WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. By John F. Bailey. May 18, 2004; UPDATED May 19, 2004 11:30 A.M. E.D.T.: The Fort Lauderdale City Commission voted 5-0 at approximately 2:06 PM Tuesday to support George Gretsas, White Plains Executive Officer, for their position of City Manager. The official vote hiring Mr. Gretsas was scheduled for Tuesday evening at 6 P.M, and officially confirmed the appointment.  The vote was witnessed by WPCNR via live internet feed from Fort Lauderdale City Hall. Mr. Gretsas was strongly supported by Commissioners Cindi Hutchinson, Dean Trantalis, Mayor James Naugle and to a lesser degree, Christine Teel. Mayor James Naugle did not express his preference, but encouraged the Commission to make the decision unanimous to give Mr. Gretsas a strong sendoff.

LIVE FROM FORT LAUDERDALE: City Commission discussed George Gretsas and one other candidate for approximately 30 minutes from 1:35 PM to 2:06 P.M., and gave Mr. Gretsas, White Plains Executive Officer, a vote of confidence to be their new city commissioner. Photo from Internet by WPCNR News.

City Commissioner Cindi Hutchinson lead off the proceedings with an impassioned effusion of praise for Mr. Gretsas as having thoroughly researched the city, saying he had even taken out a construction permit for the deck of a Fort Lauderdale home to check out the city's procedures. She said he had great understanding of the city's finances, and said he was "a unique individual who will bring a breath of fresh air" to Fort Lauderdale. Mayor Naugle said, he, too, was most impressed by Mr. Gretsas, who was his first choice, and  who could "bring change" to the city, and that Fort Lauderdale "should give him a chance."

Carlton Moore was not as enthusiastic, and focused mainly on Mr. Gretsas' low test scores on the personality and assessment tests given. However,  Ms. Hutchinson and Mr. Trantalis pointed out that the four candidates  to a man expressed a strong dislike for the assessment tests that "asked fictitious questions about a fictitious city."

The Scores

In her story Wednesday morning in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, reporter Brittany Wallman discloses those test scores. Management & Personnel Systems, Inc. of Walnut Creek, California conducted the assessments ranking George Kolb of Augusta first with a 90%; Michael West, of Johnson City, Tennessee, "above average" with a 77.7%; Thomas Hoover, recently ousted City Manager of Worcester, Mass., "average" with a 59.3%, and Mr. Gretsas last with 33.5%. 

Ms. Wallman's article notes that in an assessment of leadership, oral communications and problem analysis/decision-making, Mr. Gretsas also scored last out of the four candidates.

Due to an intermittent feed, it was not possible to hear  the comments of Ms. Teel clearly.

It was also reported at the meeting that Thomas Hoover, the candidate from Worcester, Massachussetts,  pulled out of the running very late, (it was not said when), because as Carlton Moore quoted Hoover as saying "it seemed like the Commission was poking holes in a boat to let the water out."