County Manager Russ Abolt and Assistant County Manager Pat Monahan, along with five county commissioners and Chairman Pete Liakakis, stood in front of the ballroom in the Savannah Civic Center.
Hundreds of county employees surrounded the group during the staff appreciation luncheon Dec. 6.
A projector screen displayed images of Monahan’s evolving fashions and hairstyles through the years.
The photo homage was shown in recognition of his 28 years of service ahead of his pending retirement early next month.
Together, the administrative leaders and elected officials, including commissioners David Gellatly, James Holmes, Patrick Shay, Helen Stone and Priscilla Thomas, have more than a century of experience with the county.
Next year, in addition to Monahan, three of the local lawmakers at the luncheon, who have managed the county for most of the past eight years, will be gone — followed by Abolt himself in 2014 or sooner. Longtime Commissioner Harris Odell left in March to become a Recorder’s Court judge after serving for almost 16 years.
During the next four years, new personalities with their own leadership styles will decide what buildings to construct, what policies to put in place and what tax rates to administer. A new county commission, comprised of four new members, including the chairman, will take their seats in January — the same month some department heads will be promoted to fill the void created by Monahan’s departure.
As new leadership arrives, pending challenges await.
Choosing a new top administrator, especially when that individual has held the position as long as Abolt, means trying to satisfy the public and differing priorities of government officials while ensuring the most qualified candidate is hired.
That was evident during the city of Savannah’s controversial search for a new city manager after former manager Michael Brown’s resignation. Critics alleged it was rigged in order to ensure Rochelle Small-Toney got the job.
In another challenge, the expanded jail is set to open, which will require millions of dollars in operating revenue that is currently unavailable.
Managing such challenges will be up to new commissioners Lori Brady, Tony Center, Yusuf Shabazz and Chairman Al Scott, along with incumbents Holmes, Stone, Thomas, Patrick Farrell and Dean Kicklighter.
Monahan said the new commission should take a cue from the current board by immediately establishing goals and forming plans to achieve them. Such planning led to eight years of productivity for the county, Monahan said, including the completion or start of about $250 million in capital improvement projects.
At the same time, the county’s credit rating was upgraded two times and ranks among the highest local governments in Georgia, despite the five Democrats’ and four Republicans’ differing backgrounds and ideologies, Monahan said.
Benefits approved
County Manager Russ Abolt, 70, recently announced he will retire in March 2014 after a 25-year career as the county’s top administrator. Abolt said his departure could come earlier, however, depending on when commissioners decide to begin the search for his replacement.
In preparation for Abolt’s retirement, some post-employment benefits were approved by commissioners following closed-door sessions this year.
In February, commissioners approved a policy specifically designed for Abolt by applying it only to managers who have worked for the county for 20 years or more. The policy change grants Abolt’s request that the county continue to pay health, dental and life insurance premiums for him and his wife and enroll them in a vision plan that will also be fully covered. In addition, the board voted to purchase a non-term life insurance policy in the amount of $200,000 upon Abolt’s retirement.
“This is the first time ever that I’ve asked for a compensation adjustment,” Abolt said in his request. “It is comforting to know that you and the board will consider this.”
In making the request, Abolt noted that he chose not to have a county-assigned vehicle or participate in the county’s retirement program when he was hired in 1988. Instead of participating in the county’s defined benefit plan that is based on salary and years of service, he elected to continue participation in an independent defined contribution plan. Under that plan, designed primarily for government administrators, the county contributed a flat amount of $7,500 a year.
The county plan would have cost $65,000 more in contributions, according to a report submitted with Abolt’s request. In addition, Abolt’s monthly vehicle allowance, which has increased from $150 to $500 since he was hired, amounted to a savings to the county of about $91,470, when compared to the average cost of owning and operating an automobile, according to the report.
Last month, commissioners voted to pay Abolt $30,000 a year for six years after retirement. In addition, Abolt, a former U.S. Marine and Vietnam veteran, will be compensated for up to 60 days of unused vacation leave and 30 days of sick leave. The payments were approved after Abolt had requested in October the elimination of the 60-day cap in light of his inability to use vacation days. The request to eliminate the cap was not granted.
Leadership transition
Abolt’s most recent performance evaluation of Monahan in April simply states, “Pat is irreplaceable,” followed by a page of exclamation marks.
Nevertheless, Abolt has developed a transition plan that distributes Monahan’s many duties among existing department heads, in addition to hiring new personnel.
Under the plan, Human Resources Director Michael Kaigler, who joined the county 22 years ago and was recently bumped to second assistant county manager, will assume the role of senior assistant county manager. He will be responsible for administrative duties and a number of projects currently assigned to Monahan, including courthouse renovations, the proposed convention center hotel and the Citizen Service Center expansion.
