TWO DOWN ….
Soon to be terminated Interim Town Manager John Olinzock at Special Meeting answering to the Commission….
Dear Readers …at 8 am this morning the new majority of the LBTS Town Commission surprisingly joined by a rather reluctant and even more “Clueless”, Comm. Clottey to terminate the Interim Town Manager John Olinzock!…
The Commission moved the agenda around and put this disturbing situation first …as it was the most important job in Town …The only one who thought otherwise was the outgoing Interim Town Manager JohnO!….
The Mayor assisted by the Town Attorney, Atty. Brett Schneider and Atty. Richard Weiss were more than advisers in the process of this termination…they became the focal point of finger pointing by the Interim Town Manager as he accused them of not doing their jobs!…
This came right after Atty. Brett Schneider asked by the Town Atty. Trevarthen spelled out once more what had transpired between the Town’s law firm and the Town Manager and his staff…(prev. post e-mail )…Comm. Vincent stated that JohnO did not do his job and asked to terminate without discussion…An opinion given by Atty. Schneider was that John Olinzock as of that time “stood in the Town Manager’s shoes” and as such he could be terminated from employment without cause…and not to return to the Asst. Town Manager position as offered up by “Clueless” Clottey …(perhaps emboldened this morning by a sun-glassed appearance by Cristie Furth who had yelled out for public comment only to admonished by the Mayor)…Clottey said she too was not told the payout and not happy with the actions taken (eggshells don’t ya know)…Comm. Sasser asked about the Town’s personnel manual and Mr. Schneider answered they had found it and it was from 1988 …with a Resolution made in 1991..No updating could be located …and no information on the adherence to it was known…(we hear it was adhered to for some managerial/ full-time employees and not others)…It contained a “cap” for Vacation accrued and unused leave hours of 240 hrs and a cap of 480 hrs. for unused and accrued sick leave with a 25% of the hours not 100% as provided to both Colon and Baldwin and whomever else received that in their pay-out packages…We have heard this could leave the door open for former employees to come back and fight for their unused hours!….Comm. Dodd asked if the Town law firm had ever made a public records request to a Town for the information being asked for…The answer a resounding NO!… They had never experienced anything like this…Mr. Schneider went on to speak of the usual experience where the Town Attys. would be an integral part of the payout process…. The Mayor asked that in the event there was an investigation the staff be included due to the non responsiveness that beyond the Interim Town Manager… added as a “friendly amendment”…”Clueless” Clottey after hearing the Atty. Schneider still went ahead to ask that JohnO be put back as Asst. Town Manager because of budget time!… The Mayor promptly replied we have a Finance Director, Kaola King and we would not be left without anyone as “Clueless” stated…Com. Sasser wanted clarification on the holding back of JohnO’s own pay-out and the Mayor said her intention when she put it forth was after the investigation into Colon’s payout was resolved..
