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Dunedin gets its city manager

Commissioners choose an Ohio man with experience at myriad municipal jobs.

By SHEELA RAMAN
Published November 1, 2006

Robert DiSpirito, who has run Oberlin, Ohio, for a decade, will be Dunedin's next city manager.

The Dunedin City Commission took less than half an hour to make the unanimous decision in a special meeting Tuesday morning.

"He stood out because of the breadth and depth of experience he's had," said Commissioner Julie Scales.

DiSpirito "went the extra mile" when he visited Dunedin for interviews by stopping by at the Chamber of Commerce and visiting many downtown stores, Scales said.

"His excitement really came through," she said.

DiSpirito, 47, said he had not sought another job since taking over in Oberlin in 1996. He couldn't resist the Dunedin job because he knew about the city's charm from visiting his sister who lives in Tarpon Springs.

"I'm very excited to have the chance to work with this town," DiSpirito said.

The similarities between Oberlin and Dunedin made DiSpirito a prime candidate, commissioners said. Both towns have an artsy feel, a small, walkable downtown and recently faced land redevelopment challenges.

DiSpirito has big city experience, too.

In the mid 1980s, he worked in Dallas as assistant to the director of planning and development and assistant to the mayor and City Council. He later spent time as a private consultant to municipal governments nationwide.

From 1989 to 1996, DiSpirito worked as assistant city manager in Meadville, Pa., and Delaware, Ohio.

DiSpirito's accomplishments in those cities showed Dunedin commissioners that he possessed the one thing they especially valued - creativity.

"He had that edge," said Commissioner Julie Ward Bujalski.

Bujalski was particularly impressed by the partnerships DiSpirito developed to preserve public services under a tight budget, including saving Oberlin's only city hospital by partnering with Oberlin College and Community Health Partners.

DiSpirito, who has accepted Dunedin's offer to enter into contract negotiations, said he already has some ideas about how to generate property tax relief for city residents. He said the city needs to create more forms of revenue to keep the millage rate down.

"We could bring in some commerce parks and get more commercial tax revenue," he said.

DiSpirito's colleagues in Oberlin said they will miss him.

"I'm not exactly excited about it," said Oberlin Mayor Dan Gardner. "He really became a part of Oberlin, and I'm sure in a short amount of time he will do the same for Dunedin."

"Rob's competent, energetic, outgoing and knows exactly what it takes to run a city. It will be a loss for the city of Oberlin," said Ron Rimbert, vice president of the Oberlin City Council.

DiSpirito has a wife, Evangelina, a daughter, Sophia, 3, and a son, Nicholas, 21 months.

The candidate pool for the job narrowed to four after Mike Bonfield, city manager of St. Pete Beach, pulled out Monday afternoon for family reasons.

Dunedin Mayor Bob Hackworth, Vice Mayor Dave Eggers and Commissioner Deborah Kynes said they were equally enthusiastic about Jill Silverboard, city manager of Madeira Beach, as they were about DiSpirito.

Eggers said Silverboard has experience in the county and could have hit the ground running, but he is just as happy with DiSpirito.

"He had a certain chemistry with the commission," he said.

Commissioners said they were relieved to have finally concluded the search. They had faced months of indecision since John Lawrence retired from the position in January.

"This is probably the most important decision any of us is going to make as a commissioner," Hackworth said.

[Last modified November 1, 2006, 16:08:57]