By Dan Moffett
South Palm Beach voters will likely get the chance to make some significant changes to their town’s charter when they go to the polls in March.
At their Nov. 18 meeting, Town Council members gave preliminary approval to four amendments that would end term limits for council members as well as boards and committees, change the requirements for town manager applicants and eliminate special elections for filling unexpired council terms.
The ordinances that will put the changes on the March ballot will require final approval after a second reading at the Dec. 15 council meeting, so some revisions are still possible.
Here’s a look at what the proposed amendments would do:
• Eliminate term limits for the Town Council, beginning with candidates elected next March.
Council members unanimously agreed that it didn’t make sense to limit elected officials when the town often has struggled to find people willing to serve. Councilwoman Bonnie Fischer also made the point that term limits don’t allow for the learning curve needed to serve effectively on the council. “It takes time to know what you’re doing in this job,” she said. “Experience is important.”
• Eliminate term limits for boards and committees.
Council members unanimously agreed that residents who are willing to work on the town’s boards and committees shouldn’t be forced out because of term limits. The town has had trouble finding enough people willing to volunteer their service and should try to keep those they find.
• Eliminate special elections when a council seat unexpectedly becomes vacant for longer than six months.
The Town Council would be able to appoint a candidate to the council to serve out an unexpired term of greater than six months, until the next scheduled March election when the seat would be put before the voters. The change would save the town between $6,000 and $8,000, the cost of holding a special election, and prevent spring and summer votes when South Palm Beach’s snowbird population is at its low.
“You don’t want to have a special election when no one is in town,” said Town Attorney Brad Biggs.
Councilwoman Stella Gaddy Jordan was the lone vote against the proposed amendment, worrying that someone appointed to the council would have an unfair advantage in the next election.
• Revise the qualifications for the town manager position.
Currently, the charter requires that candidates for town manager have at least 10 years’ experience and a specialized degree in the field. Council members unanimously agreed that the requirements are too restrictive and could keep talented candidates from applying. Eliminating those prerequisites allows the Town Council to evaluate applicants on a case-by-case basis and recruit younger prospects who might be short on experience but long on potential.
Town Manager Rex Taylor, who is retiring this month, endorsed the changes, which would not take effect until March. Taylor said the town has received applications from 11 candidates who want to replace him and will interview finalists on Dec. 6, in the Town Hall. The interviews are open to the public. Ú
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Comments
LOL - theses scoundrel's have not even read the Charter that we have now and just run the Town as if it is their own little fiefdom
Fischer says council members need more time to learn - they have violated our Charter since 2003 - how long do these incompetent's need to learn that they represent a Charter Town which is weak council strong manager!!
They have snowed the resident of the Town by illegally given themselves rights that they do not have under the Charter which allowed them to cherry pick the Planning Board to rob this Town of it's only recreational spot on Town and give it to 33 new condo units.
Hopefully they will all have been removed by next March and this Town will be run legally in compliance with the Town Charter for the first time in over a decade.