Commission approves separation agreement for mayor’s senior policy adviser amid public objection

The City Commission on Tuesday approved a separation agreement for senior policy adviser and special assistant to the mayor, Mary Small, authorizing severance pay, accrued leave payout, a short-term consulting retainer and continued health insurance coverage.

The vote was 3–2, with Vice Mayor Louis Ricketts, Commissioner Bustamante and Mayor Samson Borglien voting to approve while Commissioner Lewis and Commissioner Doctor Martin opposed the agreement.

What the agreement includes - Severance: Staff told commissioners the agreement reflects up to 20 weeks of severance as allowed under state law — the meeting record shows that figure expressed as 800 hours and presented by staff as the equivalent of approximately $40,000. - Accrued leave payout: Staff cited a payout figure of $9,742.80 for accrued vacation and $68.14 in sick time at the hourly rate used in the calculations. - Consulting retainer: The agreement includes a separate, short-term consulting payment of $20,000 that the city may call on through June 2025 for assistance in wrapping up projects, “not to perform daily operations,” staff said. - Health insurance: The agreement also provides continuation of health-insurance coverage through November 2027, unless Ms. Small takes an employer plan, staff said.

Public comment and commissioner concerns Several members of the public and a pair of commissioners criticized the dollar amounts and the length of extended benefits. Commissioner Doctor Martin, who moved to pull the item for public discussion, said the package “is a large amount of money” for an employee who had been employed a little more than a year and warned that approving such agreements sets a costly precedent.

“This is a heck of a going-away package,” Commissioner Doctor Martin said during public comment. She asked why the original employment contract’s separation terms were not enforced and objected to an open-ended rehire eligibility clause and to the consulting retainer.

City attorney and staff response City Attorney Pamis told the Commission the separation was negotiated and reduced to writing and that, legally, the contract language staff read to the Commission was proper: the city attorney noted the previously cited contract section that denies severance if an employee is terminated for cause did not apply because the separation was not characterized as a termination for cause. The city attorney said the separation agreement represented a mutual settlement of the parties’ rights.

Outcome and next steps After public comment and discussion, the Commission approved the separation agreement. The city manager will execute the agreement and staff said the payments and benefits described in the agreement will be processed through finance.

Ending The vote marked the end of the item, but public speakers and at least two commissioners urged more disclosure of original contracts and more scrutiny of separation arrangements going forward.