Brownwood Values: The Morality *Façade is Crumbling !

Wednesday November 29, 2006

News
Carruth’s resignation accepted

By Steve Nash — Brownwood Bulletin

Brownwood City Manager Kevin Carruth and the Brownwood City Council confirmed the obvious Tuesday: the 18-month marriage between the two is over.
Carruth, bowing to the wishes of a City Council that wanted him out, agreed to resign effective Dec. 15. He will be on administrative leave until then, and will assist with transition.
A standing-room-only crowd of Carruth supporters packed the City Council chambers as the council meeting began, and waited outside the council chambers with Carruth and his wife, Shawn, as council members debated his exit agreement.
Council members accepted his resignation, named City Attorney Pat Chesser as interim city manager and approved a “voluntary exit agreement” and six-month severance that will pay Carruth $57,420 in salary through June 16. The severance will also pay benefits including car allowance and vacation for a total package of $70,984.
Carruth said Mayor Bert Massey and Mayor Pro-Tem Dave Fair told him after his Nov. 14 performance evaluation that council members sought his resignation. Carruth said the two told him there was “just a general dissatisfaction in management style, kind of broad statements like that.”
Carruth’s evaluation summary was requested by the Bulletin on Nov. 17 under the Freedom of Information Act, and according to the city’s response, a summary does not exist.
Carruth said the two told him there would be enough votes on the council to fire him if he did not resign. He said he was shocked and doesn’t know specifically why council members were unhappy with him.
“The council wanted to go off in a different direction, and they needed somebody who would go in that direction with them,” Carruth said. “So I was asked to resign, and we came to agreeable terms on an exit agreement.”
Massey and council members declined to give specifics for seeking Carruth’s resignation, citing a “non-disparagement” clause in the exit agreement says “each party agrees not to disparage the other.”
“I’m not going to go into a litany of things individual members of the council were unhappy about,” Massey said. Council members cited the Nov. 14 evaluation as the reason for their decision.
“The whole purpose of Kevin resigning and the council being concerned about his well-being, and that of his family, resulted in the severance agreement,” Massey said.
Council members met in closed session Tuesday to discuss Carruth’s exit agreement then voted 3-2 in open session to accept Carruth’s resignation “pursuant to the terms of the voluntary exit agreement.” The vote came during the first meeting of the city council since the Nov. 14 evaluation.
Council members Grady Chastain and Darrell Haynes cast the “no” votes. Chastain said by phone later that he was not voting against accepting Carruth’s resignation. “I wasn’t in agreement with the agreement,” Chastain said. He declined to elaborate, citing the non-disparagement clause.
Haynes could not be reached after the meeting for comment.
Some council members said they took no pleasure in seeking Carruth’s resignation, but after the Nov. 14 evaluation felt it was the best course of action. “If he was a bad guy it would be easy,” councilman Ed McMillian said.
“There was no no one serious issue,” McMillian said. “There was no big issue that brought this on ... a lot of little issues.” He would not elaborate, citing the non-disparagement clause.
Fair said the council’s beef with Carruth stemmed from “a difference in management philosophy. ... He did some good things while he was here but sometimes it doesn’t go the way you want it to go. Sometimes things don’t take the direction that you thought they would.
“Sometimes people part company, even over philosophies. In my estimation there’s no good-guy, bad-guy, It just didn’t work out. I guess I’ll leave it at that.”
Council members chose Carruth, 40, as Gary Butts’ successor in April 2005. The council hired him on a 4-1 vote, with council member Charles Lockwood favoring Chesser for the job. Chesser was a finalist in the hiring process.
Carruth received his first performance evaluation in January. While council members expressed some concerns, the overall evaluation contained several comments from the council indicating he was doing a good job, according to Massey’s written summary.
The document was provided in response to the Freedom of Information Act request by the Bulletin.
On Nov. 14, council members prepared to give evaluations to Carruth and three other City Council appointees — Chesser; Municipal Judge Don Clements; and city secretary Jan Kasse.
Carruth said the council started with Clements, and Carruth, Chesser and Kasse left the council chambers. Carruth said he went to his office, assuming the three would be called in one by one.
Instead, Carruth said, Massey and Fair came to his office and told him the council wanted his resignation.
Carruth said he felt “shock, because I felt like we were moving in the right direction. People were all on the same page. The community seemed supportive. Employees seemed supportive, so I felt like everything was going fine.
“ ... (Massey and Fair) mostly gave me some broad comments, not really any specifics, but it was clear that the will of the majority of the council was to make a change.”
Carruth also said, “The city’s going to do fine. The family and I are going to do fine. This just happens in city management. You don’t get into this game without knowing this possibility’s out there and that it can happen.”
Rumors had somehow spread that Carruth’s job was in jeopardy even before the council evaluated Carruth and told him his resignation was being sought, and speculation was rampant after the Nov. 14 meeting that Carruth was indeed on his way out. Carruth and city officials would not comment before Tuesday’s meeting, but a City Council agenda posted Friday confirmed that Carruth’s resignation was a meeting topic.

source: http://www.brownwoodbulletin.com/articles/2006/11/29/news/news01.txt
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Wednesday November 29, 2006

