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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011.0630.TCSM.Minutesz:\council packets\2011\r8-18-11\110630m.docx Page 1 of 9
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL SESSION OF THE
FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL
JUNE 30, 2011
* CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
Mayor Schlum called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m. in the Town Hall Council Chambers.
* ROLL CALL
Present for roll call were the following members of the Town Council: Mayor Schlum, Vice Mayor Contino,
Councilmember Brown, Councilmember Leger, Councilmember Elkie, Councilmember Hansen and
Councilmember Dickey. Deputy Town Manager Julie Ghetti, Town Attorney Andrew McGuire and Acting
Town Clerk Shaunna Williams were also present.
* PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
AGENDA ITEM #1 – DISCUSSION WITH POSSIBLE DIRECTION TO STAFF REGARDING SELECTION
PROCESS FOR A NEW TOWN MANAGER AND RELATED TRANSITIONAL ISSUES.
Human Resources Administrator/Risk Management Joan McIntosh addressed the Council relative to this agenda item.
She said that with the recent resignation of Town Manager Rick Davis staff is requesting direction from the Council on
how they would like to proceed with the selection process for a new Town Manager. She advised that in the past the
Town has both handled recruitment in-house and utilized an executive search team. She stated that both experiences went
well. She said that she looked back to 2008 when the Town did an in-house recruitment and reported that the cost was
right at $16,000 (video conferences for initial out-of-state interviews and, when the candidates were narrowed down to the
top five, it included the costs for airfare, hotels, meals, a dinner at CopperWynd for the top candidates and their spouses,
advertising, etc. She noted that the League of Cities & Towns was contacted and they said that the average cost for having
an executive search firm recruit for a Town Manager would be anywhere from $20,000 to $30,000, which does not
include the various miscellaneous costs listed above, which would add approximately another $18,000 to that cost. She
stated that either way, staff feels it is realistic to have a new Town Manager on bo ard by December 1, 2011. She added
that it may also be appropriate for Council to officially designate an Acting Town Manager for the period of time until a
new Town Manager is hired and to appoint a Recruitment Committee if the recruitment process remain s in-house. She
thanked the Council for their input on these issues.
Mayor Schlum thanked Ms. McIntosh for her comments and advised that he asked Town Manager Rick Davis to put
together some notes for Ms. McIntosh based on his knowledge of the community, as well as the recruitment process he
has recently been through, and provide his suggestions relative to the process. He said that Mr. Davis did share some
thoughts and they will be distributed for everyone to review. He added that Mr. Davis also drafted a potential timeline.
Ms. McIntosh stated the opinion that a December 1, 2011 deadline for selecting a new Town Manager is realistic.
Mayor Schlum said that since it is apparent that Mr. Davis will be leaving the Town shortly he did not see the need to
delay the process and that is why they are meeting now to discuss the process that will be followed.
Mayor Schlum highlighted the draft timeline relative to the recruitment process for a new Town Manager provided by Mr.
Davis (a complete copy is available in the office of the Town Clerk). He said that there are probably benefits to
conducting either process (in-house or executive search firm) and encouraged Council input on this issue.
Councilmember Brown advised that he would be in support of going outside and hiring an executive search firm. He
added that although it will cost more money to go outside, he thinks it will be well worth the money.
Councilmember Elkie concurred with Councilmember Brown's comments and said that by utilizing an outside search firm
they would also avoid having staff in essence pick their new boss.
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Councilmember Dickey stated that she will be out of Town from September 15th until October 2nd and said she would
appreciate staff keeping that in mind as far as timelines.
Vice Mayor Contino said that he too would support hiring the services of an outside executive search firm.
Councilmember Hansen noted that Gilbert recently went through this process and they hired an outside firm and briefly
highlighted the manner in which Gilbert’s process was conducted.
The Mayor stressed the importance of keeping all of these ideas in mind and said that they will come in handy when they
are conducting the final interviews.
Councilmember Hansen stated that there is a benefit in going with an outside search firm and commented on the vast
amount of qualified people that can be reached.
