ANOTHER FUN MEETING — The Lake Helen City Commission during a Sept. 14 meeting that took several twists and turns. Seated in front of the commission, from left, are newly hired Deputy City Clerk Roxann Reid and City Administrator Lee Evett. Both Evett and Reid came under fire from City Commissioner Roger Eckert, who is seated second from left in blue.
Lake Helen’s outdated charter occasionally leads to peculiar situations. Mix in the inflamed passions of a smalltown community and the city’s own particular brand of oddity (one tongue-in-cheek motto available on merchandise from the Lake Helen History Museum is “Where Mayberry meets the Twilight Zone”) and you get something like what happened this year.
Mayoral mayhem
The mayor, and the Zone 1 and 3 commissioners, were up for election this year. Incumbent Heather Rutledge ran unopposed for Zone 1, and newcomer Linda Donato ran unopposed for Zone 3.
But the mayor’s race was different. Three people initially filed to run — former City Commissioners Kelly Frasca and Vernon Burton, and incumbent Cameron Lane.
Lane withdrew — but not before the ballots were printed. And so, the August primary became a two-person race, with Vernon Burton ultimately winning handily, with 60 percent of the votes to Frasca’s 40 percent.
So wait — who’s the mayor now? According to the charter, “A newly elected mayor … shall take office at the first regular City Commission meeting following his or her election after taking the oath of office.”
Mayor-elect Burton and Volusia County Elections Supervisor Lisa Lewis were on hand at the City Commission meeting Sept. 14 — just in case.
“Our charter is not the model of clarity,” City Attorney Scott Simpson told the commission. “It’s legally inconsistent, and probably the one area that has the most conflict is in elections.”
One provision of the charter calls for elections only in even-numbered years — which would make the mayoral race in violation of the charter. Except another section of the charter stipulates elections in odd-numbered years, in direct contradiction.
Yet another charter-review workshop will be set. The review will be at least the fifth attempt to amend the charter, which requires a ballot measure passed by voters.
In the meantime, by closely following the language of the charter through multiple sections and subsections, a consensus was reached — Mayor Burton and Commissioner Donato will take office in November, when the terms for Mayor Lane and City Commissioner Rick Basso end.
A cry for civility
Elections breed controversy and, in recent years, there have been uproars over pancake breakfasts, incendiary Facebook posts, and mysterious campaign signs.
This year, an election sign for “S. Crane for Mayor” popped up in the city. The sign had a picture of a sandhill crane.
“I suggested a disclaimer be put on the sign as to who paid for them; even though it was not a true candidate,” Elections Supervisor Lewis said of the crane signs.
In short order, a new disclaimer written in marker appeared: “Paid for by Charlene Bishop.” Bishop is the current commissioner of Zone 4.
Current Mayor-elect Vernon Burton had his fair share of accusations hurled at him on social media, from inflating his career in law enforcement (he was a corrections officer) to colluding with cellphone tower owners.
MAYOR-ELECT — Fourth time’s the charm for Mayor-elect Vernon Burton, pictured here at Lake Helen’s July Fourth parade. Burton won his fourth try for mayor of Lake Helen Aug. 22, but Lake Helen’s unusual city charter raised questions about when his term would begin.
“This last election was a rough one,” City Commissioner Heather Rutledge said. “It crossed the line on social media, and from what I heard with my own ears.”
Rutledge, who was elected unopposed, called for a policy on civility for both commissioners and the public at city meetings.
Almost directly after her remarks, Zone 2 City Commissioner Roger Eckert raised the issue of a new hire on the city staff.
City staff
Deputy City Clerk Dominique Drager — who was also the city’s human resources director and public records director, and oversaw building permits and code compliance — left the city the week of the Aug. 22 election. Drager was paid a salary of $75,000, which, with benefits, amounted to about $106,000.
Lake Helen’s city staff has been marked by turnover, perhaps not incredibly surprising considering the city will hire its fourth city administrator in five years at the end of this year.
Lake Helen City Administrator Lee Evett was fired June 8, and then unfired four days later after Mayor Lane flew back from Vermont to entreat the City Commission to keep Evett on until a new city administrator was selected. Evett is currently set to “retire” Nov. 8.
Scrambling to fill Drager’s job, whose myriad duties are summed up under the title “director of administration,” Evett told the City Commission at a budget workshop Aug. 23 that he intended to hire someone.