Kaigler will also supervise the human resources, purchasing, fleet services and facilities maintenance departments, as well as contract maintenance for Chatham Area Transit. The county is advertising for a permanent human resources director to replace Kaigler around the first of the year.
Linda Cramer, Chatham’s finance director since 2003, will be promoted to second assistant county manager, while retaining the responsibility of supervising the county’s financial management and economic development efforts.
The county’s risk manager, Chuck Voelker, will assume some of Monahan’s property management responsibilities, including maintaining the county’s property inventory list and managing leases.
Gregori Anderson, director of building safety and regulatory services, will assume some construction and project management duties currently held by Monahan, including the Mother Matilda Beasley home relocation and restoration and the southwest police precinct design and construction.
Monahan said the plan should work well. One of Abolt’s strengths is building a decentralized department system by hiring good people and then staying out of their way and letting them do their jobs, Monahan said.
“The county will be in a better position to handle the transition,” he said.
Monahan’s last mile
Monahan’s last day will be Jan. 4; he became assistant county manager in 1985. He has turned down an offer to work as a paid consultant for the county but has offered to work six to eight hours a month in a volunteer capacity.
At 58, Monahan is retiring at a relatively young age, but his 28 years with the county put him three years over the minimum amount needed to receive full retirement benefits.
He had planned on leaving a few years earlier but stuck around long enough to see the near completion of one of his pet projects, the purchase and renovation of a new government building on Oglethorpe Avenue to make room for an expansion at the county courthouse.
Monahan, a regular marathon participant, said he plans to continue getting up early in the morning to run and work out at the gym, in addition to practicing his woodworking hobby at his home on Talahi Island. He also plans to travel, do some consulting work and join various boards.
The work will keep his business side active, he said, while the boards will keep him engaged with the community.
End of the team
Come this January, two-term chairman Pete Liakakis will no longer be the one trying to bring commissioners to a consensus, while railing against the state for not fully compensating Chatham for holding its prisoners at the detention center.
Instead, fellow Democrat Al Scott will take the reins and be responsible for keeping things moving at commission meetings and serving as the representative of the entire county, which includes Savannah, Bloomingdale, Garden City, Pooler, Port Wentworth, Thunderbolt, Tybee Island and Vernonburg, in addition to the unincorporated area outside city limits.
District 3 Commissioner Patrick Shay, District 5 Commissioner Tabitha Odell and District 6 Commissioner David Gellatly are also serving their final month.
By working together, Liakakis said, the commission has been able to help the community in a number of ways — the construction of new public safety, health and transit facilities; support of poverty reduction groups; the establishment of jobs training programs; and work on a greenest county initiative that included the conservation of more than 3,000 acres of property.
One issue Liakakis would have liked to see resolved before his departure is the 1 percent Local Option Sales Tax debate with the county’s municipalities that will determine how an estimated $600 million in revenue will be distributed for the next 10 years. The dispute has entered Superior Court after the cities and county were unable to reach an agreement and will not be decided until next year.
A potential loss of LOST revenue is just one of the challenges that await the new commission. The current board recently approved the hiring of 34 new employees for the detention center to open a new holding tower there. The staff increase is expected to increase the cost of jail operations by at least $2.5 million a year, but no reoccurring revenue source is in place. At the same time, revenue from property taxes has been flat.
In addition, the 1 percent sales tax for special projects, known as SPLOST, expires at the end of September 2014. If commissioners want the millions in tax revenue to continue, they will have to develop a list of capital projects that tax-weary voters will support.
The county also faces rising health care costs, which exceeded the budget by $1.3 million last year.
Scott said he will look for budget savings to cover any financial shortfalls, rather than relying on tax hikes. In addition, he said he immediately will begin the search to replace Abolt.
“There are a lot of things to do,” he said. “I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
NEW COMMISSIONERS
THESE FOUR WILL TAKE ON SEATS ON THE CHATHAM COUNTY COMMISSION IN 2013:
Al Scott (Chairman)
Education: Attended Beach High School and Armstrong State University; served in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves
Occupation: Retired manager at Union Camp/International Paper
Tony Center (District 3)
Education: 1967 graduate of Savannah High School, 1975 graduate of University of Georgia Law School
Occupation: Attorney
Yusuf Shabazz (District 5)
Education: Savannah Technical College; Savannah State University — Bachelor of Science in civil engineering technology, minored in mathematics and applied sciences
Occupation: Owner of YES Design and Construction and Shabazz Seafood Restaurant
Lori Brady (District 6)
Education: 1979 graduate of Windsor Forest High School, graduate of Realtor Institute
Occupation: Realtor