In response to a question from Councilmember Dickey, Ms. McIntosh said that staff contacted the city of Prescott since
they have just gone through a similar process. She advised that Prescott sent out an informal Request for Proposals (RFP)
and the selected firm did all of the work and screened the list of applicants down to the top ten candidates. She said that
the city took over from there and the cost was ap proximately $20,000. She discussed other municipalities that have also
conducted recent searches for a Town Manager and added that if the Council decides to go with an executive search firm,
the Town would issue an RFP.
Town Attorney Andrew McGuire stated that if the Council decides to move in that direction, he would suggest that
whatever motion they make tonight authorizes the Acting Town Manager to enter into a contract to conduct those
informal services. He explained that they will not have the oppor tunity to have everyone together again to approve a
contract until later on. He said that as long as staff ensures that the Council's parameters are met, the authorization will
allow the Acting Town Manager to move forward with the contract.
Mayor Schlum advised that it appears that most of the Councilmembers are leaning towards going with an executive
search firm. He noted that the last time the Town conducted a search 70 to 80 applicants applied from all over the country
so there is definitely a "reach" as far as doing it in-house as well. He added that there are communities that do it both
ways.
Councilmember Leger commented that he is sensing that the consensus is to go with an outside firm and one of the
reasons he has heard for moving in that direction is to take the politics out of it. He added that he also heard that if the y
cap it at a certain amount of money then it comes back to an internal process. He stated the opinion that politics did not
play a part in the last recruitment and said he doesn't think it would going forward either but if that is the variable then that
concerns him. He advised that if they decide to go with an outside firm then th ey have to be willing to pay for a very
good service rather than ceiling them out at $18,000. He said for that money, they will give the Town a bunch of
applicants. He stated that he respects what he is hearing from the members but in this job market the y could probably put
this out tomorrow and get 100-plus applicants. He added that they had some excellent candidates last time, the list was
narrowed down and Ms. McIntosh is more than qualified to manage the process. He summarized his remarks by saying
that if they decide to go with an outside firm then they should be willing to pay for it to get it done right. He added that
otherwise it will still come down to an internal process in the end. He noted that an internal process may allow more steps
to take place along the way. He advised that Ms. McIntosh put together a great process the last time and they could add
some things to it. He said that he would like to take another shot at conducting it in -house but if the vote is to go with an
external process then he would like to see what the cost would be because he does not want to cap the budget and then
wind up with half of a process. He said that he could go either way but he is concerned about the cost.
Mayor Schlum commented that if they do go external it would be important to narrow the list down to far less than ten
final candidates (six or fewer).
Brief discussion ensued relative to other municipalities' processes, the scope of the work carried out by executive search
firms and the associated costs.
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Councilmember Elkie said that if staff put together an RFP similar to Prescott's and asked the firm to narrow the final
candidates down to a certain number then the Council could conduct the interviews with the finalists. He added that in
this way they would be able to keep the costs down (by setting specific criteria and a ceiling).
Ms. McIntosh noted that it depends on where the top candidates are from (the last time the Town conducted a similar
process, the list was narrowed down to five candidates and they were all from out of state).
In response to comments from Councilmember Elkie, Ms. McIntosh reported that she has been contacted by two
executive search firms already (not affiliated with the former Town Manager). She said that there are quite a few search
firms around.
Councilmember Leger stated that it appears that the consensus is to move forward with an outside consultant. He asked if
they should spend some time setting some parameters or could staff suggest some paramete rs or processes. He reiterated
that he doesn't want to wind up paying a firm $20,000 to provide them with a bunch of applications. He stressed that they
should be involved in the on-going process and noted that there were many, many steps to the process the last time
around. He said he can go either way on this but once again he thinks they need to identify what it is they want and what
they are willing to pay to get it.
Councilmember Dickey advised that she agrees with the Mayor and Councilmember Leger that attracti ng a lot of
candidates will not be a difficult task. She said she wonders how much of the cost charged by firms would go towards
that because attracting candidates is not the problem, going through a complete and effective process is what they want to
accomplish. She questioned whether the Town could do the initial part and then turn the applications over to the firm and
have them conduct the rest of the work. She reiterated that the front end of the process is not the problem.
