T. Jennene Norman-Vacha, former Brooksville City Manager, received a copy of her official notification stating that the City Council, in its meeting on 06 February, has voted not to renew her Employment Agreement. Early discussions on this motion dealt with the actual nature of the contract and its renewal every year. Up until this point, the contract was renewed automatically since 2009, barring any council objections. Given the non-renewal, problems arose with regards to the interim period wherein this decision will be finalized on 07 June. It was suggested that the length of time be extended in order to find and train a suitable replacement for Norman-Vacha. There were conflicts due to fiscal year dates that have to be followed.
Given that this motion was not an immediate termination, but a motion to not renew the contract, Norman-Vacha will receive the severance package that is outlined in her contract.
The initial motion was brought up by one of the staff members citing that Norman-Vacha’s ‘strength is in fiscal management’, but she does not feel that she is truly a ‘servant to the people.’ Another council member brought up the fact that Norman-Vacha recently relieved two state employees due to insubordination while she herself was being reprimanded for an outstanding correspondence that she had not taken care of after almost two months. Arguments on both sides of the council ranged from the fact that Norman-Vacha, at any given time, must report to a minimum of five people who sometimes may have conflicting orders to the fact that the position of the City Manager has not been changed since 2007.
On the grounds that ‘change is good,’ the motion to not renew the City Manager’s contract passed 4-1. But then the council faced the next problem of finding Norman-Vacha’s replacement and it was decided that an acting City Manager would be used until an interim is found to help ease this replacement process until the contract formally takes effect on 07 June.
Although the testaments of some of the citizens present in the meeting hardly account for everyone’s interpretation of Jennene Norman-Vacha, the sentiment during the council meeting was generally split right down the middle with some coming right out and stating that the council has ‘made the right decision.’ That the job entrusted to Norman-Vacha is ‘always for the people’ and the citizen mentioned that for years for some employees under her, that was not the case. But former city administrators who had worked directly or closely with Norman-Vacha claim that she was the brightest of the bunch. That she did a ‘tremendous job’ and that the council had made a mistake in their motion. Jennene Norman-Vacha, given public works projects, public review and coworker reviews, lead a fruitful career as the City Manager for Brooksville for little more than twenty years.