Workin' for a Livin'
Most residents are aware of who the council members and Town Manager are, but many may not be aware that there are a whole host of folks behind the scenes at Town Hall who labor every day to see that the business of running our island paradise gets done. For our Labor Day issue this year, the Sand Paper decided to introduce readers to the folks they seldom see but whose services they couldn't live without - the Fort Myers Beach Town Staff.
The first thing that most visitors see after climbing the stairs to the second floor of Town Hall is the smiling visage of Rick Sebastian, Administrative Assistant and Receptionist. It is also Sebastian's soothing voice one hears on the telephone directory, calmly directing callers to the right department. Sebastian, who has worked for the Town for four years and been an island resident for 30+, told us he learned his professionalism from years working customer service for the airline industry and Marriot hotels.
"I worked for Northwest Airlines for 25 years," he said. "One day I was looking for flood insurance information on the Town's website and saw they were looking for a receptionist. I knew the airline was cutting back and I had a window where I could semi-retire and still be eligible for my benefits, so I interviewed for the job and thought I was a good fit."
Sebastian said the main thing he does is traffic direction.
"I am the first contact people have, so I direct them to the right department," he said. "People call with an idea of what they want but no idea who they want to talk to - for instance, someone will call and ask how they go about building a tiki hut, pergola or shed, and I direct them to someone."
Rick told us that he is also responsible for processing the Town's mail, clerical work assigned to him by his boss, Town Clerk Michelle Mayher and sometimes has to work on the weekends, too.
"My job is to make people feel comfortable," he said. "I get all kinds of questions, from tourists asking if they can get married to people looking for driver's licenses. The bottom line is, there are some things we can do and some we can't - if I can't handle it here, I make sure they know where they can get it done."
If you're visiting Town Hall to make a public records request, the next person you may encounter is Town Clerk Michelle Mayher. Having worked for the Town for 10 years, Michelle knows where all the bodies are buried - we look forward to reading her memoirs one day - but until then, there's no one better at locating things than Michelle.
"I was working for Sunstream when I saw an ad for Administrative Assistant on the marquee out front," she said. "Since I had wanted to work for the new town since incorporation, I came right over and got the job."
Michelle explained that the position of 'clerk' actually began in the 15th century, when cities were formed.
"Clerks were usually also clerics, since religious people were the only ones who could read or write in those days," she said. "So they became the municipalities' historians, the keepers of the records, and that pretty much defines my job today - I keep track of all the Town's records."
Also working in the Town Clerk's department is Contracts Manager Susan Malay, who declined to be interviewed.
Not too far from Michelle's office is that of Director of Finance Evelyn Wicks, who comes to our area from Orlando.
"I've been a 'bean counter' for a long time," she said, laughing, "But I've been here for 4 years."
Evelyn, a Certified Government Finance Manager, told us that one of the things she is responsible for is the Town's most delicate business - the budget.
"I do the budget, audit, personnel, risk management and other administrative activities," she told us. "It's hard work but worth it - we won the 'Distinguished Budget Award' from the Government Finance Officer's Association for 2009."
Aiding Evelyn is Finance Coordinator Amanda Anderson, a 5-year veteran of Town Hall who is responsible for accounts payable and receivable, bank reconciliations and payroll.
Just past Evelyn's office is that of Building Safety Services Coordinator Ken Miller, and his two code enforcement officers Shane Hidle and Elmer Toro. Miller is the man to see for anyone wanting to build anything on the island, and since he was the busiest guy in Town Hall the day we stopped in, we weren't able to speak with him as of press time.
We did get to talk to code enforcement officer Elmer Toro, who told us that he and fellow code enforcement officer Shane Hidle spend their days "putting out fires".
"When I get to work in the morning, I listen to emails and check voice messages, then analyze the cases," said Toro, a 36-year veteran of the NYPD. "Sometimes I check them out, and if I confirm the allegations, I send a 10-day posting to the owner. If they don't respond, I can still go to the magistrate, but most people in this town are responsible and fix the problem."
Toro says his job requires a great deal of community relations, something his years of management experience in the NYPD enables him to deal with well.
"You have to listen to the complaint, then make sure you do your job so they're satisfied," he said. "This is a pretty place, I'm glad so many people want to keep it that way."
Just down the hall from code enforcement is the office of Environmental Services Coordinator Keith Laakkonen, who probably has the most interesting job at the Town. Whether it's permit reviews or identifying critters washed up on the beach, this Fort Myers native is on the scene.
"I have been with the Town for 2 years now, I applied for the job because I liked working in coastal environments," said Keith, who is also working on his Master's Degree in Environmental Policy at FGCU during his few hours off.
"My days are as varied as the weather," he told us. "I might be investigating something washed up on the beach, doing reports on sea turtle or bird nests, attending meetings such as the Charlotte NEP or the Estero Bay Agency on Bay Management."
