I'm Not Holding My Breath Waiting For Milton Hunter to Grow Up.

I got a call today about Milt Hunter's latest blog post.  Since Milt apparently likes to quote popular lyrics, I'll quote some: "he's ba-ack."  This time, Milt is going on, for some unexplained reason, about Roxy Ross.  And here's the thing about which Milt appears to be whining just now.  He sort of thinks Roxy is picking on poor David Hernandez, who Milt apparently thinks can't defend himself, and he thinks Rox is vying for some sort of imaginary dominance over the Village.  As an aside, it appears Milt also disqualifies Commission meetings, if he doesn't think there are enough viewers.  (The fact is, Commission meetings are completely legitimate, and essential, even if there are no viewers, "virtually" or in person).  But this is what appears to be on the seemingly otherwise idle mind of Milt Hunter right now.  You can follow Milt's tragic nonsense at www.thebiscayneparker.blogspot.com.  Not that I'm suggesting you waste your time (cartoons on TV, or endless hours of stuff on youtube, are much better, but you do have options), but just if you want to follow along.

Milt, get a girlfriend.  Or a boyfriend.  Or any friend.  Or a pet.  You're losing it big time, boy.  Funny enough, Milt even ends his pathetic screed by commiserating that he knows "that all of our nerves are a bit frazzled."  "A bit," Milt?  And keep in mind that "all" of us includes you.

But here's what appears to be Milt's sort of major point.  This is his thrust.  This is where he seems to think he's going with this.  He says Commissioner Roxy Ross, who is one of the INTERIM manager's five direct employers, is too involved with telling the INTERIM manager what she thinks is best for the Village (the Village: that's her constituency), and he thinks she threatened the INTERIM manager by saying that if he continued to use his opportunity to address Village problems (which, as I've discussed before, he is not adequately doing) to try to promote himself as a candidate for the PERMANENT  manager position, which is not the position he occupies, then she would make openly clear what are his deficiencies.  Which she would most likely do anyway, if David applied for the position of PERMANENT manager, since that might be her job, unless he succeeds, with the propping up of Ginny O'Halpin, Dan Samaria, and Will Tudor, in delaying this charade until after Roxy is no longer a Commissioner.  And if we're lucky enough "not to have [Will Tudor] to kick around any more," to quote or paraphrase Richard Nixon, and if we instead have an actually functional Commission, then maybe Rox won't have to say a word.  David isn't subtle.

Speaking of which, one of Milt's many specific criticisms of Rox is that the episode of the David Hernandez Show, Starring David Hernandez, masquerading as a PSA, about which Rox was complaining, lasted five minutes and thirty-seven seconds, out of which David only promoted himself for 22 seconds.  This proves to Milt that the PSA wasn't really David's self-advertisement.  Imagine some other advertisement, for some product, and it lasts for 5:37, but the product is only named or shown by name for 22 seconds.  Would you fail to get the point?  Me, neither.

Frankly, I don't know that anyone knows what Milt's real agenda is.  It's very possible Milt doesn't know.  Here's one guess I would make.  Milt does nothing at all for the Village.  He never has.  In the past, when I have suggested that he run for office -- since he seems to have such compelling ideas about what would be best for the Village -- he has declined.  Unflinchingly.  He sits by himself in his house, cranking out nonsense on his computer, and when he gets things wrong -- sometimes horribly wrong -- he refuses to let people correct him.  Roxy Ross, on the other hand, has been an unbelievable representative of this Village.  She is the finest elected official I have ever known of or heard of.  She is smart, incredibly well-organized, rarely or never gets anything wrong, is level-headed, expends endless energy on behalf of any task she undertakes (most certainly including the Village!), and is humblingly generous.  So one thing that occurs to me is that Milt is (rightfully) embarrassed by his comparative inadequacy or inferiority, and he's frankly jealous.  And he wants to settle his feelings of inadequacy, inferiority (both well-deserved) and jealousy at Roxy's expense.  If that's not the explanation for poor Milt Hunter, then maybe it's something else.


By the way, Milt makes a logical error in his post.  He says that Roxy is now a Commissioner, with a term ending in November, because she ran "unopposed."  She was not at all unopposed.  She was opposed by every qualified Biscayne Park resident.  And every one of us forfeited, either because we knew she would make a better Commissioner than we would, or because we knew we couldn't beat her at the polls.  That includes Milt, me, and everyone else.  And we were all right.

