Town manager, attorney get solid reviews from commissioners

Town Manager Howard Tipton and Town Attorney Maggie Mooney are both doing a good job, Longboat Key Town Commission says.

The Town Commission shared staff evaluations for Tipton and Mooney on Monday, and both received plenty of praise.

Tipton is rather new in the position, starting in early 2023 after the retirement of former Town Manager Tom Harmer.

Tipton would jump right into the fire, leading the town’s response to back-to-back devastating hurricanes in year two of the job in 2024. His handling of those emergencies was praised by commissioners.

“Your service and leadership during the hurricanes was phenomenal to watch and incredibly beneficial to be a part of as a community member,” said District 5 Commissioner Sarah Karon. “Watching you go out and help individuals with their cleanups even as the town was literally wading back to oblivion showed a great deal about your character.”

Commissioners also praised Tipton’s openness and ability to communicate town issues clearly and effectively. One initiative of Tipton’s that was repeatedly mentioned was his “Tip Talk,” a series of videos where he interviews town staff, community and business leaders to discuss various Longboat-related topics.

The only room for improvement mentioned dealt with communicating the need to increase the town’s budget.

“I’m going to be the one person that makes a negative comment here,” said District 4 Commissioner Debra Williams. “It’s not coming from me, but it’s coming from people I’ve spoken to in the public. There’s a perception that we spend a lot of money in this town and we’ve been spending a lot of money on staff and various things and we know we have to do those things, but to that end I think maybe we’re not communicating why we have to be spending this money and how it’s happening, and I’m not just putting this on you but I think it’s the entire Commission.”

Tipton agreed there is room for improvement, thanked the town commission for its positive feedback and spread the praise as a good leader often does.

“It is a team effort and we are just blessed with a wonderful team starting with this commission but also the leadership staff and the rest of the employees that we have. It’s just a remarkable place to work and I’m just blessed to be a part of it,” Tipton said. “I do agree that we can do a better job on some of the service enhancements that we are trying to achieve and communicating that in certain cases it may take an extra position to achieve what we’re trying to get to.”

The commission unanimously voted to give Tipton a 3% raise effective Oct. 1. That puts his annual salary at $243,451.

Photo by S.T. Cardinal

Town Attorney Mooney received similar A-grade reviews.

“You have seen a lot and you bring us all up to a higher level because you know what we need to know and you share it with a ton of enthusiasm because I know how much you believe in what you’re doing,” said Karon.

After commissioners shared their praises of her performance, Mooney advocated for not a raise, but a reduced contract for her firm Persson, Cohen, Mooney, Fernandez & Jackson, P.A.

“Our firm has hired a couple new lawyers. One who is more experienced and one who is a new lawyer. What I would like to do in the next couple months, there’s no rush, is to bring an amendment to the contract that allows for some lower hourly rates to be charged for when less senior attorneys or paralegals are doing work for the town,” Mooney said, adding she doesn’t anticipate the change to be controversial.

Mooney is a bit more tenured with the town than Tipton, first representing the town 14 years ago.

She was described by commissioners as a reliable, accessible advisor who is thorough in her legal interpretations.

“I jokingly have said to (Mooney) I sometimes worry that we must be paying you by the word because brevity is not always her best suit,” At-large commissioner B.J. Bishop said. “But it’s because she has so much information that she wants to make sure she has conveyed to all of us.”

District 2 Commissioner Penny Gold said she has gone above and beyond in her duties, and Karon said Mooney’s care for the Longboat community is evident.

“I’ve been impressed with you from day one,” Gold said. “Mainly because of your knowledge of the town codes, the town ordinances, municipal law in general but also your relationship with the lobby team and your helpful analysis on legislation.”

Mooney said she feels she is the luckiest local government lawyer in the state and that 14 years has flown by.