Loxahatchee Groves council authorizes 10-week separation package, votes 5-0

The Town of Loxahatchee Groves council voted unanimously May 12 to authorize accepting a 10-week severance offer for the town manager, including administrative leave already paid and accrued paid time off, and to end her employment at the close of the current pay period.

Special counsel Jonica Simpson told the council she had negotiated with the manager's attorney and that the manager’s latest counteroffer sought 16 weeks of severance plus payment of unused PTO; Simpson said the town’s counteroffer is 10 weeks, which incorporates five weeks of administrative leave already paid. "I do believe that we can establish cause," Simpson said, but she declined to discuss investigative details in open session because negotiations remain ongoing.

The council heard cost estimates from municipal staff: the 10-week option was put at roughly $55,000 (including PTO already owed), the 16-week figure at about $73,000, and the total exposure if the manager stayed on paid administrative leave through Sept. 30 was estimated at $103,820.21. Several council members said they wanted to avoid prolonged litigation or investigations that would increase attorney fees and taxpayer expense.

Council member Kane moved, and council member Coleman seconded, a motion to authorize accepting the town’s 10-week counteroffer if the manager’s counsel agreed, to terminate the town manager without cause effective at the end of the pay period, and to include the administrative leave and accrued PTO in the separation. The motion passed on a 5-0 voice vote.

Simpson told the council she had reviewed an April 7 council motion that restricted communications during administrative leave and said a subsequent April 13 email from the manager to town officials was raised in negotiations; she said those communications factored into bargaining but declined to detail alleged actions publicly. Vice Mayor Sood and other council members urged a quick resolution to "stop the meter" of ongoing pay and PTO accruals while preserving an amicable exit that would not place negative marks on the manager’s employment record.

The council directed Simpson and the acting town manager to finalize the separation agreement if the manager’s counsel accepted the 10-week offer; the agreement would include standard releases. If the town and the manager could not reach agreement by the date set in the discussion, council members said they would reconvene or consider next steps, including potential termination for cause.

The meeting concluded with the 5-0 vote and an announcement about a June 30 public meeting on the regional master transportation plan at the Belle Glade Public Library.