Vice Mayor Dodd then asked to question Interim TM John Olinzock …The Mayor asked JohnO to go down and stand at the podium which he did…He was visibly nervous and his voice was shaky …He began by thanking the VM and said he was beginning to wonder if he was not living in the United States of America…The Mayor unappreciative of his opening remark set him straight… This is where JohnO dug himself a bigger hole than the one he was already in…He called Town Atty. Trevarthen by her first name Susan and tried to put the onus on her for not being involved from the time of his appointment last Tues. night…He insinuated that they had commiserated in the predicament of what had transpired with the termination of TM Colon…and then went to say Trevarthen had left Jarvis Hall and the process itself…He sounded like he had been coached in this writer’s opinion by none other than the former Town Manager when he spoke of the contract being “silent” as to how the payment was received…He actually tried to admonish the Commissioners by stating they were all aware of the payout week and they too had received their checks on Fri. (Apr. 23rd)…He again used the lame and weak excuse that the termination fell within this pay period and he did exactly as instructed by the Commission…He said he spoke to all the Commissioners and said a Special Meeting was required for him to act on their request to stop or hold payment (it was not) and cited past incidents when something was done without such meetings…He was also way off base and equally weak as he tried to say once he received in writing what the Town Atty. wanted it was”disseminated” as quickly as possible…Comm. Sasser asked JohnO why he immediately left and asked Town staff to get to work (it was after close of business at 5:45 pm -overtime?)…Olinzock again threw the Town Atty. under the bus stating she could have come to Town Hall at any time to get whatever she wanted and id not…The Town Atty. spoke in her own defense and stated she had no idea the pay-out was to begin as soon as the termination meeting was over and the written form request was done “at great reluctance” after at least 6 attempts to procure the information …She also stated that JohnO thought agendas were more important that the pay-out …Atty. Schneider stood at the podium to counter John Olinzock’s claims and pronounced them “not accurate” that the firm was very specific what was being asked from the Town Manager and his staff…JohnO said he had 2 questions for “Susan” (TAtty.) He went on to speak of that Tues. night exchange and further added that Trevarthen was “caught in the middle” of representing the Town and the Commission …He made his public meeting historical point and the need for “consensus” from the board…It seemed Atty. Richard Weiss (longtime friend and choice for Town Atty. of former TM Colon) could not sit still in the audience anymore…He took the podium to say in 30 years he has never seen a situation like this before!…Mr Weiss said he had never seen a check cleared this quickly!…And he said to Olinzock “in all due respect, we are always consulted!”…Normally it’s a couple of days and Commissioners would be be informed…The idea that the check was issued that night and that this was not the most important thing …that other things were more important ..He couldn’t believe this happened!…If this had happened in his office those who did it would be gone…Weiss added none of the Managers in the hall today would act this way!… (Would I love to be a fly on the wall if Weiss ever spoke to Colon again!)…Olinzock said that some Commisioners wanted the check stopped or asked about 12 month payment of the funds ..Comm. Sasser asked it there was a hold placed…Olinzock answered no…Sasser went on to ask about the verification Atty. Schneider asked for…JohnO acted like he did not get the question…and answered no…VM Dodd asked how quickly former TM Baldwin was payed…JohnO said he was noit there and spoke of other situations …again going back to the pay period ending… Dodd asked him if ADP (payroll co.) ended the pay period at close of business or 12 am…Olinzock did not know…(The question was due to the TM missing the pay period and the thought it should have been held to the next pay period)…Dodd reiterated the Commissioners and the Town Atty. direct communications to JohnO and stated JohnO had the authority to authorize the payment and t hold the payment…The Interim TM had the audacity to try and compare the expediency of the TM pay-out with the pre-penalty loan payback debacle!…VM Dodd was having none of it and straightened him “flat out” (a Dodd-ism) on that expediency being part and parcel to the termination of his former boss!…. JohnO was barely treading water at this point as he tried to use the contract was “silent” as to the payout once more…He was asked by Dodd if he discussed the pay-out with Colon …JohnO replied no…VM Dodd asked about the figures including the 1266 hrs of unused sick/vacation time adding up to 31 weeks …in less than 3 years…and JohnO looking as if he was only minutes from hitting the bottom of the ocean responded that he looked at the records …compared them …BUT …”did not know how it was done”…He stupidly replied that he could not know every function to this business (Administration.. remember he applied for the interim position) and added “if you’re and accountant you may have a good atty….if your a builder you may have a good salesman”…HUH?