Going Once, Going Twice...

I'm...decluttering.  Also, I've decided not to rent space in an office building any more.  This is the proximate reason I'm decluttering.  In fact, while we're on the subject, I'll tell you why I've gotten my landlord to agree to release me from my lease.  The short story is that my landlord on Biscayne Boulevard sent out an e-mail two months or so ago saying they had discussed the coronavirus problem, and they decided not to offer rent abatement to any of their tenants.  So, since they took that approach, which is dramatically different from the approach taken by any of the rest of us, who want to help each other, then I decided I didn't want anything more to do with them.  And I certainly didn't want to give them any more of my money.  And I leaned on them enough that they finally agreed to let me leave two years early.  So I then had to decide whether to rent space somewhere else, or just see people in my house.  Some psychiatrists do that.  I then had to decide where in my house to see people.  A prime choice, for a few reasons, was the small room I use as my home office.  Except it's loaded with clutter.  Hence, the decluttering.  I want to see how close I can come to having that space be suitable for patients.  It's mostly individuals, but sometimes, it's couples.  It's a good deal of work to tidy that room enough.  But that's the task.

I've already gotten rid of a lot of unnecessary stuff.  And I've reorganized.  I've discovered that I use that room for a lot of stuff that doesn't belong in an office.  Some of it is food, like dried beans and mushrooms.  And some lentils and spices.   Why I've kept that in a box in my office is a mystery, even to me.  But I also found some kitchen devices that I acquired one way or another, and I don't use them.  That's why they're in that room. 

Are you familiar with a device called a mandoline?  (Not the musical instrument.  A slicer.)  I have three of them.  And I don't use any of them.  I don't even know why I have them, or whence I got them.

My uncle "regifted" me an Ozeri "electric wine bottle opener."   It's battery-operated.  Apparently, he and my aunt didn't want it.  It had been given to them, and they admittedly passed it along to me.  This is arithmetic that's not hard to do.  It's been sitting, unused, in the box, in my office.  Taking up space I need for other things.

Some years ago, I bought, online, a gorgeous moka-style espresso maker.  It's Alessi, produced in collaboration with Illy.  I am in love with this thing.  It cost me about $50, and I was happy to pay it.  But somehow, I didn't notice it's the 3-cup size, when I ALWAYS use the 6-cup size.  If that was made clear, I missed it.  So it sits, in the box, in my office, accomplishing nothing.  And not only does it accomplish nothing for me, but it accomplishes nothing for anyone else, either.

You can have whatever of this stuff you can use.  It's free.  Just come pick it up.  Or I'll drop it off to you.  You'll want to look at the three mandolines, if you want one, because you'll have to decide which one you want.  Unless you want all three of them, which is hard to imagine, because if you use them, you only need one.  But let me know.

REQUEST FOR INPUT: 6th Ave. Development

For those who aren't aware, I'm one of the five elected commissioners in Biscayne Park, and we hold a public meeting the first Tuesday of every month (sometimes more often depending on the work load and if the commissioners are willing to put in extra time). At the June 2 meeting, FDOT (FL Dept of Transportation) will attend to present its plans for the redevelopment of 6th Ave. where is passes through our village. Everyone is welcome to attend to see the presentation and to voice opinions on the project. FDOT's plan will be posted on the village website along with the rest of the agenda on Friday, May 29. In addition to making sure you all know that you're invited, I'd like to hear from you directly about the project: what you want to have included, what should be omitted, your concerns, ideas, criticisms and thoughts as general or as specific as you'd like to share. You can chat among yourselves here, but I won't be able to reply or engage due to state Sunshine Laws knowing that other electeds will see your posts. You may also engage with me directly on my village cell (305.213.5139) or by using my village email (mkennedy@biscayneparkfl.gov). I look forward to your thoughts, whether you're a resident of 6th Ave. itself or you live elsewhere in the village. Happy long weekend, all! Mac.

Saturday, Huh? Interesting.

I just got off the phone with David Hernandez.  He called me.  He told me "someone" had sent him the "Peter Principle" post, and he wanted to let me know what a kick he got out of it.  He loved it.  He thought it was very funny, and it reminded him that "the pen is mightier than the sword."  I told him it was my pleasure to provide amusement, and I asked if he wanted to be on the list for new post announcements.  He deflected this offer, but later in the conversation, in a different context, he gave me his Village e-address.  So I'll put him on the list.

