Ousted official rules out a return

Former City Manager Russ Kreager said he wants to move back to Florida but rules out taking a city job, including that of departing Public Works Director David Locke.

By JOSH ZIMMER

© St. Petersburg Times, published February 29, 2000

CRYSTAL RIVER -- Former City Manager Russ Kreager joked Monday about his influence over local politics.

All it took was an offhand remark by City Council member Mike Gudis to thrust him once again into the spotlight where he is stirring up a hornet's nest of rumor and finger-pointing.

Kreager, the city's former public works director before becoming city manager, was dismissed by a hostile council majority last February. He threatened to sue board members for depriving him of due process and won a $23,000 settlement.

Gudis, a Kreager supporter, suggested last week that Kreager would make a good replacement for departing Public Works Director David Locke. Some local officials, including council member Paula Wheeler, said they were shocked by the idea.

So, how does the man with the firm grip on the city's imagination stand on the issue? Kreager said Monday that he's not interested in working for the city again.

Kreager, 50, said that after resigning from his job as administrator for Fairport Harbor Village, Ohio, he currently is looking for work in the Citrus County area.

In the meantime, he and his wife, Donna, continue to live on a month-to-month lease in Fairport Harbor while they rent out their home in Woodland Estates.

"I've broken away from the city and I don't need any repercussions out there in the employment world," he said during a phone call from an undisclosed place in Crystal River. "Been there, done that, don't want to go back. That's what I'm telling everybody."

Kreager never completely disappeared from the scene. His treatment at the hands of council members Alex Ilnyckyj, Paula Wheeler and Richard Brady became the central issue of last year's council campaigns. Many think Brady lost for helping spearhead the case against him.

Laughing at the publicity the mere mention of his name aroused, Kreager seems more interested in avoiding any attention. The settlement with the council prohibited both sides from talking about the case.

"I'm just showing up in Citrus County, and I'm showing up in the paper with no aspiration of coming back and working for the city," he said.

Wheeler accused Gudis of overstepping his bounds as a council member by recommending people for staff vacancies. Gudis rejected the accusation.

"Oh really? I've lost my freedom of speech these days?" Gudis said. "I don't think an elected official oversteps their bounds in expressing their opinions on a department head. And obviously, I thought Russ Kreager would be a good person for (City Manager) David Sallee to consider."

Gudis and Mayor Curtis Rich met separately with Kreager Friday. They said he is looking at public-sector jobs in Citrus and Hernando counties.

Kreager would not comment on specifics, although he acknowledged he is interested in moving back to the area. He said Fairport Harbor is retaining him as a consultant until April 1.

"It's just too cold" in Ohio, he said. "I was quite honored that Mike thought of me. It shows respect for me in this community.

"But at the same you have maybe 50 percent who don't think that way," he said.

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