Councilmember Elkie commented that it might be helpful to look at Prescott's RFP and see what they did. He added that
he is sure the Town could adopt much of what was included in their RFP and fine tune it. He also agreed with
Councilmembers' comments regarding the importance of being very specific about what they expect to get (he does not
want a firm "jumping off" before everything has been completed). He said if the Council could obtain copies of the RFP
and some recommendations from staff that would be extremely helpful.
Ms. McIntosh advised that she has a copy of the informal RFP that Prescott issued and added that staff could also contact
Gilbert and request a copy of that. She cautioned that this might slow the process down (going out with an RFP) but if
that is Council's desire, staff would move forward.
In response to a question from Councilmember Elkie, Mr. McGuire explained the difference between a formal and an
informal RFP. He noted that according to the Town Code, anything over $20,000 is done by a formal sealed bid process.
He said he thinks they could go around the normal process but staff would need direction from the Council as to how
much they want them to do.
Councilmember Brown stated that along with the RFP he is sure that search firms would provide a li st of the different
steps that could be taken and the associated costs for them. He said that the Council could pick and choose and decide
what they want the firm to do (as far as scope of work and cost). He added that since it can be an informal RFP tha t is
what he would like to see done. He stated that he believes the search firm could help the Town as much as the Town
could help them.
Mr. McGuire informed the Council that typically search firms will have a standard protocol that they follow (sometimes a
menu of items -- "soup to nuts" and customization will impact how much the Town will be charged). He noted that if they
find a search firm that includes a lot of the criteria they are looking for, that will lessen the amount of customization and
the amount of money charged over and above a set fee. He said that they will not know this information until they receive
the information back from the firms. He added that staff could share with the Council the various proposals received
(could have telephonic or mostly telephonic meetings to share that information sometime in mid-July).
Councilmember Brown noted that in 2007-08, the Town had a staff of 80 people and today they have 59. He asked Ms.
McIntosh if she would feel comfortable taking this on again. Ms. McIntosh advised that she would be.
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Councilmember Hansen stated that one of the things she would hope a firm provides is the screening process. She said
that the Council would need to provide input so they know what criteria the Council is looking for as part of that
screening process.
Mr. McGuire advised that typically as part of the firms' screening process, while the advertisements are out and they are
collecting a large number of applicants, they will meet with the hiring authority either indi vidually or in small groups to
get a feel for what they are looking for. He said that he doesn't know if this will occur with staff but they certainly would
want to talk to all of the members of the Council.
Mayor Schlum commented that the search firm would narrow it down to four or six candidates (whatever they come up
with) and then they would jump into the more public process (round tables, stakeholder groups, etc.). He stated that he is
not sure whether they help us with that piece or they just say, "Here you go."
Mr. McGuire replied that they certainly could be involved in that process.
Councilmember Elkie advised that he likes what Prescott did (they put a specific amount they were willing to pay and the
criteria they desired in the RFP, which saved time and effort).
Councilmember Leger asked if all of the Councilmembers were aware of the process Ms. McIn tosh conducted during the
last search. He said it might be helpful if that process was briefly reviewed so that the Council would get a sense for a
core scope of work that could be added to. He noted that it was a very thorough process and about 20 varia bles were
looked at for each candidate.
Mayor Schlum stated that they could ask a couple of Councilmembers to work with Ms. McIntosh on coming up with a
process to hire a search firm and then they will contact the rest of the Council and share the information.
Councilmember Elkie expressed the opinion that the value of being there this evening is for everyone to get on board with
the process. He said that putting together an ad-hoc group may limit the involvement of the members of the Council. He
noted that he is hearing a consensus from the group that they want to move forward as soon as possible on this and go
with an outside firm. He stated that he does not want to waste time and believes it would be helpful for Ms. McIntosh to
outline some of the steps she would envision being included in the RFP and a cost for them. He added that if anyone
would like to add something to that they certainly could because this is one of the last opportunities they will have to meet
as a group before the summer break.