I told David I hoped he was OK, and let him know we were all worried about him.  I reminded him that he hadn't been at this past week's Commission meeting, and although his reasons were none of our business, we were, in fact, concerned.  He didn't really explain, which was fine, but he separately mentioned his blood pressure, which he said his doctor was trying to control by changing his medications.

He kept coming back to that very funny post he read.  I told him that we all want to help him, and that frankly, any help we give him is also helping ourselves.  I urged him to reach out to any of us any time, and assign any of us any task with which he needs help.  He thanked me, and he told me some fragment of a story that had to do with David Raymond, but it was never clear what was the point of the story.

So it appears the two purposes of the call were to let me know he sees what I write, and to let me know he laughs it off.  I regret that he contents himself with the second adaptation.  It doesn't sound like he's learning anything, or that he wants to, or perhaps that he's capable of learning anything.  As a slight test, I told him that I still object to the speed tables on 10th Avenue, and I can't go over them driving faster than 7-9 MPH.  (I objected in the past, he came to my house to discuss it, we went together for a field trip/drive to experience them, he had them removed, and then he put them back.  He was not the interim manager then.  He was the Public Works Director.  I have no idea who allowed him to remove them, or who told him to put them back.)  He told me today that Ernesto Oliva, who lives directly across the street from them, doesn't like them, either.  But other residents reportedly told him they like them very much.  (So presumably, I can go fuck myself.)

And that was my call from David Hernandez this morning.

Perhaps Things Are Coming Into Sharper Focus.

I was just reviewing an April 10 post called "But..."  The main issue I discussed there, and that was discussed by commenters, was Ginny O'Halpin's refusal to have a virtual Commission meeting, unless she had a guarantee that nothing but the coronavirus would be discussed.  The bottom line was that it was not clear why Ginny kept refusing to do what other municipalities were doing, and what her own constituents wanted our Commission to do.  This question has never been directly answered.  But perhaps we can interpret a better understanding now.

There turn out to be various things Ginny is willing to discuss, and they have nothing to do with the coronavirus.  We've had three virtual/ZOOM Commission meetings since Ginny stopped obstructing, and they've all lasted plenty long, with noteworthy agendas.  We're working on a number of things now, and as of two days ago, that even includes arranging to solicit, accept, and process applications for a permanent (not interim) Village attorney.  In some respects, we've returned to something that looks like full functioning.  We've reopened our building department, so Village residents can get permits and have inspections.  It appears to be all there, except one thing.

Ginny, with the support of Dan Samaria and Will Tudor, refuses to look for a permanent manager.  And all the while they're refusing, the interim manager is making every possible noise he can to suggest that he likes his new perch, and he'd like to continue to occupy it.  He's not competent to do the job, and that's been made very clear to the entire Commission, but he presumably likes the title and the extra money, and the new majority of the Commission don't mind if he continues to bungle.

As comparatively incompetent as is this new majority, they do accept certain responsibilities.  As I said, they're willing to deal with finding a permanent attorney, even if they just choose to take the easy route, and simply re-upgrade John Herin to the position he held here not long ago.  In theory, if it wasn't a hopeless embarrassment to them (I know, I just answered my own question), they could do the same thing about the interim manager.  Unless they and he already know that he couldn't be installed as the permanent manager, because, for example, he might not technically be qualified.  So the way to keep him is don't look for anyone else.  Which appears to be what's happening.

Ginny O'Halpin, who is a very nice person, and whom I personally like, is in way over her head.  I have no idea who helps or advises her outside Commission meetings.  The rumor I've heard more than once is that it's Milt Hunter.  Maybe Milt is now running the Village.  I wouldn't know.  Dan Samaria, who has his own quirks, but has shown his style of devotion, and who is my exterminator, is also in way over his head.  There are certain people on whom he used to rely for frequent advice, and he's stopped relying on them.  Either he's on his own now, which I doubt, or he's relying on someone else.  Milt Hunter?  Again, I wouldn't know.  Will Tudor is one of the most disinterested Commissioners I've seen.  He couldn't care less about anything, except he likes procedures and regimentation, whatever that's about for Will.  The easiest thing for Will to do is nothing.  Which is what he generally advocates to do.  Oddly, I have from time to time had the impression that Will has some sort of inchoate ability to grasp and manage things (unless I misinterpreted, and am kidding myself, which is very possible), but he just really doesn't care.  The latter is true and the overriding dynamic, whether or not Will has any actual ability.