One of the weirdest days happened just a few weeks ago, when Keith got a call about some manatees close to shore.
"There's these manatees that are mating in real shallow water," he said. "This means that one female and several males - all over 1,000 pounds - are thrashing around , rolling in the water. It was intense."
"The strange thing was, here's this group of people standing really close - someone even told me that parents were trying to have their kids ride these animals - and they have no idea the danger they're in," he continued. "So I go running out there, yelling about how they could get killed, and I did not get a very good reception. So that was my day at the office - babysitting these folks so they didn't get hurt! It always something different."
After speaking to Keith, we walked to the back of the cluster of offices and cubicles where we met Lois Poff, who is now doing double duty as the Executive Assistant to the Town Manager and Community Development Director until a replacement is found for Dr. Frank Shockey, who left rather quickly in July.
"I have been here for 6 years, after answering an ad in the paper," said Lois, as she juggled her two hats. "I started out working as the receptionist for 14 months, and now between community development and Mr. Stewart's assistant, I spend all day answering calls coming in and assisting with the Town Manager's schedule, calendar, weekly reports, etc."
Lois said that, in her 40 years of secretarial experience, Stewart is the busiest person she's worked for.
"He meets with so many people and works so hard, and he's always professional," she said.
Down from Lois's desk is Community Development Technician Jim Carrasco, who has the unenviable job of explaining the Town's Land Development Code.
"I've been here a little over 3 years, and I take care of all the zoning stuff," said the southwest Florida native. "I'm the first person people call for permits for single family homes, duplexes, short term rentals, occupational licenses, inspections and permits."
Carrasco showed us how he created an in-house permitting system to streamline the process when contractors call.
"The phone rings all the time - Ken (Miller) and I are really busy," he said.
The next cubicle is occupied by John Patterson, who has an interesting title as Floodplain Development Director.
"I basically review all the building permits for our floodplain requirements, make sure they are in line with our regulations," he said. "I also renew our participation in the community ratings system, which reduces the cost of residents' flood insurance by 15%."
On the first floor of Town Hall, behind council chambers, is the lair of the unsung heroes of the island - the Public Works department. These guys keep running the things that no one wants to think about, and the fact that you don't see them doing it means they're doing it well.
Cathie Lewis has worked for the Town for 4 years, and became Public Works Director after Jack Green took over the Town Manager's seat. Originally from Vermont, Lewis has lived here for many years and has a lot of experience in water and wastewater issues.
"Every day is different," she said. "Most of the time I'm dealing with the various projects we have going on, handling resident's issues as well as dealing with engineers, consultants, meeting with the Deputy of Public Works, the foremen, managing the department budget - which is pretty much the largest of all the Town's departments - and all public services including the mooring field."
"It usually averages over 60 hours a week, including council meetings," she added.
Assisting Cathie is Deputy Public Works Director Eric Scott, who told us his biggest headache of the past few months is locating the hidden utility pipes on North Estero Boulevard so that crews working there don't get injured.
"It's like a treasure map with no code," he said, laughing. "So I've been out there a lot, but we're really making progress - the sidewalks will be in in front of Pink Shell by this weekend."
Scott told us that he typically gets to work shortly after the town maintenance guys arrive between 5 and 6am.
"The phone starts ringing about 5:30, and it could be anything from a water, road, storm or fountain issue," he said, proudly reporting that the 'fountain issue' has now been fixed.
"The guys that work here are incredible - I've been doing this for 25 years, and this is the best crew I've ever had."
Scott's assistant asked us not to use her name, but told us that she enjoys her job invoicing and taking care of the all the numbers involved with public works.
"I also answer calls coming into Public Works, and if I can help, I do, or figure out what they need," she said.
Next to Cathie and Scott is Public Works Supervisor Eric Berris, who takes care of the town's mooring field, and is responsible for the colorful street performers in Time Square.
"I've worked for the Town for 2 years, and in this position for 7 months," said the Baton Rouge native. "Previously, I worked on Sanibel for the Sanibel Captiva Conservation Association. My job is pretty interesting - I do special events permits, the street performers, reentry passes and the Farmer's Market during season."
Last but not least are the guys who work outside of Town Hall - the maintenance workers who are up before we are every morning to make sure the island is beautiful. We profiled these guys in last year's Labor Day issue, but will conclude this year's story by listing their names: Shawn Millis - Foreman, John Ellison, Martin Pitts, Tom Clift, Mark McMahon, Blake Barber, Jeff Richard; Mark Hess - Harbor Maintenance; Jim Demila - Bay Oaks Maintenance; Don Hany - Janitorial and Mark LaFave.
Happy Labor Day everyone! Now relax!
Keri Hendry