Ms. McIntosh advised that the Council appointed a recruitment committee (three Councilmembers, herself and Shaunna
Williams, the Town Manager's Executive Assistant). They placed a link on the Town's website requesting input from the
community as to what their idea of a Town Manager would look like. Staff was also asked the same thing (what qualities
they would like a Town Manager to possess). The committee reviewed all of the input received and then put out the ads
(placed on ICMA website as well as the National League of Cities and Arizona League of Cities & Towns, etc.). She
noted the various publications that the ad was place in. Applications from 72 people were received and the recruitment
committee met and narrowed that number down to nine. Video conferences were conducted for candidates who were out
of state and the committee then narrowed the final list down to five. The five candidates and their spouses were brought
to Town and a two-day process was conducted. The Councilmembers conducted interviews with each of the candidates;
the Councilmembers submitted questions to Ms. McIntosh and then she went through them and typed them up so all the
Councilmembers had a set of the questions; they had the direct reports and management team interview eac h of the
candidates (everyone had evaluation forms to fill out); they held a public forum with the community to make sure that the
citizens had input and evaluation cards were also filled out by the public; staff then gave the candidates a tour of the Town
and then the committee made a recommendation to the Council in an Executive Session. She advised that the Council
concurred with staff's recommendation and Mr. McGuire negotiated the contract with the candidate.
Mayor Schlum thanked Ms. McIntosh for her overview of what was an extremely thorough process.
Councilmember Dickey commented that she still has mixed feelings on which way to go at this point. She advised that a
reason she would give for utilizing an outside firm is time -- the process was an extensive one the last time around. She
said that if the Town lists in the RFP what the top amount it is willing to pay is, the firms will probably make the process
cost that.
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Mr. McGuire stated that typically with professional services the Town does not have a low bid process -- it is typically
qualifications based. He said that the Town would ask the firms to provide a two -pronged bid, one would be a
qualifications-based submittal and the other would be a separate price proposal.
Councilmember Hansen stated that it would be like Councilmember Brown said -- almost having a list of options to
choose from and then deciding the level of service that the Council would like to have. She added that then they wouldn't
want to put a ceiling on it in case there is an option that they would like to have that costs more. She stressed the
importance of maintaining flexibility.
Mayor Schlum asked what the process should be to get to that point.
Mr. McGuire advised that probably the best way for the Council to decide upon a search firm would be to have the
process go forward to get a group of bids from the various groups. He said that the results of the RFP would be brought
back to the Council for their review. He noted that this could be done telephonically if needed. He emphasized that until
they have the proposals in hand they won't have anything to compare. He indicated that the proposal on the front end will
be fairly simple but after that staff will need Council input.
Councilmember Leger asked if there was anything at this point in time that was not in the process outlined by Ms.
McIntosh that should be included. He stated that for example he heard mention of a problem solving exercise and essays
and asked if those are things anyone would like to add or are there other things. He explained that he is simply trying to
come up with as complete a menu of services as possible and added that then the Council can decide what it is they want.
He said that he wants to give Ms. McIntosh as much information as possible so she can proceed and the Council can make
the best decision.
Councilmember Dickey discussed the problem solving exercise and asked whether that was what they did when they
posed different scenarios to the candidates. She said it might not have to be a separate thing that would cost more money.
Councilmember Leger stated the opinion that a professional recruiting firm has in -depth experience in this area and noted
that Mr. Davis recently went through such as process and found it to be very valuable (for the final candidates only).
Councilmember Leger advised that he would suggest that some type of problem solving exercise be included in the
process and said it could be tossed into the mix if the other members are comfortable with that.
Ms. McIntosh recommended that they start out with the basic scope of services and then add to them. She added that they
could have the firm develop the candidate profile after speaking with the Council. She said that the advertising campaign
could then be developed, the candidates would be recruited from that, the candidates would be screened and narrowed
down to perhaps the top ten (depending on how many applications are received), and the firm could take care of the travel
plans for the candidates but she would assume that the Town would pay those costs so the Town can maintain control over
the costs.
Mayor Schlum said that once the list has been narrowed down to ten (or whatever reasonable number they decide upon)
the problem solving exercise could come into play and then the firm could narrow the list down to the top five. He stated
that it then comes down to the public process and whether the firm helps the Town with that as well.
Ms. McIntosh advised that that would be up to the Council but the firm would then give the Council their
recommendations, arrange the final interviews and conduct candidate background checks. She added that once the
candidates have been narrowed down to the top three or five (whatever Council decides) then it will be up to the Council
to decide whether they want to do the rest in-house. She stated that she doesn't know if they need to have all that
information up front for the recruiting firm or if they can decide that later on. She said that she thinks that if the Council
makes a decision to go with an outside firm then after the RFP the first step is going to be to interview the Council to
determine what qualities the Council wants the Town Manager to possess.