So, it now appears that the standstill, and the obstruction, are about one thing: keeping David Hernandez in his office.  Clearly, this pleases David (who might, according to blog comments from someone named "Harvey," be physically or mentally unfit to do the job), and it is most likely that he would either not have encouraged the Commission to begin a proper search for a proper manager, or he might have discouraged it.  And either way, this is good for the incompetents and disinteresteds on the Commission, because it's a real decision they don't have to make.  And whether Milt Hunter is bizarrely behind any of this, for who knows what reasons, is a mystery.

But it does now appear that we have a better understanding of why the Village/Commission was so slow out of the gate, and why they vote in the inconsistent way they do.  It's a shame to sacrifice the functioning of a whole municipality for the whims or comfort of 1-4 incompetent people, but it now appears that's what's happening.

A Day of Losses

Tuesday, May 19, 2020, was a very sad day for me.  For many months, I have planned a trip to Massachusetts.  My daughter, son-in-law, and two grandchildren live there, and my grandson's third birthday is May 25.  My daughter has been leaning on me to come up for a visit, and my plan was to leave here on Wednesday, May 20th, and return Wednesday, the 27th.  I would have a week with my family, and I would attend my grandson's birthday party.

Then, the coronavirus hit.  I decided to wait and watch.  I was starting to lose my nerve more or less big time by this past Sunday, and I called my daughter to tell her that.  She wouldn't hear of my not coming, and she told me in her way that I should man up, and get on that plane.  But by Monday, she called me to tell me that if I really felt very uneasy about traveling, I could postpone, and she wouldn't be mad at me.  So I took the rest of the day to consider that, and on Tuesday, I pulled the trigger.  I called JetBlue, and told them I couldn't bring myself to take the trip.  They were 100% understanding, and they refunded my points and the tax I paid.  And I'm back on the prowl for another time to go up north.  My daughter loosely suggested "a month or two," and she specifically requested a certain week in December as well.

So that, and a couple of other annoyances, fucked up my Tuesday.  (Although I did see five patients by phone or FaceTime, so that was good.)  And then, we had our charming Commission meeting.  A torture session hurts less, and it doesn't take as long.

Just when the meeting ended, I got an e-mail from Roxy Ross.  She said she disappointed herself, and she specified that she "lost [her] SHIT!"  I said I hadn't noticed, and I thought she was only very appropriately assertive, and she "told (moronic) people what they needed to hear."   But of course, they weren't listening.  That's what moronic people do, or don't do.  They don't listen to smart people.  That's either a reflection of being moronic, or it's how they got to be moronic.

I suffered losses yesterday (and today, and the coming week).  Roxy Ross felt as though she "lost" something.  The Village lost massively.  From what I could read between lines, it sounded to me like the Andersons, and David Raymond, and Chuck Ross lost.  Or they felt at a loss.  Will Tudor lost.  He now has to create that "approved parking surface" he's been on such a crusade not to have to install.  Even though it's in the Village Code, about which he very clearly doesn't care.   And if he doesn't finally do it, he'll get a citation, and he'll lose money.

The only two people who didn't lose yesterday were John Herin, our attorney, who basked in 5 1/2 hours on the clock, and David Hernandez, who was not held to account for his inadequacies.

I hope the two of them are happy enough to buoy the rest of us.  They'll have to be pretty ecstatic.

Trial By Fire. And Guess Who Gets Burned When David Hernandez Fails the Test.

I thought of calling this post "Kicking the Can," because it was the phrase Mac Kennedy used to describe the Commission's "decision-making" regarding the manager.  And really, this discussion was only the most caricaturish example of a number of stumbles and bumbles the apparent new majority of this Commission made.

I'm getting ahead of myself.  The Tuesday, May 19, meeting started with Dan Samaria providing a painfully extended advertisement for some organization of which he is a member.  And he seems to want the Village to make a donation to his organization.  Yeah, no conflict of interest there.  I get appeals all day, every day, from charitable organizations that want something ($) and are desperate.  There are countless numbers of them out there.  But Dan Samaria wants us as a Village to support his own organization.

