Naples Daily News - 05/15/2021 Page : A01

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the amount of returns has doubled what anything new. So it’s been really chal-
they normally do in a year, with many of lenging finding people willing to take
the animals
Naplesbeing
Dailyaround
News1 year old.
- 05/15/2021these gigantic babies. That’s really what
“The trends that we’ve seen is the they are; they’re gigantic babies who
Chapman
Continued from Page 1A
not with all things that have been said
about him.
“We have a relationship here that is
broken,” Christman said.
Christman also said that the state of
the relationship between Chapman and
City Council was not only Chapman’s
fault.
“Where the fault lies on that, frankly,
it probably lays at the feet of all of us,”
Christman said.
Councilman Gary Price said he sup-
ported what Chapman has done, yet he
voted to accept his resignation.
“I don’t think it is in the best interest
of the city, residents or him to continue,”
Price said.
McCabe said he had lost confidence
in Chapman.
“I think it sounds like we are at the
point where it is time to part ways,”
McCabe said.
Councilman Paul Perry said that
Chapman told him within the past
month or so that he would agree to a
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May 17, 2021 11:08 am (GMT -4:00)
separation agreement if it was the ap-
propriate way to resolve the conflicts
between City Council and him.
“He was not asking us to terminate
him,” Perry said.
Chapman could not be reached for
comment as of Friday afternoon.
Chapman would receive a cash pay-
ment equal to 20 weeks of total com-
pensation and would also be compen-
sated for all earned personal leave if he
would resign following a “formal or in-
formal suggestion” from City Council,
his employment contract states.
In October 2018, City Council unani-
mously approved Chapman’s contract
with an annual salary of $200,000.
Chapman’s salary was $210,120 as of
Thursday, according to the city’s human
resources department.
Chapman had been Hendry County
administrator since 2013. Before that, he
was the assistant county administrator
in Gadsden County.
Heitmann hires outside law firm
Earlier in the meeting, City Council
discussed Heitmann’s retention of an
outside law firm earlier this year for
comfort through an extremely difficult
year, and we should honor the com-
mitment we made to them through
adoption.”
which the city was billed
more than $5,000 in legal
expenses.
Heitmann was “legally
permitted to hire the out-
side legal counsel upon
Heitmann her determination that
such hiring was ‘in the
city’s best interest,’” city attorneys Nan-
cy Stuparich and Gretchen R. H. Vose, of
Vose Law Firm LLP, wrote April 29 in a
memorandum to the city.
The attorneys also concluded that if
“Heitmann instructs the city manager
to pay the subject invoices for legal ser-
vices, the city manager is required to
take such action.”
The law firm Boatman Ricci billed
$5,280 to the “Office of the Mayor” of the
city of Naples for legal services from
Jan. 11 to March 22. T
he services included research, review
of documents such as the list of city at-
torney candidates, responding to
emails, teleconferences and meetings
with Heitmann “regarding various is-
sues,” two statements from the law firm
show.
Chapman did not immediately au-
thorize the payment to Boatman Ricci,
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She earned a bachelor’s degree in
political science from the University of
Florida in 2014 and is in the master of
Page :program
business administration A21 at
Florida State University.
an email from Chapman to Heitmann
sent March 24 shows.
“We need to take a few more actions
before this invoice may be processed
through to the issuance of a purchase
order. Members of City Council (Mayor
and Councilmembers) do not have the
authority to procure goods and services
individually,” Chapman wrote in the
email.
Monique Barnhart, communications
and public relations manager for the
city, did not immediately say Thursday
what amount, if any, the city has paid to
Boatman Ricci.
McCabe said Thursday the contro-
versy could have been avoided if Chap-
man had authorized the payments to
Boatman Ricci.
“This issue is created by the city
manager by refusal to pay a bill,”
McCabe said.
“Today (was) a difficult day,” Heit-
mann said near the end of the City
Council meeting.
Contact Omar at omar.rodriguezor-
tiz@naplesnews.com, and follow him
on Twitter as @Omar_fromPR. Support
his work by subscribing to Naples Daily
News.
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