people of Zephyrhills, and I know their feelings.”

However, while Knight may have worked as an administrator and even a head football coach for Zephyrhills High School in the mid-1970s, he hasn’t been working on the city council during the past six years like Jodi Wilkeson. As a councilwoman and a business owner — as well as someone who likes to stay active — there is rarely a Zephyrhills event that she’s not a part of.

“On the campaign trail, no one ever says to me, ‘Where have you been?’” Wilkeson said. “They know I’m always just a phone call away. When they have a problem, I know who to call and how to get it solved.”

Knight fears spending too much time on the council can create a stale look at the problems. To him, a fresh face brings fresh ideas and proposals, and gets away from “we have always done it that way.”

Wilkeson, however, says she’s never stuck to the status quo.

“’Fresh perspective’ shouldn’t be synonymous with ‘little relevant experience’ when competing for a position as an elected municipal official,” Wilkeson said. “There’s a steep learning curve when taking office. I prefer to see folks run for office only after they’ve invested a year or more in service as a volunteer city board member.”

And Knight, she says, has done just that, getting a “good start” with his work on the Parks & Recreation Board dealing with what to do with the closed Hercules Park on County Road 54.

One thing both seem to agree on, however, is that neither wants to rush to judgment on embattled city manager Jim Drumm. Wilkeson has publicly sought to hold off any decisions while more information is gathered, and Knight feels the same way.

“I have often been asked about the Drumm issue, and my response is that until elected, I can make no judgment,” he said. “Once there, I will totally scrutinize the situation, seek advice from the citizens, (and) talk to Mr. Drumm and all involved. In other words, I do not take this lightly, but as a situation that not only has to be addressed, but one that must be addressed with close, well-defined facts.”

Knight’s primary platform focuses on communication inside the government and with residents, something he says has fallen to “a new low.” Wilkeson, on the other hand, wants more attention paid to the Zephyrhills Police Department, where low wages can’t compete with neighboring communities.

“Our citizens want a strong, well-trained police force, but we continue to lose talent to bigger communities offering better wages and benefits,” Wilkeson said. She may have voted against a tax increase that would’ve funded a new detective position with the police department, but that hasn’t stopped her from voting for pay increases to entry-level patrol officers.

Knight said he agrees, and expands that a step further.

“I feel that support of all our city workers is a must,” he said, “from the chiefs of fire and police, to the man riding on the garbage truck.”

For other parts in our Experience vs. New Blood story package, click here. 

Published April 2, 2014

Days numbered for Zephyrhills city manager?

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Jim Drumm is working hard to get support on his side. But if he wants to keep his city manager job in Zephyrhills, it’s going to come down to collecting as many city council members on his side as possible, or that a judge agrees he can’t be let go.

At least part of that battle, however, is being lost as a third council member joined Lance Smith and Ken Burgess in opposing renewing Drumm’s contract. Yet, the fear of a lawsuit has bought the city manager some more time as the council opted to get a third opinion on how they can legally cut ties with Drumm.

Charles Proctor, who admits that if the decision were completely up to him he would keep Drumm, turned against the city manager during Monday’s council meeting. He said talking to various people inside the city government, as well as many of his constituents, Proctor came to a conclusion he didn’t like: Drumm had to go.

“Do I think Mr. Drumm was perfect? No,” Proctor said. “But I thought he did a good job as far as city managing. When I went out and talked to some people, the majority, unfortunately … the majority of the people who talked to me did not want me to move forward with the renewal of (Drumm’s) contract.”

Much of the problem has been poor communication, and trouble with some people inside the city government able to work with him, council members said.

 That has left council members Jodi Wilkeson and Kenneth Compton alone in their support for Drumm, who was hired by the city in 2011 to replace longtime city manager Steve Spina. Compton had tried to get a workshop scheduled where the council could talk more freely about the pros and cons of Drumm’s work. However, such a move didn’t get the support of Smith, Burgess or Proctor.