And then, the others talked.  And talked, and talked, and talked.  Everyone knew we had a very large agenda, but no one paced him- or herself, so we'd move things along.  The only one who had almost nothing to say was Will Tudor.  And it wasn't a good thing.  He had nothing to say, because he had nothing to offer.  He never does.  When he says he's got no comment, or when he fumfers, it always comes to nothing.  His offerings are things like wanting the fewest possible meetings, so he doesn't have to be bothered to waste his time on the Village.  And he doesn't want to change anything, because he can't be bothered to pay that much attention.  Ginny O'Halpin had very little to say, too, and it was for the same reason.  She doesn't appear to know what's going on, and she doesn't want to do anything, because she doesn't know what to do, or how to do it.  In a slightly different setting, we'd be talking about "a deer in the headlights."

Dan Samaria had a little to say, but it never went anywhere.  Some of it started out sounding like it had more substance than what Tudor sputters, but ultimately, there was no meaningful contribution.

The brains of the current operation are Roxy Ross and Mac Kennedy, and you can count for yourself how many people that is.  Out of five, it's a minority.  And there you have it.

The really dumb, and really frustrating and infuriating, conversation was about finding a new manager.  The three deer were afraid to do anything.  Ginny, who spoke last, only said it was "premature" to find a permanent manager.  But since she isn't really talking about anything, she can't explain why it's premature, or what she's waiting for.  Dan Samaria and Will Tudor spelled out more clearly how dimwitted this got.  Dan spoke first, and he suggested sort of that we should have more confidence in David Hernandez, and more importantly, that since we're just coming into budget season, and hurricane season, we really see what he can do.  If he's screwing up now, which Dan was unable to appreciate, maybe he'll do better when the task is much more complicated, and the stakes are even higher.  Not everyone employs that type of logic.  But Will Tudor does.

If you want to know how David Hernandez reacted to this discussion, he didn't.  He wasn't there.  We have a quickly approaching deadline regarding a critical issue that might cost the Village hundreds of thousands of dollars, and David decided not to attend this meeting.  That's a hell of an advertisement David offers for himself.  And after our courageous new majority decided not even to start looking for a legitimate manager, because David Hernandez is doing a great job, it was Ginny who reassured that maybe we'd get through part of the crisis, because our police chief would rise to the occasion.  So our interim manager isn't getting the job done, and we need the police chief to help out, but we don't need to look for a real manager?  As I said, not everyone employs "logic" like that.

So now, when David fails even more dramatically, it will cost and damage...us.  The Rosses can't bail us out forever.  There's no leadership on the Commission, and they don't even make any sense.  They could listen to Roxy or Mac, but they don't.

If we have any brains, and if Will Tudor has had enough fun, after his one reason for being on the Commission was frustrated (it was made clear to him he has to have a real driveway), then either he won't run for re-election, or we won't vote him in.  We're stuck with Ginny for two and a half more years.  We have another chance to have Mac on the Commission, if he chooses to run again.  He talks too much, but he's very smart, and he understands the issues and how to get things done.  And he doesn't let people get away with being dolts, at least not without their hearing about it.  I feel very confident we're not getting Roxy Ross back.  What a loss.  What a tragedy.  What a treasure she's been to the Village.

Five and a half hours, if you want to know.

The Peter Principle. How Did This Post Ever Get This Long?

If you don't know what the Peter Principle is, it's this.  A person has a job, and does it well.  S/he gets promoted to another position that requires more ability, and carries more responsibility.  S/he does well there, too.  The success, and the promotions, continue.  At some point, the person gets promoted to a position so demanding, and carrying so much responsibility, that the person doesn't do well any more.  The person's abilities have been exceeded by the requirements of the position.  The person has reached their level of incompetence.  That's the Peter Priniciple: being promoted to your level of incompetence.

