Daytona Beach City Manager, Fire Chief and City Auditor Jobs May Be On The Line
- Charles I. Guarria
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
Three Daytona Beach employees might want to consider updating their resumes and LinkedIn accounts, as questions regarding their effectiveness as leaders took center stage during the City Commission meeting that began on April 1 but didn't end until April 2.
Those three are City Manager Deric C. Feacher, Deputy City Manager and Fire Chief Dru Driscoll, and City Auditor Abinet Belachew.
For Belachew, the warning came moments before he was to present his findings regarding the misuse of taxpayers’ money that he judged as fitting into eleven categories.
Some of the commissioners seemed to disagree with his judgment. Namely, Paula R. Reed and Dannette Henry.
“We've had several situations where his reports have not been accurate,” Reed commented as the Commission waited for Belachew to walk in from the lobby. “And I would prefer for it to be reviewed by somebody to make sure that we point those differences out prior to listening to what he says to us tonight.”
Danette Henry commented that she, too, would be okay with a third party verifying his work. Later in the discussion, she slammed Belachew for making accusations about book purchases, TV purchases, and the use of purchase cards (P-cards) that he deemed questionable, but didn’t follow up with the documentation to back his assertion.
Commissioner Stacy Cantu wasted no time in firing shots at City Manager Deric C. Feacher, saying that he, as “a head of government,” should be the one to tell Belachew that his reports are not accurate. Not a third party.
Eight months after being hired as city auditor, by the City Commission, two of the commissioners believe Belachew’s work is so bad that it needs to be investigated? That isn’t a good way to start a new job.
Later in the evening, Belachew said that he didn’t care if the commission fired him. “You know, I say to you, while I know I work for you, and you have a right to terminate my contract, (it) doesn't mean anything to me. I will do what I think is professional.”
Mayor Derrick Henry’s patience, already worn thin by Belachew, responded, “Well, make sure you're not trying to drive us down that road. Cuz if you try to do that, it won't end well.”
Commissioners Quanita May and Cantu disagreed with the mayor’s perceived threat at a city employee.
Derrick Henry clarified that his statement, “Doesn't mean it'll end in termination. It may mean that it'll end in some shattered relationship. But it it's not going to end well.”
What Belachew’s audit reveals is a litany of allegations that city employees are misusing funds, and/or there is no current policy to guide city employees.
One instance is mileage tracking for take-home vehicles. Another is city vehicles that are not properly marked as being city vehicles. Belachew said employees get to take home vehicles even if they have no business being allowed to take one home. The icing on the cake is that the current vehicle allowance policy was written in 1991. This all adds up to “inconsistency and unfairness,” Belachew commented.
City Manager Feacher noted that policies have been updated in many departments. Belachew seconded that. Mr. Feacher also commented that the P-Card issues are being looked into. And if the commissioners wish, “we’ll go back over the past five years, into each department, based on the new policies.”
Commissioner Cantu again took aim at City Manager Feacher. This time, for using outdated policy as an excuse that led them to this situation. She first complimented him, “I'm happy that he is actually taking action.” Then the boom, “But the problem that I have with all this, everything, is always, oh, it's our policies are outdated. Well, a policy was in place.”
Another key point for Belachew is the management of the Fire Department run by Chief Dru Driscoll.
Belachew stated that the FD doesn’t purchase certain tech items through the IT department, that there are overtime irregularities and questionable book purchases.
Then he commented, “The lower-level fire staff, including today, reach out to me and express their concern for retaliation and many other things. And I encourage you, I think, to consider to protect people. They chose the best interest of the city.”
Belachew informed that City Manager Feacher guaranteed there will be no retaliation against a firefighter who speaks with him.
Commissioner May focused on Driscoll. “I’m going to say it, that we have somebody in charge who's unaware of what's going on in that department, to the extent financially, that we're having this discussion. That's the part that I find disturbing and we're not coming out and saying that.”
Chief Driscoll spoke to the Commission, “I hate being in this position, but the seemingly subjective report furnished by the city auditor unfairly and potentially negligently disparages and brings harmful discredit upon the men and women of the fire department who serve faithfully and have absolutely nothing to do with the decisions or purchasing decisions of the Daytona Beach Fire Department. To confirm for the community, our operational firefighters do not use city funds to purchase daily food, clothing, or anything else that has been implied. The firefighters you see every day responding to emergency calls on fire trucks do not have the ability to make department purchases. All department purchases are made under the authority of fire administration.”
Turning to Belachew, Driscoll stated, “Abinet, I agree with your best practices without a doubt. That's why we've adopted them into our new policy.” He also urged a third party look into Belachew’s findings.
Commissioner Cantu raised the stakes on May’s lament of the issues within the Fire Department. “It's all over the entire city and these p-cards, I mean, we have contractors with p-cards and there is no accountability at all. No repercussion.”
Shortly after that, the dam broke. Cantu called for a vote on City Manager Feacher’s job.
“I am so tired of this the neglect of the poor accountability of our tax money. So right now, I'm going to make a motion. A 30-day notice for termination of Deric Feacher with cause; neglect of his duties, nonfeasance, and responsibility and transparency. So, I'm making a motion if I can get a second, Cuz I'm done with this. It just keeps going on and on and it lies with our city manager.”
Commissioner May second the motion to vote on firing City Manager Feacher.
The city attorney, Benjamin Gross, wanted time to review Feacher’s contract. To ensure there was no liability, based on a breach of contract, if the stated breach wasn’t valid.
Mayor Henry said he believes the citizens deserve better than the way the city is operating right now in some areas.
Commissioner Henry urged city staff not to be discouraged by this moment in time and gave a multitude of examples detailing how Feacher has supported the residents.
Commissioner May gave Feacher credit for his ability to connect with residents. However, from a business perspective, the issues brought to the fore “are serious and they are severe and…we have to all say…this is where it stops with this person with this department.”
May joined Cantu in voting to terminate Deric Feacher as city manager.
No other commissioner did.
Though the vote was 5-2 to keep Feacher in his position, it is interesting to note that Commissioner Monica Paris voted no for this evening. In other words, she isn’t convinced he should keep his position.
Feacher’s contract is up in May. His evaluation will be shortcoming. His most recent evaluation was in February, 2024.
I wrote the following in a Hometown News Volusia article regarding Mr. Feacher's evaluation: "His best evaluations were perfect fives he earned from Commissioners Paula Reed and Ken Strickland...Mr. Feacher’s worst evaluation came from Commissioner Stacy Cantu... she commented, “Needs to be less partisan” and “Feacher need(s) to realize that he works for the commission and not the other way around.” She would like to see enhanced performance in the areas of communication and transparency.
In his closing remarks, which came around 1:30 a.m. April 2, Mayor Henry said, “We have some oversight issues that I think are problematic and that need to be addressed and we will address them. I think that's been stated tonight. But I I'm not going to let anyone sell me on the idea that our city is somehow in some great decay when the reality is we have made a rapid and tremendous ascension. In a lot of ways, that need to be celebrated. So, those things that we don't have right, let's just get them right and continue to push forward, into our destiny.”
Charles I. Guarria is an author, reporter and host based in the state of Florida, USA, covering any topic, anywhere in the world. His career began in 2009. Mr. Guarria is a three-time winner of Emerald Group Publishing’s Highly Commended Award and host of The Opinion Guy Fun Friendly Informative. He is available for hire to write, research, or beta-read.
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Photo Credit: City of Daytona Beach
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