Here’s The Scoop … What Do Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor and LBTS Town Manager Colon Have In Common? …
August 7, 2009 by Barbara
A LIFETIME CONTRACT!……
THEN- COMMISSIONER MCINTEE …APRIL 24, 2007 COMMISSION MEETING …
12 G. Old Business…page 26 (minutes.)….
‘ Commissioner McIntee asked to withdraw his previous for acting [manager], and wanted to amend it to PERMANENT TOWN MANAGER’….
‘Attorney Cherof stated that “THERE IS NO SUCH POSITION AS PERMANENT TOWN MANAGER, ONLY TOWN MANAGER.’
BC- Little did they know…OR…. did they know that ‘Acting Town Manger Colon’ would indeed become “PERMANENT TOWN MANAGER COLON”!…
Dear Readers as promised below are the scans of the Town Manager’s contract…7 pages that will show exactly what Ms. Colon added to her contract…which was previously posted (scoops cat. July 16,2009 It’s Fiction) and is below the fold in a 2 page story and editorial by Editor Mark Brown in this weeks edition of the BTSFuture newspaper…(online soon…hard copies available throughout the town)…
The minutes from which the above statements are included are available online…April 24,2007 ( pgs. 25-27) / May 22,2007 (pg. 19) http://www.lauderdalebythesea-fl.gov/town/arc-meetings.htm
The “Cliff Notes” are …in April 2007 “Acting” TM Colon was asked again if she wanted the TM due to TM Baldwin’s assertion he would not withdraw his resignation…the Comm. was going to start a search if she declined…Comm. McIntee wanted Colon appointed TM and the town owned car returned ASAP…discussion followed…Comm. Clark asked if Colon was “agreeable to be “acting TM”…and suddenly she went for the brass (GOLD) ring…and said she “was tired of siting second fiddle to everyone either she’s the Town Manager or she’s going back to Finance.” (Wish we could do a do-over!)….Mayor Parker double checked her “willingness”…and Colon stated ” she is willing to take the position with the same contract that Robert Baldwin had with the exception that she will not work on a day to day basis.”…Motions were made…Colon stated her desire for a “decent staff”…McIntee made his “permanent” motion…the all withdrew their motions to start again …Silverstone/ Yanni made the new motions..McIntee still wanted the car…the motion passed 5-0… May 22,2007…Comm. Silverstone brought up the new TM contract and “stated the Esther took over Robert Baldwin’s old contract”…specifically talking of the 10 wks Baldwin had in his agreement that Esther took out…Comm. McIntee also spoke of Esther removing the 10 wks. Baldwin had in his agreement… “She,[Colon] he [McIntee] stated that she GAVE the Commission a very nice gesture without asking for it, SHE REMOVED OTHER THINGS AS WELL ON HER OWN.”…(Nothing about how Colon really took the town to town with her additions to her new contract.)…She must have been grinning inside like a Cheshire cat!…
The Contract….pages 1-7…
page 1…include 3.0 that provides for ” the Town Manager’s term of employment is therefore NOT FOR A FIXED TERM.”..
page 2…contains 5.1.1 “three hundred and sixty-five (365) days of severance pay, less customary withholding”…5.1.2 unreimbursed expenses/5.1.3 accrued and unused vacation leave/ 5.1.4 accrued and unused sick leave….