After a struggle, our new Commission was installed by some time in February.  Early in that first meeting, which included sitting Commissioners Tudor and Samaria, and now including new Commissioners O'Halpin, Kennedy, and Ross, attention was paid to the matter of the manager.  No one, except Will Tudor, was happy with the job Krishan Manners did as manager.  Ginny O'Halpin revealed that she had privately spoken to our Public Works manager, David Hernandez, asked David if he would be willing to serve as interim manager, he said he would be willing, and Ginny therefore proposed to fire Krishan.  The details of the discussion and firing of Krishan, which occurred at that meeting, are not important to this story, but the conclusion was that Krishan was in fact fired, and David Hernandez's agreement to act as interim manager was accepted.  It's now three months later, and David is still the interim/acting manager.  And no search for a "permanent manager" has begun.

As an aside, I should say that the Village either has or doesn't have a manager problem.  We have one, in the sense that since 2006, we have had five managers, and three interim managers.  So in the manager department, we've had noteworthy turnover.  We're not, for example, like Miami Shores, which has had one manager for decades, and he's been reconfirmed by a long succession of Commissions.  On the other hand, it's not uncommon for managers to get overturned by new governing bodies, and that's not always a reflection on the manager.  Along the same lines, new managers somehow very commonly decide there should be turnover in the people they themselves hire and fire, like in the position of police chief.  So it's a little unclear how we should understand the manager turnover we've experienced.  The only glaring example that it might be in some sense our fault is the sudden and completely unexplained (I'm told I'm not at liberty to repeat the explanation given to me in confidence by a witness) resignation of Sharon Ragoonan very early in her tenure as Village manager.

But back to David Hernandez.  Very many Village residents were relieved when we finally hired a Public Works director.  And no one had anything but praise for David's performance, as Public Works director.*  David had extensive relevant prior experience, he understood the task, and he appeared to carry it out well.  David is very self-assured.  And if you know David or have seen him present anything, you don't need me to tell you that.

Two Commissioners -- Betsy Wise and Jenny Johnson-Sardella -- resigned, one soon after the other, and we had to replace them.  We had to scramble to have an election, and who ran was a bit up for grabs.  Mac Kennedy ran.  For me, that was a no-brainer, because I know Mac, I know about his passion for the Village, and his passion to accomplish things, and it was unquestionable that I could support him wholeheartedly.  Ginny O'Halpin ran.  I knew Ginny a little, and I knew her late husband a little.  Ginny is a very nice and charming person, and she had a resume that had something to do with public service, up in New York for a whole career.  And she'd served very short term on two Village ad hoc groups.  We needed two people, there were two people, neither one of them seemed remotely likely to be a Tracy Truppman stooge, and I was satisfied.  But then, we had a third candidate.  Rafael Ciordia was a stealth candidate.  He had lived here for several years, was invisible, Village-wise, appeared to have one connection, which was Tracy's stooge, manager Krishan Manners, and eventually began publicly to parrot precise Tracy material.  So for me, Rafael was out, and the other two were in.  Which is apparently what the voters thought, too.  And Tracy apparently thought the same thing I thought, which was that Ginny would not be her stooge, and she would therefore not control a majority of the Commission.  So Tracy, too, jumped ship.  We now needed one more Commissioner, and only one person ran: Roxy Ross.  Our new Commission was Dan Samaria, Will Tudor, Ginny O'Halpin, Mac Kennedy, and Roxy Ross.  The concept of who should be the mayor was a bit quirky, but there seemed to be agreement it should be Ginny.  So Ginny, who really did have a pretty low Village profile, reached out in what I can only call desperation to someone of whom she knew who could step in once she succeeded, which it seemed clear she would, in firing Krishan.  So David Hernandez felt a tap on his shoulder.  And the rest of the Commissioners were either too relieved (to be able to punish Krishan for his own and other people's sins), or off balance, since the Krishan firing was abrupt, to ask important questions about David.  Ginny made an offer to David, David made an offer to the Village, and everyone accepted each others' offers.

So, precipitously, and out of desperation, David Hernandez became our interim/acting Village manager.  With no questions asked.  If we wanted anyone who wasn't Krishan, or anyone who wouldn't continue to assault Dan Samaria, we got that from David.  We also got someone who tried to steady Ginny, who very clearly had trouble running a meeting.  Although we got more help from our interim Village attorney, so we really didn't need David for that.