News
Civic leaders, city employees, friends offer Carruth support

By Steve Nash — Brownwood Bulletin

Kevin Carruth held his 2 1/2-year-old daughter, Kaitlyn, outside the Brownwood City Council chambers Tuesday as supporters — consisting of civic leaders, city employees and just friends — offered handshakes, hugs and best wishes.
His wife, Shawn, standing a few feet away, received similar treatment.
Council members met behind closed doors and discussed the exit agreement and severance package that they would ultimately approve in open session — a package that will pay Carruth salary and benefits through June 15.
“The show of support from the community and from employees has really been overwhelming,” Carruth said. “It’s been very helpful for my family and I to know that people appreciate what we’ve done here, and that gives us hope that the community will continue to prosper and make progress in the future.”
Some expressed disappointment and frustration at the way City Council members had handled matters related to Carruth’s departure and at the lack of information.
“I know that there’s two sides to every story,” businesswoman Debbie Morelock said. “I’ve talked to Kevin several times. I’ve heard his side. I’d like to hear form the city council ...”
“We don’t know what went on day to day,” civic leader Steven McCrane said. “We don’t know what issues were there that necessitated this action. I felt like (Carruth) had made some good decisions.
“I wanna make sure whatever this process is, that it is fair to Kevin and his family and it also doesn’t create a situation where Brownwood is viewed as not being professional, and that we’re a city that takes action based on sound policy.
“We want to keep Brownwood going forward. We’ve made so much progress in this community ... I just want it to continue. I don’t want this to be a stumbling block.”
“It’s not necessarily questioning the decision of the council,” civic leader Priscilla Monson said. “It’s questioning the decision process that’s gone on.
“I think it’s really a lack of information on the process. ... We have a family of four that’s being dismissed a month before Christmas. I think, largely, many of us are here in support of Kevin, wanting to understand what the process is, what the problem has been and the reasoning for the process so that we’re satisfied that our government is operating appropriately.”
Her husband, Chris Monson, said, “If he’s going to resign, why is it so vitally important that we do it right now, right before Christmas? Why couldn’t this wait a month? What’s so pressing that we can’t wait until after Jan. 1 and do the same thing? What’s so egregious that it has to be done overnight?”
Carruth, meanwhile, said he’ll spend some time with his family and look for another job, hopefully in city management.
“I can’t say that the thought has not crossed my mind that another field would be a little worth looking into but this is really what I’m passionate about and I don’t know what I would do otherwise,” Carruth said.
He said he and his wife are disappointed at leaving Brownwood and the friends they have made here.
“We have a slogan (Brownwood) feels like home,” Carruth said. “It’s more than a slogan here. This is our hometown as far as my my wife and I are concerned. We’ll be disappointed to leave and we don’t leave here with bad feelings toward the community or toward the employees — far from it.”

source: http://www.brownwoodbulletin.com/articles/2006/11/29/news/news02.txt

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Brownwood city manager resigns
Supportive residents ask why council wanted change

By Celinda Emison / emisonc@reporternews.com
November 29, 2006

BROWNWOOD - Brownwood residents who showed support for outgoing City Manager Kevin Carruth say they still don't know why he has resigned Tuesday or why elected officials wanted the change.
''We don't know what necessitated this action,'' said Priscilla Monson, a local certified public accountant. ''We elect our city officials to make these decisions, but we remain unclear on this process.''
Brownwood officials accepted Carruth's resignation with a 3-2 vote Tuesday and named City Attorney Pat Chesser as interim city manager. Chesser was among the three finalists for the post when Carruth was hired in April 2005 to replace Gary Butts, who served as city manager for 13 years.
Under an agreement, Carruth will receive six months salary and benefits. Carruth was paid $100,000 per year.
''Some may view the suddenness of Kevin's resignation with skepticism. But the fact is, the City Council felt like a change was needed at this time,'' Mayor Bert Massey said following a session that was closed to the public. ''I want to emphasize that Kevin did nothing illegal or immoral to force a change.''
Massey also said the council did what ''was best for the community'' and appreciates Carruth's 18 months of service.
Massey said Chesser was selected based on his familiarity with the day-to-day operations of the city.
''We wanted to ensure the city doesn't miss a beat during the transition,'' Massey said.
Chesser, 41, was born and raised in Brownwood and has served as city attorney for the past eight years. Before that Chesser worked for the Wagstaff law firm in Abilene for seven years.
''The circumstances are bittersweet, although I'm excited about the opportunity to be the interim city manager,'' Chesser said.
Salary will be $105,000, and Chesser will continue his duties as city attorney.
Carruth said he was disappointed that he his family will be leaving the ''wonderful community of Brownwood.''
''But we know that we and the community will find prosperity,'' Carruth said.
During his 18 months as city manager Carruth said he offered an open-door policy to the community and employees, upgraded technology with the city and held regular meetings with department heads and with county, school and Howard Payne University officials.
In recent months, the council attempted to annex industrial businesses into the city in an effort to increase the property tax base, but that plan was dropped.
More than 50 people showed up Tuesday to show support for Carruth.
''The show of support from the community and employees has been helpful,'' Carruth said.
''We are here to support our city manager, and we have enjoyed a good relationship with him,'' said Assistant Fire Chief Grady Shuey. ''We are sad to see him leave.''
Chris Monson, a commercial pilot and Priscilla Monson's husband, wondered, ''Why is this so important now? When I go to the polls to re-elect (city officials), how do I know how they arrived at this decision?''
A summary of Carruth's last job performance evaluation in January indicated the council and mayor were pleased with his performance.
Most of the supporters knew the resignation would be accepted but wanted make sure Carruth received a fair ''voluntary exit package.''
Others were concerned about the perceived image of the city.
Steve McCrane, a community leader, said he did not want the process to create the view that ''Brownwood is not viewed as professional.''

EDITED BY: BRIEN MURPHY; COPY EDITED BY: JEFF WOLF; HEADLINE BY: JEFF WOLF

How they voted

For accepting City Manager Kevin Carruth's resignation: Dave Fair, Ed McMillian and Charles Lockwood
Against accepting Carruth's resignation and severance package: Grady Chastain and Darrell Haynes.

source: http://www.reporter-news.com/abil/nw_local/article/0,1874,ABIL_7959_5176926,00.html
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* Façade - False Front