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Coller, McIntosh get high marksBy JEFFREY S. SOLOCHEK © St. Petersburg Times, published October 3, 2000 Six months into their new jobs, Hernando County Administrator Paul McIntosh and Attorney Garth Coller have won rave reviews from their bosses. Coller and McIntosh exceeded the standards set for them before they started March 6, County Commissioners Chris Kingsley, Nancy Robinson and Paul Sullivan said in their six-month evaluations. "They both have been meeting what I consider the essential requirements of the job," said Sullivan, who gave the highest scores. Commissioner Pat Novy did not submit ratings. Commissioner Bobbi Mills, who lost her re-election bid, said she would not fill out the forms because she did not think her evaluations would benefit anyone. The county's two top brass will get 2 percent merit raises and 3 percent cost of living raises as a result of the positive marks. McIntosh now is paid $89,294, while Coller receives $85,000. With the raises, McIntosh's salary will increase to about $93,759 and Coller's pay will rise to about $89,260. Coller, Hernando's first full-time county attorney, earned an average of 4.38 on a 5-pointscale. Robinson stated in her written comments that Coller has been helpful, courteous and respectful to everyone, has demonstrated sound judgment and has taken the initiative to research issues thoroughly. "As the county attorney . . . he is providing the leadership for team cohesiveness and increased productivity of the highest quality," Robinson wrote. Commissioners unanimously agreed in mid 1999 to hire a full-time county attorney. They said longtime attorney Bruce Snow could not continue to represent the growing county along with his private clients, and Snow declined to take the full-time job. Kingsley said Coller always comes to board meetings prepared and keeps commissioners within the bounds of their authority and jurisdiction. He also offers creative suggestions to allow commissioners to accomplish their goals, Kingsley wrote. "Garth is very helpful and prepared for our meetings. Our contracts are very well prepared. (He) gives accurate and timely advice during meetings and is always in attendance or available as needed," Kingsley wrote. For areas of improvement, Robinson wrote that Coller should increase commissioner training about their legal obligations, and he should ensure that all documents "of legal significance" are properly reviewed. Sullivan offered no written comments. "I had felt things were going very well, and the review confirmed it for me," Coller said. He agreed that his department needs to better review all documents but added that his staff is too small to get that done. "What we're doing is legal triage," Coller said. "We're finding areas more likely to generate litigation and getting involved in those areas." He noted that some commissioners in the past had commented about his asking several questions during board meetings, quite different from Snow's quiet style. The questions are designed to elicit certain information that must be on the record if the commission needs to defend its position later, Coller explained. "I don't believe in any way that's being the sixth commissioner," he said. "If they understood the law the way I understand the law, they would have asked those questions." McIntosh earned a 4.34 on the 5-point scale. Commissioners praised his leadership style and his willingness to take responsibility for results whatever the outcome. "Mr. McIntosh's plans, initiatives and hirings are only as good as his ability to convince the board of their validity," Kingsley wrote. "He has formatted sound ideas and plans. I appreciate his willingness to not back down once he has put thought and research in a proposal to the board." Robinson lauded McIntosh for "exceptional" organizational abilities and said "the organization as a whole has stabilized and productivity is improved" under his leadership. He uses solid management principles and government experience to create an environment that empowers employees to perform well, she wrote. In an interview, Sullivan said McIntosh has done a "great job" despite some early miscommunications and disagreements between them. Sullivan did not support McIntosh's recommendations for fire district chief or the fleet manager, and he often bristled that McIntosh did not advise him on some matters before commission meetings. McIntosh said the past six months gave him and commissioners a chance to learn how to work together. "I think we've done a very good job in that," McIntosh said. "The board has dealt with some very tough issues in that time. Fortunately, we've been able to support them with enough information to make good decisions on those issues." Unlike Coller, McIntosh has maintained a low public profile, allowing his staff to take the lead on issues they know best. To that end, he dismantled former administrator Bonnie Dyga's organizational structure to allow each department head more autonomy and a direct line to him. In the coming year, McIntosh said, he plans to begin creation of a performance-based budget and to create a strategic plan for the county government in which employees also feel they have a say in the outcome. "The things I'm trying to do here are right in line with contemporary management methods," he said. "Any board elected to run a $190-million organization is going to want its administrator to be doing these things." McIntosh is the county's third administrator in three years. Aggressive and outspoken, Dyga lasted only 18 months. She quit in late 1999, citing constant criticism from Novy and Mills. Deputy Administrator Dick Radacky served as interim chief for about six months until McIntosh came on board.
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