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City employees honored for their quiet dedication

The Florida League of Cities sponsors the awards, for which several local workers have been named finalists.

LARGO - Kim Adams is the man in charge of the city's money, but most residents probably don't know who he is.

"Most of my work is behind the scenes, and that's how I like it," said Adams, the city's longtime finance officer. "We're working so everybody else can do their jobs."

Even this week, Adams was toiling away on next year's city budget, crunching numbers and making sure the dollars add up.

But last week, Adams was recognized for his years of work and city contributions. He was named one of three finalists for the Florida League of Cities, City Finance Officer of the Year award.

The award, in its first year, recognizes integrity, initiative and innovation, among other things, said Lynn Tipton, the league's director of membership develop.

Adams is one of three city employees from mid and North Pinellas named as a finalist for a league award. Clearwater City Clerk Cyndie Goudeau and Oldsmar City Manager Bruce Haddock are finalists in their respective categories.

More than a dozen Largo residents included letters of support along with Adams' nomination for the honor, he said. Still, Adams was surprised to hear he was among the final three along with Seminole finance director Harry Kyne and Venice's Michael T. McPhail.

"There's a lot of excellent finance people out there, so this really is an honor," Adams said. "Literally, there are hundreds of people I could nominate myself."

Goudeau, Clearwater city clerk since 1985, is one of four finalists for the City Clerk of the Year award. The city clerks of Sarasota and Greenacres, as well as Seminole City Clerk Beverly Brown, join her.

In her nomination, Goudeau was credited with coordinating an electronic document management system that has made more than 12,000 public documents available on the city's Web site.

"Soon a courier will no longer have to deliver agenda packers to commission members' homes," Goudeau's nomination read. "Instead, they will receive their packets on their laptop computers."

Haddock has overseen an overhaul of almost all of Oldsmar since he became city manager in 1986.

Along with a city that has doubled in population, there's now a new City Hall, a fire station and a municipal services building. Plans are in the works to construct a recreation center and a library. A new cultural arts center isn't far off either, Haddock said.

"Oldsmar is an attractive community that people enjoy living and working in," said Haddock, in his 18th year with the city. "Compared to what it was like (in 1986), it really is night and day.

"There's been improvements in every department," Haddock said. "It's made working here very rewarding."

The Florida Cities of Excellence Awards were the brainchild of league president and Seminole Mayor Dottie Reeder, Tipton said.

"Her goal was to try to create more positive experiences for our cities," Tipton said. "For elected city officials, it was time to recognize their leadership and their dedication. For city staff, it is an opportunity to salute longtime and new city employees who have made a difference."

Other Pinellas County excellence award finalists: City of Excellence, St. Petersburg; City Spirit Award, Belleair, Dunedin and St. Petersburg; and City Attorney of the Year, John C. Wolfe, St. Petersburg.

The winners will be named at a banquet June 26 in Orlando.