Compton, however, was not ready to give up. City Attorney Joe Poblick has said that it would take a supermajority of the council — four of the five members — to renew Drumm’s contract, which is set to expire in May. Yet, having a contract with a set end date is not addressed in the city’s charter, essentially Zephyrhills’ constitution, Compton said. That would give Drumm ammunition to fight the city legally on whether he was lawfully terminated.

“To me, in reference to the opinion provided by the labor attorney, the charter is the controlling document,” Compton said. “Anything inconsistent with the charter is wrong.”

Drumm, speaking in his own defense, said from the legal opinions he’s received, he can continue working as city manager whether he has a contract in place or not, until he quits or is removed by four council members. He noted that his predecessor, Spina, worked both with and without a contract, and that he has that ability, too, thanks to the way the Zephyrhills city charter is written.

Danny Burgess, an attorney himself serving his last full meeting as mayor, said that everything he’s seen from the two legal opinions the city’s already received on Drumm’s status checks out. Doing more would waste taxpayer money, especially if the council looks at high-profile firms like Tampa’s Fowler White to offer a third opinion.

“How much weight are we going to give this third opinion?” asked Burgess, who did not seek re-election to the city after announcing his bid for the state legislature. “We had two attorneys that we paid for opinions who are very qualified and very good at what they do. And here we’re just going with a firm (for a third opinion) based on name recognition.”

Why some members of council want to oust Drumm is something the city manager says he doesn’t understand. He told the council that he heard rumors that, among other things, he was not close to the powerful families in town, and it’s possibly them pulling the strings. Drumm also said that some in the city know Spina is out and about looking to manage a city again, and may be eyeing his old job in Zephyrhills.

Spina, however, denied that rumor when asked Tuesday by The Laker/Lutz News.

Drumm said if the council did indeed want to bring Spina back, he would gladly step aside and allow the city to negotiate, and when they came to a deal, he would negotiate a severance and move on. However, Drumm said he came to Zephyrhills planning on making this a long-term home. If he had any inkling that he would only be here three years like his contract suggests, he may have not even considered the position in the first place.

The council decided not to take any action on Drumm, and instead, wait to hear a third opinion before moving forward.

The Zephyrhills City Council is set to meet again after the April 8 elections where one council member (and Drumm supporter) Jodi Wilkeson will try to defend her seat against former high school football coach Alan Knight.

Story was updated 3/25/14 to include comment from former Zephyrhills city manager Steve Spina.

City manager fights for job Monday night

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Jim Drumm is feeling the same pressure his predecessor Steve Spina did for many years as the chief administrator for Zephyrhills: keeping his job as city manager.

Drumm, who was hired by the city in 2011, is facing some tough questions by a couple city council members who recently expressed concern about renewing his contract. And that could be just enough to force Drumm out.

Zephyrhills selected Drumm after an exhaustive search. At the time, Drumm had just left a similar position in High Springs, a city of 5,300. He resigned before the council there had a chance to terminate him in what published reports at the time called “philosophical differences” with the city council there.

There seems to be philosophical differences in Zephyrhills as well, with both Lance Smith and Ken Burgess both saying they won’t approve a new contract for Drumm citing, among other things, communication issues. Later, Zephyrhills city attorney Joe Poblick determined it would indeed take four of the five councilman to approve a contract for Drumm to continue in his position.

The city council meets Monday night beginning at 6, and Drumm’s future is on the agenda. However, no decision is expected to be reached at this meeting, that is if the council moves forward with a proposed workshop to discuss Drumm’s performance.

Spina retired from government work in 2011 soon after Drumm took over. While he worked on a variety of projects, including streetscaping downtown, the creation of the one-way road pairs parallel to Gall Boulevard, and a variety of other projects, it seemed he struggled to find appreciation from the council as well. However, in the end, Spina was able to depart on his own schedule and on his own terms after 15 years.