Manatee County commissioners postponed a discussion about County Administrator Charlie Bishop’s future on Tuesday after the board failed to have enough commissioners physically present to establish a quorum.
Commissioners Tal Siddique, George Kruse and Jason Bearden were physically present at the Oct. 6 meeting. Commissioner Bob McCann participated remotely. Commissioners Amanda Ballard and Mike Rahn were absent, while the District 1 commission seat is currently vacant.
With only three commissioners physically present, the board could not conduct official business. The discussion concerning Bishop was continued until Thursday, Oct. 8. A scheduled vote on a proposed one-year moratorium on new data center applications was also postponed.
Bishop’s future with the county has been under discussion for months. Earlier this year, commissioners approved a six-month extension of his contract rather than a longer-term agreement.
Bearden placed the discussion of Bishop’s employment on the agenda. His memo to commissioners raises concerns about Bishop’s communication and responsiveness, professional conduct, leadership and working relationship with commissioners. It also references concerns about Bishop’s conduct toward a commissioner during a public meeting.
Bearden has also raised questions about county spending, contracts and responses to requests for records. He has argued that the current commissioners are in the best position to evaluate Bishop because they have worked with him during the past several years.
Kruse opposed taking action on Bishop’s employment before a new commission is seated. He raised concerns about the potential costs and disruption of removing the administrator now, including possible severance expenses and the need for an interim administrator.
McCann, who was participating remotely Tuesday, questioned the need to continue debating the issue during a meeting in which the board lacked a quorum and suggested commissioners resume the discussion Thursday.
The Board of County Commissioners is scheduled to hold a land use meeting on Thursday, Oct. 8, when the Bishop discussion and delayed data center moratorium are expected to return.