Mayor Schlum commented that the problem solving exercise would be a good one to use when narrowing the list down
and Ms. McIntosh concurred. He noted that Mr. Davis also mentioned essay questions and said that he thinks they have
merit as well. He outlined the process that Mr. Davis recommended take place.
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Councilmember Hansen pointed out that last time they held an open public meeting on a Saturday and reported that it was
very well attended. She said that the candidates actually presented to the public and it was very worthwhile.
The Mayor indicated that he liked that idea.
Discussion ensued relative to Councilmember Leger's statement t hat he doesn't recall seeing money in the budget to cover
the cost of recruiting a new Town Manager; Deputy Town Manager/Finance Director Julie Ghetti's comment that there
will likely be vacancy savings realized as a result of Mr. Davis’ departure; Ms. Ghetti's intention (depending upon how
much the Council wants to budget) to go back to the budget and see where they could do a budget transfer;
Councilmember Dickey's question as to whether the Council has to take action to appoint an Interim Town Manager an d
Mr. McGuire's response that he doesn't believe that the Council has to make a decision on an Interim Town Manager
tonight because by job description, when Mr. Davis resigns his position the end of August, Ms. Ghetti's role will be to fill
the position during his absence; at the first meeting in August the Council will need to make a decision one way or the
other because there is one technical issue as far as Ms. Ghetti serving as the Interim or Acting Town Manager -- it runs
afoul of the Town's nepotism policy so that will have to be addressed; and the fact that there are firms that can supply
Interim Town Managers if the Council decides to move in that direction.
Councilmember Brown commented that he would like to explore the possibility of just writing a check and letting the
Town Manager go. He said that they could pay him for the 28 days and the four weeks and stop the bleeding right now.
He stated the opinion that the Town Manager has already "checked out" and is no longer focusing on Fountain Hills . He
added that Mr. Davis has submitted his resignation and the thing to do would be to move on.
Mr. McGuire responded that he doesn't know how much physical time that would be. He noted that Mr. Davis has
vacation planned for sometime in July and he is gone this weekend -- he doesn't know if they are talking about a couple of
weeks difference. He said that he has not discussed that opportunity with Mr. Davis. He noted that Mr. Davis' resignation
is effective August 1st so he is essentially under contract until that time. He stated that anything they do would have to
include the pay for that period plus whatever other payout there would be. He said he doesn't know if there is a pay
differential between physically being here and physically not being here but it is probably about the same.
Councilmember Elkie expressed the opinion that Councilmember Brown brought up a good point. He stated that as far as
the pay, if they are under contract they must abide by that. He said that in the military they called it "short timers’
disease" (when someone is getting out and finishing their hitch they are already thinking about what they will be doing
when they are gone). He stated that it is probably pretty similar in Mr. Davis' case and noted that during July w hen the
Council is not in session there is not a whole lot going on. He added that it would not negatively impact Mr. Davis from a
financial point of view and it might be a good way to transition (terminate the contract effective immediately, paying Mr.
Davis what he is owed) and then moving forward with the process. He added that Ms. Ghetti could serve as the Interim
Town Manager. He said that from a personal standpoint, he appreciates all of the work that Mr. Davis has done but to use
a presidential term, he is sort of a "lame duck" at this point in time so it might be something worth looking at.
Councilmember Dickey requested that the Council talk about this during an Executive Session. She said she doesn't
believe that Mr. Davis was informed that this was going to be discussed and so she is a little uncomfortable having this
discussion right now. She added that if they are talking about it, she would like to know what the problem is that they are
trying to solve because they aren't going to be here in July so she is missing the point.
Mayor Schlum said that the "lame duck" issue is kind of true but one of the things the Town Manager has to do while he
is here is help the Town transition and help the Council prepare for the next Town Manager. He stated that this is
important work that they can ask Mr. Davis to do more of. He added that he doesn't see the real benefit to terminating the
contract immediately because there are still some things he can do here. He noted that Mr. Davis has done a gre at job and
his mind might be starting to drift towards northern climates (particularly when it is 115 degrees here). He stated that if
they have Mr. Davis focus on some specific things related to transition that would be helpful.