In the meantime, there were issues, and problems, and clocks that were ticking.  One clock that was ticking increasingly loudly was from CITT.  CITT had been communicating with us for some time, letting us know we appeared to be out of compliance about something, and by December, due dates and ultimatums were starting to be issued.  Under the reign of Tracy Truppman, and her pet, Krishan Manners, we simply ignored all of these communications.  And they were coming from the CITT Executive Director, Javier Betancourt.  They weren't form letters coming from a computer or a secretary.  This content was part of the December 19, 2019 letter from Mr Betancourt: "the Village of Biscayne Park is at risk of having Surtax funds withheld [the Village won't get any more] or recaptured [we'll have to pay back hundreds of thousands of dollars: close to $1M].  As discussed in our meeting of October 1, 2019, in order to avoid the withholding and/or recapture of these funds, it is imperative that you provide a detailed response to the measures you are taking to remedy the issues stated in the audit by January 31, 2020."  And then, there was a scolding about documents requested and never received by the previous due date, which was November 1.

On February 25, 2020, Interim Manager David Hernandez received a not dissimilar letter from Mr Betancourt, and there was an acknowledgement that the January 31 deadline had come and gone, without satisfaction of the demand for documentation.  So, "The failure of the Village of Biscayne Park to provide the requested information in a timely manner leaves this office with no other option but to begin withholding the Village's Surtax funds.  Please be advised that the withholding of Surtax funds will take effect immediately and continue until all findings and issues are completely resolved...It is imperative," Betancourt added, "that the Village respond, in full, to the findings of the municipal audit and this correspondence by April 1, 2020.  If the Village of Biscayne Park fails to respond by said date, this office will commence in the recapturing of the municipality's Surtax funds."

Public records requested from the Village have been altered in that the circulation has been redacted, but Mr Betancourt appears to have gotten David Hernandez's attention, and David responded by e-mail on March 2.  David pleaded that he had just entered the job, and needed more time, and he asked for an extension of the April 1 deadline to May 31.  A few hours later on the same date, Mr Betancourt responded very sympathetically, agreeing to the extension.

So now, David had a problem.  He had to find whatever CITT wanted, and the clock was reset, but still ticking.  Enter Chuck Ross.  As Chuck got increasing wind of this matter, which he was already doing under the former regime, he did a Chuck thing.  Chuck -- CPA, auditor (who got "100%" in his accounting school municipal accounting course) -- offered to help.  He approached David, and asked the entry-level question, which was what David had unearthed (almost literally) so far.  Nothing, David told Chuck.  He couldn't find any documentation.  So Chuck --  CPA, auditor (who got "100%" in his accounting school municipal accounting course) -- offered to take a look himself.  To which David agreed.  There are lots of boxes of various Village records, and they're in a storage room in the recreation center.  They have various markings.  Chuck was on his own.  David didn't offer to help or keep company, and he didn't tell Chuck about the other two Village residents (I'm not at liberty to name them) who also offered to help.

But Chuck is Chuck, and a task is a task.  Chuck found secret sources of possibly relevant documents, like boxes mysteriously marked "CITT."  Who would think to look there for CITT-related records?  Apparently, David didn't.  Chuck found lots of stuff.  And he couldn't make his way to all the boxes.  Chuck estimates today that he found "maybe 1/4" of what is needed, with confidence that more is there.  And he turned it all over to David.

David has responded to Chuck's hard work, generosity, and selflessness in two ways.  The first is that he told Chuck that some unnamed Village resident had spied Chuck entering the recreation center, and complained about it (which is not true and could not remotely be true), and Chuck was no longer welcome to come into the recreation center or to view any more Village records.  Even though they're public records.  The second response David made to what Chuck presented to him was to place an item on the Village Commission agenda for the May 19 meeting, in which David reports with seeming pride that he, who initially couldn't find anything, suddenly found a trove of relevant documents, and he did it all by himself.

Now, it's possible to end this story here, and recognize that David is really full of himself, that he can be a dope sometimes, that he's unappreciative and disrespectful, but that he's gotten us a stay of execution until 5/31, and that maybe he'll use what Chuck gave him to bail us out of the huge mess the former Commission and manager got us into.  And of course, David is the "interim/acting" manager, and it should be very high on our agenda, as it always has been at times like this, to find a "permanent" manager.  But the story doesn't quite end there.  Because in the meantime...

