12 make cut to run Pinellas

A consultant whittles a list of finalists from 87 applicants. A surprise is the chief deputy property appraiser.

By ALICIA CALDWELL and LISA GREENE

© St. Petersburg Times,
published September 8, 2001

CLEARWATER -- A consultant has narrowed the field of applicants for Pinellas County administrator to a dozen, including the second-in-command at the Pinellas Property Appraiser's Office and a top manager at the Southwest Florida Water Management District.

As expected, Dan Kleman, Hillsborough County administrator, made the cut Friday along with Russ Sloan, president of the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce.

They are vying for the top job in a government with a $1.5-billion budget, and challenges that include choosing expensive new voting machines and paying for road improvements in a congested urban county.

County Commission Chairman Calvin Harris said the pool sounded promising.

"It sounds like we've got a pretty diverse group there in terms of background and experience," he said. "I think it will move quickly."

Among the surprises on the list: Pam Dubov, Pinellas' chief deputy property appraiser. Dubov has said she planned to run for Pinellas property appraiser in 2004 when term limits would force incumbent Jim Smith to retire from office.

"Things change," said Dubov.

She said that if she does not get the administrator's job, she will run for property appraiser.

In Hillsborough, Kleman's future has been uncertain since November, when commissioners decided not to extend his contract after giving him poor evaluations.

On Friday, Hillsborough Commissioner Tom Scott sent a note to fellow commissioners asking them to extend Kleman's contract for four years. The commissioners are scheduled to discuss Kleman's future Sept. 19.

Kleman declined to discuss Scott's proposal.

Other Hillsborough commissioners have said they may seek to postpone the discussion until after Pinellas chooses its county administrator.

Another local candidate with experience in big government is Eugene A. Schiller, one of the top managers at Swiftmud for nearly a decade. Schiller oversees finance, budgeting, human resources and systems management for the district.

He said the Pinellas job would be an opportunity for a "new challenge" locally.

The county administrator's job, which pays between $117,500 and $182,200, has been vacant since last fall, when Fred Marquis retired after 22 years. Harris said he hopes to fill the job by Nov. 1. Interim County Administrator Gay Lancaster has said she doesn't want the job.

An Illinois-based search firm, the PAR Group, advertised for applicants and narrowed the field from the 87 who applied to a dozen.

Two women, Pamela Brangaccio of Charlotte County and Dubov, are on the list of 12. So is an American Indian, Andrew Brother Elk, of San Francisco.

Steve Bernard, vice president of the PAR group, said he didn't know whether any other minority candidates applied or are in the group of semifinalists because the search firm didn't ask any candidate's race.

The candidates are:

Brangaccio, assistant county administrator in Charlotte County, which has a population of 142,000. She was city manager in Safety Harbor for five years, ending in 1996.

Barry A. Burton, deputy county administrator in Franklin County, Ohio, which has a population of 1-million. He previously was county administrator for Allegany County in Maryland, which had a population of nearly 76,000 and an operating budget of $105-million.

Barry T. Drew, who for the past six years has been the deputy secretary for administration in the Pennsylvania department of revenue. He also has been director of administration in Erie County, Pa., which has 280,000 people.

Theodore Droettboom, who for the last year has been general manager of Freeport and Lucaya Services, Grand Bahama Port Authority in Freeport, Bahamas. For nearly 15 years before the Bahamas job, he worked in city government in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Dubov, chief deputy property appraiser in Pinellas, where she has worked since 1989.

Elk, who has been a general partner in a San Francisco consulting group since 1994. He also founded and ran a computer company for two years, and was an assistant dean at Stanford University.

Philip L. Hinely, who was county manager in Gaston County, N.C., for 21 years before resigning in March after disagreements with commissioners.

Kleman, who has been Hillsborough administrator since 1994. For 20 years before that, he was city manager in Tallahassee.

Schiller, who was director of financial management in Sarasota County for eight years, ending in 1992. He also had been director of finance and management services for St. Paul, Minn., which has a population of 267,000.

Sloan, who has been president of the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce since 1994. For five years before that, Sloan was president of the Chamber of Commerce for Muncie and Delaware County, Ind.

Steven M. Spratt, assistant county manager for Miami-Dade County. Spratt started in Dade County government right out of college in 1976. He was an administrative assistant, budget director and senior special assistant to the county manager.

John Wesley White, director of public works and environmental services in Fairfax County, Va. For a decade ending in 1997, he was Sarasota County administrator. According to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, White resigned the Sarasota job under pressure. Commissioners at the time said some residents did not trust White's administration.

- Times staff writer Bill Varian and Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

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