The Mayor said that in August they will talk about firming up Interim Town Manager plans and what they have to do
regarding Deputy Town Manager Julie Ghetti. He added that to get them moving as far as the outside search firm, they
will need a motion at some point and that would likely include language to bring something back to Council for them to
look at -- a menu of services from several providers as well as staff's suggestion as to which way to proceed.
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Mr. McGuire stated that staff will put together an RFP or RFQ for a split price and qualifications process (a soup to nuts
request). He said that the Council can pick and choose what services they desire, including the items specifically
discussed this evening.
Mayor Schlum commented that he liked the timeline provided by Mr. Davis and something between that and what Ms.
McIntosh proposed in her report would be great to have (start time by December 1st and perhaps having the final
interviews the end of October/beginning of November to allow time for some of the Town's winter visitors to return).
Mr. McGuire advised that since staff is going to bring back the actual contract award to the Council sometime in July, all
they need now is direction from the Council to move forward with an informal RFP or RFQ process to bring back to the
Council not more than five firms for selection sometime in July.
Mayor Schlum MOVED to direct staff to work on an informal RFP or RFQ to target five firms with a menu of services
for the Council to consider at the earliest part of July as practical b y either teleconference or Council meeting in light of
the targeted hire date of August 1st and Councilmember Brown SECONDED the motion.
There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Councilmember Hansen said that she appreciates what Councilmembers Brown and Elkie said about the transition. She
stated that there are a lot of times in the corporate world where once someone renders a resignation they are done. She
added that while they might be providing some services there might also be some downsides to that as well.
Mayor Schlum stated that the Council could talk to Mr. McGuire about this and Mr. McGuire could talk to the Mayor to
see if any further action needs to be taken. He added that this is going to be over before they know it so he is not sure it is
worth it at this point at least from his perspective.
Councilmember Leger questioned the latitude of their discussion as pointed out by Councilmember Dickey. He expressed
the opinion that Mr. Davis has added value since submitting his resignation. He added that Mr. Davis is a professional
and will carry himself with dignity. He said that he believes he has earned the right to carry out his work here. He noted
that Mr. Davis does have some thoughts and ideas to help and has put together some transitional documents as evidenced
by the documents he provided the Mayor. He noted that Mr. Davis has followed up on items that Councilmember Leger
has forwarded on to him in recent weeks and said that terminating his contract is not an issue that he would support.
Mayor Schlum agreed and said that Mr. Davis has done a fine job and believes he will continue to do so as long as he is
here. He added that there would not be any cost savings realized. He reiterated that the Councilmembers should talk to
the Town Attorney about any concerns they may have.
The motion CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
Councilmember Elkie MOVED to terminate the Town Manager's contract effective July 1st and that they pay him
whatever monies he is due according to the contract and Councilmember Brown SECONDED the motion.
Councilmember Dickey asked if there would be any negative ramifications to Mr. Davis' reputation if he is forced to leave
before his contract is up.
The Mayor asked Mr. McGuire what he would advise as far as this.
Mr. McGuire replied that he would have to take a look at the contract and see what payout ramifications it has because he
is still under contract for that last month. He said he doesn't know what that does as far as the severance provision and he
would have to review that before providing any advice.
Councilmember Dickey asked if what Mr. McGuire is saying is that they don't know the financial ramifications of taking
this action right now.
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Mr. McGuire explained that they know the remaining salary for the month and the vacation payout but he does not know
whether the thirty days would trigger the severance provision. He added that the unintended consequences would be
impossible to evaluate before looking at the contract.
In response to a question from Councilmember Elkie, Mr. McGuire responded that he cannot render an opinion on the
contract language without first reviewing it. He said he does not know that the severance provi sion has the kind of clarity
that Councilmember Elkie thinks it does with respect to this motion.
Councilmember Leger asked Mr. McGuire to "slow him down" if he should not be speaking on this but said he would like
to know the root cause. He stated that he has three or four Councilmembers wanting to terminate the Town Manager early
for some reason that he is not aware of. He asked if Mr. Davis had violated some part of his contract. He said he is not
sure how it is in the military as far as the "lame duck syndrome" but he does know how it is in a corporate environment.
