FLAGLER

FLAGLER PERSPECTIVE: Landon's sudden firing raises questions, concerns

Staff Writer
The Daytona Beach News-Journal
Jim Landon

After months of on-and-off discussions and recriminations, the Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday voted to fire City Manager Jim Landon.

The move comes after Landon had announced plans last year to retire but he had wanted to stay on until August 2019 while an extended search for his replacement was carried out.

But the clock finally ran out for the man who often referred to himself as “your favorite city manager” during his 11-year tenure as the city’s chief administrator.

While it is clear that city managers and county administrators serve at the pleasure of their councils and commissions, the timing of the city’s move on a motion made by Mayor Milissa Holland is baffling and begs the question “Why now?”

[READ: Landon out as Palm Coast city manager]

This was not the first time a council member called for Landon’s termination and other members previously expressed a desire to replace the city manager. But Landon remained in place for a variety of reasons, including a large severance package due him in the event of his firing and an inability on the council’s part to muster enough votes to make the change.

But now, it appears, things are different.

It is no secret that a few City Council members had grown weary of Landon’s management style. However, the sudden move to fire him, coming at the end of a regular council meeting and not as an agenda item, is troubling. It echoes a move made by the Flagler County Commission several years ago when then-county administrator David Haas was summarily fired late at night at the end of a commission meeting.

If City Council members feel a change in leadership is needed to move Palm Coast forward, that is their right and their duty. But doing so out of the blue could make it more difficult to find a suitable replacement for Landon.

Developing and maintaining a good working relationship with elected officials is the first priority of a city manager. That includes creating a level of trust on both sides. Given the sudden nature of Landon’s dismissal, it might well give potential candidates pause before they consider applying for the opening. And that could limit the applicant pool — and the council’s choices.

The relationship between elected officials and professional administrators can be difficult at times, as other Flagler municipalities have experienced. But that doesn't mean changes in leadership cannot be done in an open and transparent manner. In making the motion to fire Landon at the tail end of an otherwise mundane meeting, the council has potentially thrown a wrench into the smooth operation of city government. And with an interim city manager in place, it can only increase the pressure on council members to get a new manager in place as quickly as possible.

While that might make things smoother at City Hall in the long run, in the short run it could be a catalyst for confusion and inefficiency.

That's the last thing Palm Coast needs.