News

By Dan Moffett
    
    Bob Vitas was the first candidate South Palm Beach council members interviewed in October for their vacant town manager’s job, and he wasted no time convincing them he was right choice.
    “He came in and knocked our socks off right from the start,” said Mayor Bonnie Fischer. “He was so clear and to the point about what he wanted to do. To me it was obvious he was what we were looking for.”
    Councilwoman Stella Gaddy Jordan said Vitas impressed her with his experience dealing with beach issues from his time as Key West’s city manager.
    “The beaches are an extremely important issue for us,” Jordan said, “and he has what it takes to lead us through some of the work that we’re going to have to do on that.”
    On Oct. 27, the Town Council gave unanimous approval to the $103,000-a-year contract that makes Vitas the new manager and ends a five-month period during which the town has struggled to carry on without one. In June, Jim Pascale was forced to resign as town manager after only six months on the job, when disagreements with the council reached a tipping point.
    Town Attorney Brad Biggs, who negotiated the contract with Vitas, said it does not include a provision for severance pay if he leaves the position for any reason during the first six months.
    “We’ll just let bygones be bygones and go our separate ways,” said Biggs, who believes Vitas is planning for an extended stay in South Palm Beach. “He sees this as a long-term move — 10 to 12 years. Honestly, he’s excited to come to this town.”
    Vitas, 58, was city manager in Key West from 2012 to 2014, until disputes with the city attorney and City Commission over hiring practices and other matters forced him out of office. Fischer dismissed the breakdown as “just politics” and said residents should keep an open mind to help the town move forward.
    “Let’s get to a new era here,” she said.
    Before serving in Key West, Vitas was the administrator of Lake Zurich, with a population of about 20,000 in northeastern Illinois, from 2007 to 2011. Vitas told council members he believed his role was to be the face of government in South Palm Beach.
    “I see myself as a front man, and I understand that it starts with the town manager and his employees and then needs to trickle down,” he said of connecting with residents. “Public relations is critical.”
    Vitas says he wants a “seamless beginning” in the town and will prepare a 90-day plan of action for the council to consider. Fischer said she was impressed by Vitas’ connections in Tallahassee. He told the council his biannual trips to the capital “were worth their weight in gold” for obtaining funding from the state.
    The council interviewed four other candidates: Mark Kutney, former Loxahatchee Groves manager; Sarah Hannah-Spurlock, Key West’s assistant city manager; and two former Delray Beach city managers, Louie Chapman and David Harden.
    In other business: The qualifying period for the March 15 municipal election will run from noon Dec. 1 to noon Dec. 15, according to Town Clerk Yudy Alvarez.