He noted that as the Mayor stated there’s information, clients, etc. that corporations don't want to share but as far as the
Town Manager, they should look at his contract and come up with a reason in it for why he should be let go early. He
advised that he has been with Mr. Davis this week in two meetings that the Mayor was invited to attend but could not
make. He said that the meetings had to do with economic development. He added that Councilmember Elkie might have
been invited to one last week but was unavailable but Councilmember Leger attended with GPEC. He reported that Mr.
Davis' performance was admirable at that meeting. He noted that someone who is very interested in doing a project in
Town just visited them and at the Mayor's request Councilmember Leger attended the meeting and Mr. Davis did a very
professional job. He noted that the clients have already provided feedback that they were very impressed with the
performance of the Town and its team. He added that perhaps Mr. Davis has checked out a little but he is astonished by
this conversation and he needs some root cause reasons other than the fact that maybe someone doesn't like his
management style. He stated the opinion that they have created a tempest in a teacup by having this discussion and have
demonstrated disrespect for the Town Manager by having the discussion.
Councilmember Elkie advised that it is nothing personal and it has nothing to do with Mr. Davis' pas t performance as a
Town Manager. He added that he believes that Mr. Davis has lived up to his contract and his obligations under the
contract. He said that over the past weeks or months there have been numerous trips taken by Mr. Davis for interviews
and he believes the Council has been very lenient as far as the amount of time he has been able to take off and leave. He
noted that he is not present tonight and he is planning -- it stands to reason that someone would be planning to leave their
family and their job. He stated that he will very specifically state that he believes Mr. Davis did a good job as the Town
Manager and he is sad to see him go. He added, however, that as Councilmember Brown pointed out whenever someone
gives notice in the corporate world (and in the military), they are ready to go. He said that in this situation they are not
going to have any meetings in July so he thinks it would help facilitate the transition into a new era, a new Town Manager
and a new process. He reiterated that it does not speak ill of Mr. Davis, it has nothing to do with him. He stated that he
just thinks that from a managerial standpoint, Mr. Davis is planning his next step and he believes it would be easier to
start the transition sooner rather than later and that is his whole motivation.
Councilmember Brown commented that he might just back up a little bit. He said he might just have been a little bit
quick because he has some pretty tough feelings about the Town Manager but when it comes to defamation, he hasn't
done anything to the Town that would cause them to fire him. He added that that is in essence what would be happening
and after listening to what Councilmember Leger said and putting himself in the same position that the Town Manager
would be in, he can ride out 28 days and live with it. He noted that he has been fired from a couple of pretty good jobs
without basis and the outcome was not pretty so he will back up a little bit and say that he can continue on with the 28
days and let it be.
Mayor Schlum pointed out that they are talking about only 16 working days.
Councilmember Elkie said if it is just 16 work days, he does not see why they can't start working on the transition.
Mayor Schlum expressed the opinion that Mr. Davis could help the Town with the transition and said that he has already
provided valuable input and suggestions. He stated that if there were cost savings then perhaps , but that Mr. Davis is a
team player who will cooperate and continue to do what he needs to do. He noted that they could also offer Mr. Davis
some kind of leave but said that he would rather keep him here.
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Councilmember Hansen advised that she feels uncomfortable because of the unintended consequences and additional
costs.
Councilmember Elkie WITHDREW his motion to terminate the contract.
AGENDA ITEM #3 - ADJOURNMENT
Councilmember Elkie MOVED to adjourn the meeting and Councilmember Brown SECONDED the motion, which
CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0). The meeting adjourned at 7:18 p.m.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
By __________________________
Jay T. Schlum, Mayor
ATTEST AND
PREPARED BY:
_______________________________
Shaunna Williams, Acting Town Clerk
CERTIFICATION
I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Special Session held by the
Town Council of Fountain Hills in the Town Hall Council Chambers on the 30th day of June 2011. I further certify that
the meeting was duly called and that a quorum was present.
DATED this 18th day of August, 2011.
_________________________________
Shaunna Williams, Acting Town Clerk