Winter Springs restarts process to hire another city manager

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that Victoria Bruce asked how many votes are required to fire a city manager, not how she could fire the city manager, which was in the original version of this article.

Winter Springs commissioners made the first step Monday toward hiring a second company to find a permanent city manager. 

City commissioners openly discussed their rankings of the four companies that applied to the city’s request: ActOne Group, Netsynk Inc, S. Renee Narloch & Associates, and Slavin Management Consultants.

One firm that received a lot of discussion Monday was S. Renee Narloch & Associates. Some commissioners didn’t like that the firm in 2018 met with Tallahassee city commissioners individually to discuss candidates, what some called a violation of the spirit of Florida’s open meeting laws.

Winter Springs Mayor Kevin McCann was more direct in his criticism. 

“I have a concern that this group has such a close tie to the commissioners in Seminole County,” McCann said. “Call me paranoid, I don’t want somebody’s thumb on the scale. I don’t want Seminole County commissioners’ thumbs on the scale of who we pick. I have a very close ongoing relationship with Seminole County and I’ll leave it at that.”

Oviedo Community News reached out to all four firms involved in the process.

Winter Springs requires four votes to hire or fire a city manager. In November, Winter Springs was on the verge of hiring a city manager. But after a heated two-hour meeting where commissioners Cade Resnick and Victoria Bruce openly questioned both the candidates and the city’s search firm, Korn Ferry, the top candidate withdrew. The city brought in the No. 2 candidate, but the dais couldn’t muster the needed four votes to offer a job. 

Ultimately, Winter Springs voted to sever its contract with Korn Ferry and start the process over again, after spending $70,000. 

Both Bruce and Resnick expressed liking S. Renee Narloch & Associates. “This Narloch company to me was one of the top ones that came out,” Resnick said. “I did like this company; I found them to be the most experienced in Florida.”

Commissioners also seemed to like Slavin Management Consultants, which is run by a former city manager, and previously hired city managers in other Florida cities. 

What happens next is all five city commissioners and the mayor turn in their evaluations of the firms, then at the March 25 City Commission meeting, the city will vote on the contract to hire one of the companies. 

Changes in leadership are coming in Winter Springs

But commissioners at Monday’s meeting also laid bare the consistent tensions on the city dais as commissioners couldn’t come to an agreement to give a cost-of-living raise or a merit raise to Interim City Manager Philip Hursh. Hursh, who had previously worked as the city’s public works director, has been doing the interim job for more than a year.

Bruce in February of 2023, during a meeting of city officials from nearby cities, had asked how many votes are required to fire a city manager. Winter Springs’ city manager at the time was Shawn Boyle, and who had been employed by the city for 13 years. He retired suddenly in February 2023, citing “emotional and physical distress.”

Commissioner Rob Elliott wanted the city commission to give Hursh a cost-of-living raise, and also a merit raise, since his contract was signed March 27 of 2023. Votes on both proposals failed 3-2, with Resnick and Bruce voting against the raises. 

“These two won’t support us,” Commissioner Ted Johnson said after one of the votes. 

“Because it takes four votes on this one, it fails,” Mayor Kevin McCann said. Addressing Hursh directly, he added, “As a friend (really, I do see you that way), thank you for the work that you’re doing. And hopefully this body can get together. We’ve taken a step forward today to find a permanent replacement, and hopefully we’ll get our act together and allow you to go back to the job you want to do that you want to do and were hired to do.”

Resnick and Bruce in October of 2023 both showed disapproval of the last city manager finalist, who had received the highest numerical score of the top five finalists out of 200 applicants. That candidate, Dale “Doc” Dougherty, withdrew from the final step of the hiring process, citing comments from Resnick and Bruce, though he did not name them directly. After Dougherty withdrew, Bruce suggested that the city should start the entire process over, rather than hiring any of the finalists, saying that the position was not marketed correctly. That frustrated the mayor and some other commissioners.

“I am more concerned that we’re not going to ever find someone, to be honest with you,” McCann said last October. “I fear — and I don’t know this to be true — I fear commissioners have a person in mind (for manager).”

Hursh is making $180,000 as the city’s interim manager. When a permanent city manager is hired, he would go back to being the city’s public works director, at a salary of $160,000. 

Resnick said he would not vote for a raise until a 360-degree evaluation is done where staff members are able to weigh in on Hursh’s performance. Elliott said he didn’t want Hursh to have to do an evaluation and then eventually go work as a peer with back next to the people who evaluated him. 

“I feel like we’re in the same conflict, though,” Bruce said. “If I vote no, now I have this working relationship with Phil that might be a little bit faulted. So I feel like I’m in the same conflict of interest, as an employee would be right here on the dais in front of everybody with the 360.” 

The city also saw the retirement of Interim Finance Director Donna Bruno, whose tenure ends this week. 

A visibly emotional McCann thanked Bruno for stepping up as the city’s interim finance director, saying the city owed her a debt of gratitude. Bruno testified before the state’s audit committee with McCann back in December. 

“Donna has really found a place in our community,” McCann said. “She’s done really, really difficult work for the residents of Winter Springs. And we’ve gone to battle together, done some real hard, tough work. … What you’ve done for the residents of Winter Springs, the sacrifices you’ve made for us, I personally will never forget.”

Bruno got a round of applause. She also introduced Holly Queen, the city’s new finance director. 

“I’m leaving you in very good hands,” Bruno said “Holly has served as the controller for Winter Springs, very familiar with the city. She understands a lot of the history. Smart lady. You’re lucky to have her.”