Commentary: It's Not the Alcohol, It's Everything Else

By Suanne Thamm

Dear City Commissioners:

Please accept my sincere sympathy for the position that recent actions of our new city manager and police chief have placed you and our city in. This is a sad time for all of us who had shared your conclusion that Ty Ross would be a good city manager; indeed, that he was the best of the candidates forwarded to you by the Citizens Search Committee. Who could have anticipated that so shortly into his term his judgment, abilities and commitment to the city would come into question? Along with you, I thought he had the right stuff to succeed. Sadly, recent events have caused me to reconsider.

I know that there are a lot of theories floating around on the internet and in our coffee shops as to how this could have happened. But you are faced with the unenviable task of determining whether Ty Ross can succeed in our city going forward. Sadly, I fear the answer to that is no.

While many choose to focus on alcohol abuse as the cause of the problem, I disagree. I believe the problem is one of judgment. That the CM did not believe that he had an obligation to inform you of this incident until the media started poking around is a glaring example of bad judgment. And of course, another glaring example of bad judgment was his assessment that what happens during time away from work is nobody’s business. This character trait — poor judgment — has revealed itself in other cities in which Ty Ross has worked. I forwarded news articles to you earlier that support this view.

My assessment — for what it’s worth — is that Ty Ross has been overwhelmed by the complexities of our city. Like many people who move here thinking that as a small beach town life is easy, Ross made the mistake of thinking that city government would be nice and easy. He obviously did not do his homework in researching what makes Fernandina Beach tick. If he had, he might have understood that despite earning the highest salary ever paid to a city manager here, he would need to work fast and hard to keep up with all the demands on the city by residents, visitors, businesses and the city bureaucracy itself.

One of the things we discovered early on after moving here is that Fernandina is home to some of the most friendly and helpful folks you could hope to meet. But since the city is in the Bible Belt, many of these folks condemn or at least frown on drinking alcohol. The incident on Atlantic may have caused those people to wonder how “over drinking” even once in public by the highest-ranking city official can be excused or tolerated.

Another characteristic of Fernandina Beach citizens who follow local government is that they are not shy in expressing their opinions. Some have gone so far as to say that what might be characterized as “robust debate” in the public square is really more like gladiatorial face-offs in the Roman Coliseum. A quote: Politics in Fernandina is blood sport. Any person who hopes to survive in this arena must have an alligator hide and face controversy straight on. Hiding information or worse, lying about it, will only further erode confidence in government.

Fernandina Beach is a wonderful place, as we discovered when we moved here almost 30 years ago. Warts and all, I can’t think of a better place to live. And yet, when asked by the police whether he was a tourist or a resident, Ty Ross replied, “Unfortunately, I live here …”  How could our city manager, drunk or sober, say that? That comment was a slap in the face to all of us who love this city.

I have gone on way too long. But I wanted you to know that I believe the time to part ways with Ty Ross is upon us — before he buys a house and moves his family here. I’m sure that he and the FBCC can reach an amicable agreement which allows both him and the city to move on. The separation should be free of accusations and blame. Rather it was just a poor fit for him and the city.

Thank you for reading this, if you have gotten this far!

Editor's note: This is too important for what I call hip-shot reader comments. If you can take the time to compose a thoughtful, brief essay on this issue — from any point of view — we'd like to hear from you. -- Mike Phillips