It took the Village Commission and management way too long finally to get around to having virtual Commission meetings.  The pathetic interim offerings were public service spots from Ginny O'Halpin, David, and Luis Cabrera, our police chief.  It wasn't until April 22 that our Village Commission and management finally figured out what all of our surrounding municipalities already knew, which was how to have a meeting on ZOOM.  They had another one on May 5.  But on May 1, there was another PSA, and this time, it was David Hernandez essentially talking about what a success he was, and reassuring listeners that he would stay in the saddle, and continue to be the Village manager.  (Commissioner) Roxy Ross interpreted this display as David's promoting himself for the permanent position of manager, even though we weren't formally looking for one yet (although we very much should have been), and she wrote to him about it the same day.  Roxy added the following language to her communication to David (and to the Village attorney): "While I am grateful for all your efforts as Interim Manager in this health crisis, if you continued (sic) to disseminate your advertisement, you will force my hand to communicate your very serious shortcomings for the full position of Village Manager."  David responded to her a few minutes later, saying "Thanks for your opinion ????????"  Roxy offered David a little bit more insight about his communication style in an e-mail the next day.

If we remember that David is full of himself and disrespectful, it will come as no surprise that he wrote to the Commission on May 5 to complain about what he proposed was an "alarming" Roxy Ross e-mail that was "breaching on violating the Ethics rules."  (As an aside, most of David's written products have peculiar usages and misspellings, and what appear to be typographical errors, and those include formal communications he makes not only to the Commission, but to people like Javier Betancourt.)  David further accuses Roxy of issuing "threats, harassment, and disparaging comments."  Commissioner Roxy Ross is, of course, one of David's five direct employers.  After some paragraphs of further rant, and before the last two paragraphs of rant, David appears to reassure that he is not, in fact, lobbying for the position of permanent manager, and he reiterates that he only agreed to the interim position.  Frankly, as the criteria for consideration of a Village manager have not yet been formalized, I myself don't know if David would qualify anyway.  Maybe he doesn't know, either.  All that is clear is that there appears to be deflection both from David and from some on the Commission from beginning the process to find a permanent manager, and that process should have begun at least two months ago.

So, there sits David Hernandez.  He himself talks about his "impeccable record" and his "slew of recommendation letters."  Roxy Ross, and I, and no doubt many of us are grateful for his having agreed to provide what seemed to us to be emergency help when we were desperate.  And maybe it's our own fault, for having been hasty, or too enthusiastic, but we have elevated him to a position in which his communication skills and his temperament become conspicuous problems.  He had successfully managed various levels that relied on his competence.  And then, we promoted him.



*There's an important Dan Keys story that I heard very recently, and that creates possible grave concern about David Hernandez.  This post is already long enough, and maybe someone more directly involved will discuss the David Hernandez-Dan Keys matter in a comment.  Suffice it to say that I was wrong a year or two ago when I imagined the dramatically unceremonious dismissal of Dan Keys from the P&P Board represented Tracy Truppman's initiative.

Duty calls.

I wasn't going to bother to post anything, because there wasn't anything to say. But it sure won't take long to say nothing (as opposed to how long it took to say nothing last night).  I actually wasn't going to waste my own time posting anything, except one blog reader scolded me for my negligence.

Last night, we had a Commission meeting.  So to speak.  I was confused as to the agenda, because the original agenda didn't have the matter I thought was most pressing (finding a new manager), but the agenda disappeared during the day yesterday, and public comments suggested this matter was in fact on the agenda.  So I had no public comment.  But little did I know...

Because the updated agenda disappeared, I don't know what was on it.  But I'll tell you what matters were resolved.  Almost none.  We reinstated the Code Compliance Board, which was a grossly inept and protracted procedure, since Mac Kennedy was trying to provide guidance as to an easy way to do it, and the Village clerk couldn't seem to understand what Mac was saying.  We also confirmed three members of the Planning and Zoning Board.  The procedure was the same, and slightly less tortured, since the clerk was starting to get it.

The whole rest of the meeting -- the whole rest of the four hours I invested in this -- was about meeting protocol.  It was utterly pointless and meaningless, and it ignored the fact that the discussion was a solution searching desperately, and in vain, for a problem.

The meeting was a horrible waste of a lot of time, and I hope our Commission will do better from now on.  One thing that will be required is that Commissioners, and the Village attorney, fall out of love with listening to themselves talk.

Come on, John Hornbuckle.  We're sorry.  Really we are.  Please come back, and restore perspective and proportion to these meetings.  Please.