page 3… includes 5.1.5 accrued compensatory time accrued prior to being TM/ and if she either leaves by mutual agreement/disability or death/ resignation…(we have heard from sources close to the administration the TM WANTS to be fired…page 2 explains 365 reasons why!)…
page 4 contains…the further compensation for time as Finance Director accrued (8.1.4)/ 9.0 Automobile … late model..unmarked business/ personal unrestricted/10.0 vacation sick leave insurance etc./ 10.4 retirement trust
page 5 includes…a second trust paid into by the town/ her travel expense…(13.0 Indemnification title…explanation on pg. 6)
page 6 includes 13.1 “town shall defend , save harmless and indemnify TOWN MANAGER against any tort, professional liability claim or demand or other legal action, whether groundless or otherwise, arising out of an alleged act or omission occurring in the performance of TOWN MANAGER’S duties as TOWN MANAGER. Town shall either compromise and settle an claim or suit or pay the amount of any settlement or judgment rendered thereon, if not compromised and settled….(meaning the TM has the Town by the Brass balls if we tried to fire her and not pay! …ALLEGED ACT OR OMISSIONS…YIKES!..)/ 15.0 Performance Evaluations (prev. post)/ hours of work…
page 7 is the final page…it includes 17.0 BINDING EFFECT…and is the page that raises the most questions…due to the signatures contained…TM Colon…who obviously KNEW what was in the contract and how it differed greatly from her predecessor (see below)/Former Mayor Oliver Parker…who is quoted in the BTS Futures “I knew what was in there.”..”he felt one year’s severance was excessive , but decided not to fight it.” saying he wanted 6 months Colon wanted a year…and further stating the Commission had no problem with the rest…BUT Comm. Clark and Yanni say they never saw the revised contract and voted on what is contained in the minutes/video from April 24,2007/ Former Town Atty. Cherof is also a signer and curiously is signed under “Approved as to Form”…..He did not return Editor Brown’s calls…Mayor Parker says Cherof worked with Colon on the “major changes” to her contract…and Colon on the dais last month asserted he was involved…Readers probably know this writer has issues with the former TA…due to behavior on the dais when recounting our interaction regarding a Slapp suit (dismissed) against myself and another P&Z board member…but, it is quite disconcerting if true that he assisted and did not advise the full commission of all changes made…For a partner in a law firm once called “the Monarchs of Municipalities” in a long ago news story…it just seems implausible he would allow this to be voted on and approved without full disclosure to the Commission and the residents!…
Former Town Manager Robert (Bob) Baldwin’s…letters of stating his agreement with the Town…
DECEMBER 28, 2001….which includes his “week to week basis”/ “obviating the need for the severance provision or notice requirements in the contract”/ “I continue to serve at our mutual desire/”neither contracted severance nor notice requirements”
June 14,2009…letter EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT…includes To Commission..(including McIntee & Silverstone)/ ” hired on a week to week basis and that I only was required to give five days notice if I needed to resign. Though not discussed, presumably, I was not entitled to the severance pay provision of the contract if the Commission decided my services were no longer needed.”…
Dear Readers after the above was written up on this site..(July 16,2009)…..I believe Comm. Silverstone decided to set the record straight…either because he too was in the dark ( along with Comms. Clark and Yanni….or he was assisting (in this writer’s opinion) in a cover up…by asking for a copy of former Manager Baldwin’s severance package…assured it would show big bucks…
THE MEMOS SILVERSTONE REQ./ ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE…
July 22,2009… which includes on page 1 it was to Comm. Silverstone/ page 2 a lump sum of $150,989.06… Of note this writer was informed by a reader of the anonymous blog that the day this was received by the Commissioners it appeared on the “portal” blog as proof that Baldwin got the same…But, I knew the numbers did not add up …
Commissioner Dodd was not going to let it slide…and he asked for the “breakdown”….page 1 his e-mail/ page 2 & 3 memo back with breakdown…that showed the final payment was just as Former Manager Baldwin is said to have asserted ..Payment for unused holiday/sick leave over his long years of service and for work done when coming back into town during his consulting time in Lake Worth (he was not compensated for his Lake Worth time)…….It is said Former Manager Baldwin was quite taken aback at his being “pulled back in” to the politics of LBTS via the assertions made from the dais by Commission members and the Town Manager…and one friend of his has told this writer…he called the Manager and let her have it….WOW!….
COMM. DODD REQ./MEMOS WITH THE BREAKDOWN…
There you have it…hope your zooms were working and this will make all residents…taxpayers and voters interested in the future of this town show up en’ masse to the September 10, 2009 Commission Round Table where the Commission will discuss the Town Manager Performance Review….
This writer thinks the Commission should ask the Town Attorney if this contract is really binding or if due to at least 2 former Commissions now on the record stating it was not the contract they approved of and they would not have approved it with full disclosure it is in fact null and void thereby voiding the severance and the indemnity clauses…..in a final TOUCHE’ TO TOWN MANAGER COLON….
more to come….