Of course, Lake Helen’s special oddities complicate this process as well — only the City Commission can hire and fire people.
Evett had been greenlit in January of 2021 to hire temporary employees after yet another shake-up in staff when former City Administrator Becky Witte resigned Nov. 4, 2020.
Roxann Reid, who ran against Eckert for the Zone 2 seat in 2020, was selected by Evett for the spot.
Eckert took exception to the hiring of Reid, saying her hiring at $70,000 a year with benefits was anything but temporary.
Eckert motioned to immediately terminate Evett, “tonight, and be escorted out by the Police Department, with all your keys to city property taken away.” The motion would be at least the second time Eckert has moved to terminate Evett.
The motion died for lack of a second.
City Commissioner Rick Basso then motioned to hire Reid permanently.
The City Commission quickly voted, 3 to 2, to hire Reid with Eckert voting no, and City Commissioner Rutledge voting no only “to make sure she feels comfortable here, and that this is a good fit.”
Still, a contentious City Commission discussion and public comment ensued.
“My elementary-school son could have done a better job on a résumé than Roxann did,” Eckert said.
Incoming City Commissioner Linda Donato, who will be installed in November, said that hiring Reid was “discriminatory” to other applicants. Donato also said the City Commission should request Reid’s transcripts “from every college she says she has a master degree from.”
Evett wrote in an email response to The Beacon that an advertisement for the position was placed Sept. 14, but canceled after the commission hired Reid.
“I informed the Commission of my intentions of hiring on a temporary basis an individual who was qualified, expressed interest and was available to meet with the outgoing Deputy City Clerk the following week,” Evett wrote. “I clearly stated that my authority was limited to a six month period and the Commission was the only body that had the authority to hire a permanent employee.”
Although Reid has been hired, Evett’s replacement is still in the works.
The City Commission voted 3-2 at the Sept. 14 meeting to hire an outside agency at $32,000 to find candidates to fill Evett’s spot. Rutledge and Basso voted against the bid by recruiting company Colin Baenziger & Associates, which was higher than a competing bid by $7,000.
“We could hire a new one every year,” Basso said of the search for yet another new Lake Helen city administrator.
Stormwater, millage spark conversation
Stormwater
Lake Helen residents, primarily those from Lake Helen Villas, a 55-and-up community on the north side of the city, pleaded with the City Commission to lower the rate of increase for stormwater fees.
The original idea was to have stormwater fees go up 75 percent at the beginning of this fiscal year, 50 percent in year two, and 25 percent in year three. That schedule would bring the city up to the 150-percent stormwater rate increase recommended by the stormwater assessment plan. The rate plan would cost $75.42 per residential unit a year.
“You want all of us digging in our pockets for what we don’t have,” Lake Helen resident Raphine Pierce, one of several public speakers, said of the plan. “Y’all are living beyond our means.”
In typical Lake Helen fashion, the subject became a back-and-forth, with City Commissioner Rick Basso eschewing a microphone to stand at the edge of the Hopkins Hall stage.
“Exactly what is happening today has happened many times before,” Basso said. “The past commission was kind. And they were negligent. Postpone it now and costs will get higher, and it will cost more, and that’s not the right thing to do.”
Basso, who has years of experience in construction and stormwater, said the costs of materials are just getting higher and higher. Every year the city delays funding capital projects to improve the stormwater system will cost the city more in the long run, he said.
“No matter what number we pick, it won’t be enough,” Basso said. “The situation we’re in is that we’ve ignored it. We ignored the problem for years, and now it’s time to bite the bullet.”
Ultimately, though, the City Commissioners heard the pleas from the audience. The rate increase was lowered to 45 percent for the upcoming fiscal year. Future City Commissions will have to vote each year on the stormwater increases.
“What may be helpful today may be hurtful tomorrow. I am acquiescing to what I am hearing, but me personally, I don’t think it’s a great idea,” Basso said.
Millage
The Lake Helen City Commission set the millage rate to 6.5, greater than the rollback rate of 6.22 by 4.33 percent. The reduction from the advertised rate of 6.85 percent resulted in the loss of $60,000 from Lake Helen’s proposed budget.
The City Commission also eliminated the cost-of-living increase from the commission salaries, saving $2,000 from the proposed budget.
Dang.
City Manager form of government. 4 year terms. Managed. Not administrated.
Just sayin Ms. Crane.