Key West Vice Mayor and District 3 Commissioner Donie Lee joind Good Morning Keys on Keys Talk 96.9/102.5FM this morning to talk about what’s going on in the city.
The Key West City Commission will hold a special meeting at 3 p.m. Tuesday to discuss the growing sargassum problem and potential ways to manage and remove it from Key West beaches.
Lee said several companies and scientists are scheduled to make presentations about possible approaches.
“One of the proposals is in Mexico. They’re putting barriers out into the water and trying to mitigate it before it hits the beaches,” Lee said.
Other companies are looking at ways to repurpose sargassum after it dries.
“It’ll be interesting to hear what everyone has to say tomorrow to try and do a, I guess, a better job,” Lee said. “I don’t even know if we can. So I’ll be open and receptive to see what people have to say.”
The commission is also expected to conduct the final hearing and adoption of the city’s fiscal year budget Tuesday.
Lee described the proposal as a rollback budget, with a proposed tax rate of 1.88 mills.
“The overall general total budget is about $331 million,” Lee said. “It includes almost $90 million in capital equipment and infrastructure investment.”
He said approximately $35.5 million of the budget will come from grants to help fund infrastructure investments.
The proposed budget does not add any new positions and eliminates 18 vacant positions.
Lee said he plans to ask the commission to restore $50,000 in funding for the Key West Fire Department. The money would fund a part-time consultant position that Lee said is important to maintaining the department’s ISO Class 1 rating.
“That position is so important to ensure that, number one, we enjoy and receive the reductions in our insurance because of that Class 1 status,” Lee said.
He also said the designation helps ensure the fire department remains among the highest-performing departments in the country.
“Less than 1% of fire departments across the nation have this Class 1 status,” Lee said. “It also ensures that the fire department is in the top tier in operational readiness and effectiveness and using best practices.”
The City Commission will also consider a resolution introduced by Lee concerning City Manager Brian Barroso.
The resolution would authorize the city attorney to begin negotiations toward an amicable separation agreement between Barroso and the city.
Lee said the proposal is intended to provide an alternative to the continuing conflict between Barroso and Mayor Sam Kaufman.
“It’s no secret that the mayor and the city manager’s relationship is not good, and it appears to me that it’s irreconcilable,” Lee said.
Lee said he believes the dispute has become a distraction for the city.
“I just think that it’s reached a point where it’s become a distraction to not only the commission but employees at City Hall and the public at large,” he said.
Lee said he hopes the commission will approve the resolution and that the city can reach an agreement with Barroso.
“I hope that ultimately we could come up with a proposal that’s amicable, that will allow the city manager to separate his employment from the city of Key West,” Lee said.
Lee said negotiating an agreement could also avoid the expense and uncertainty associated with investigations, termination proceedings and potential litigation.
He pointed to a previous investigation involving Barroso that cost the city nearly $13,000 and resulted in no sustained findings.
“I just think there’s a way to do this amicably where it won’t cost us,” Lee said.
Lee emphasized that the resolution is intended to authorize negotiations rather than immediately terminate Barroso.
The mayor previously called for an investigation into the city manager’s conduct. Lee said he had not seen the details of the proposed investigation and said he believed the commission would need to be involved in authorizing investigative work involving city staff.
The separation resolution has been added to Tuesday’s agenda, and public comment is expected to be available.
The budget and other matters are scheduled for the commission’s meeting Tuesday, with final budget adoption expected during the meeting.