…Comm.Vincent pointed out to JohnO his lack of judgment and asked if he would have gone back to Town Hall at 5:45 to do the pay-out for any other employee in this situation…JohnO replied he did not see it as an issue!…JohnO returned to the payroll and how it coincided once more…He stated the instructions from the Commission that evening were immediate…and the contract was “silent” as to TM Colon being paid…He was called out on that claim…Comm. Sasser asked about the calculations and read the Atty. letter on what was asked for…JohnO asked for it to be read again..Sasser complied …and asked Olinzock if their was “any ambiguity” …JohnO replied “I don’t believe so”…The Town Atty. asked to add that each time she spoke to him she was trying to carry out her assignment…JohnO said he believed the payment was correct…The Mayor said “we all make choices time will tell if this was a good one.”….Comm. Sasser asked the motion be read again…the Mayor added in her friendly amendment of the investigation… Comm. Sasser clarified no cause was required …and clarified the conditions did not insinuate reason…The Atty. affirmed no problem …Clottey asked for the motion to be separated from each other …adding she wanted the Comm. to consider it even though it came from her…The Mayor cut her down by stating it was something she intended for the length as well of the motion…The Atty. conferred it could be done either way… Atty. Weiss stated he agreed with 2 motions to allow the new interim to deal with direction after the termination of Olinzock… Clottey (who must have swallowed a lot of Kool-aid the evening before at the CIC meeting) stated an apology should come from the dais if nothing was wrong..throwing a “zinger” on VM Dodd saying he was “keen on apologies”….(Nothing wrong?…CLUELESS!)… Comm. Sasser tying up loose ends wanted it stated that JohnO was terminated from employment and would not go back to being Asst. Tm…Town Atty. Trevarthen had to take some pleasure in stating that was correct after enduring Olinzock’s statements thus far this morning…Clueless wasn’t done though she took aim at the Mayor insisting the Mayor was talking about a “conspiracy” with the need to investigate Town staff… and she was “troubled by the Mayor taking it to another level.”…HUH?…Due diligence to inquire on staff when the Town Attys. have already stated their involvement?… All together now “CLUELESS!”… The Mayor stated we just want to understand how and why and then said this meeting was “deteriorating” (due to Clottey)….Finance Director Kaola King came to the Hall (we hear that although certain staff was asked by VM Dodd to the Interim Town Manager to attend they were in the Town trailer…Town Hall remained locked down until a new Interim was appointed ) …Ms. King pointed out the need for a two signatures on check…HUH?…Seemed unnecessary to come forward with in the scheme of things… Atty. Weiss again reiterated the need for two motions …The motion to terminate Interim Town Manager John Olinzock was read by the Town Atty. including no pay-out until after the full calculations of the Colon pay-out were submitted to the Town Attys. and presented for appoval to the Town Commission….Comm.Vincent made the motion …second by VM Dodd the votes were 5-0…Another one bites the dust!… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNQRfBAzSzo
The Mayor allowed the newly terminated John Olinzock to speak when he followed in the footsteps of his former boss and asked for a “point of personal privilege” to thank the residents and the Commission for this opportunity …stating he learned a lot (apparently not enough to run a Town)…OOPS!…He went on t speak about learning a lot about freedoms….
Comm. Vincent asked to give direction for John to collect his personal belongings…and the Mayor asked the BSO Sherif to escort Olinzock…
We hear there were possibly 3-4 people CIC members for his support…and as Cristie Furth walked out…there was applause for her leaving not for JohnO!…OUCH!….
On the way out it was said that JohnO turned to Atty. Brett Schneider and warned him he would be next to be fired!…
Outside it was said Cristie Furth was dogged as if JohnO needed protection and threatened that pics of her if published would be cause for a lawsuit…Hmmm… seems Ms. Furth forgot her husband stating to this writer at Halloween that no such thing applies on public property…and he proceeded to publish a photo of this writer in their long gone local paper… So in the interest of “fair’s fair”..This writer will return the “fair”…below!…
Photos from this morning…
Atty. Brett Scneider
Interim Town Manager Olinzock, Comm. Clottey
A disgruntled? sun- glassed Cristie Furth
Atty. Schneider setting Interim TM Olinzock’s straight on statements made
Newly terminated John Olizock escorted by BSO
JohnO, escorted by Cristie Furth , Atty. Brett Schneider and BSO Officer
JohnO and Cristie Furth camera- shy after termination and applause for Furth’s exit from Jarvis Hall?
Thanks to the roving photogs…
The new Interim Town Manager post is next…
more to come….
Tags: Lauderdale By The Sea Special Meeting april 26 2010 Terminate Interim Town Manager John Olinzock, LBTS Agendas/Meetings, local government, Local Politics, Scoops
