Resident calls for removal of 3 commissioners

STUART, Fla. — A controversy is erupting in Stuart ahead of Monday’s critical vote that could cost City Manager Mike Mortell his job after more than two decades with the city.

Last week, three commissioners called for Mortell’s resignation without explanation. Ted Astolfi, a local resident, is now demanding the removal of those same commissioners, and a state lawmaker is investigating whether they broke state law.

WATCH BELOW: Stuart resident calls for removal of 3 commissioners amid city manager controversy

Stuart resident calls for removal of 3 commissioners amid city manager controversy

“Request the governor to remove these people from office,” Astolfi said during a delegation meeting on Tuesday.

He urged lawmakers to remove commissioners Sean Reed, Laura Giobbi and Christopher Collins.

“This is a bigger issue. This is about good government,” Astolfi told WPTV.

Astolfi is calling out the commissioners for “dereliction of duty,” claiming they first “ambushed” Mortell with a resignation request that wasn’t on the agenda during a public meeting held Oct. 13.

Now, he’s also saying they may have violated state growth laws.

All three commissioners are newly elected and have taken hard stands against development, reversing a Brightline deal.

Then, in an Aug. 25 meeting, they voted to join a lawsuit against the state over Senate Bill 180, arguing the law oversteps local control of land use.

At the same meeting, officials admitted the city already has ordinances that don’t comply with the new law.

“We’ve enacted ordinances that are clearly in violation of our comprehensive plan; we’re in direct violation of state law by failing to rescind,” Mayor Campbell Rich said.

“I would like to see some sort of investigation to see if they have violated those laws,” Astolfi said.

State Rep. Toby Overdorf, R-Stuart, said his office is looking into the accusations and will be reviewing previous meeting minutes.

“We are looking at that and seeing if these accusations are in fact true,” Overdorf said. “We’ve also been contacted by others in the community who have said to us that these three commissioners are directing city staff to not follow state law. That’s a concern.”

Giobbi denied those allegations, saying she has “no idea what state law he’s talking about” and would not direct city staff to do anything improper.

Collins says he’s “disappointed” in the criticism but stands by voters who elected him to fight overdevelopment.

“I think Ted and his swamp creature friends, I think they’re out of touch, and I think residents care more about traffic and overdevelopment rather than what Ted Astolfi thinks,” Collins told WPTV.

Reed declined to comment on camera amid a police investigation into threatening phone calls he says he’s received.

According to a police report that WPTV obtained, the calls were made by a “politically connected individual and well-known businessman” who was “unhappy with a recent political statement made by Reed.”

Some taxpayers, like Robin Cartwright, however, do support a closer look at Mortell’s performance.

“I’m not so much in favor of somebody being fired. I want to be very clear, I’m more in favor of his contract being reviewed. And if he’s not abiding by his contract, then the commission holding him to that,” Cartwright told WPTV last week.

WPTV filed a public records request for complaints against Mortell from staff, officials or residents, but the City said they found none. His personnel file we requested shows no disciplinary action, no complaints and no negative feedback. Instead, he received two raises in recent years for strong performance.

In last week’s meeting, Giobbi cited only “trust issues” when asked about reasons for Mortell’s potential dismissal.

When pressed for specifics about the trust issues, Giobbi compared the situation to a private employment contract.

“If your employer decided that he wanted to end your contract with you, would you be happy if he posted all those reasons on the internet so everyone could see?” Giobbi said.

“I think the difference though is that this deals with taxpayer dollars, my job doesn’t,” WPTV reporter Kate Hussey responded.

“It’s still a contract,” Giobbi said.

Mortell has not returned calls for comment. The commission is set to vote Monday on whether to fire him as residents rally downtown in his support.

WATCH BELOW: Rally scheduled to show support for embattled Stuart city manager

Rally scheduled to show support for embattled Stuart city manager

Several Stuart residents are voicing support for Mortell after Reed called for his resignation during a city commission meeting last week.

Local real estate agent John Gonzalez said he was frustrated after watching the meeting.

“I was watching it online and was furious,” Gonzalez said.

Resident Robert Martin shared similar feelings, adding that he was surprised by the call for Mortell’s resignation, given Mortell’s experience with the city.

“I was a little upset because I couldn’t understand why someone with all of Mike’s experience, everything Mike’s known and done through the years of being here that they would want to discount somebody’s ability to make decisions,” Martin said.

Supporters point to Mortell’s more than two decades of service with the city as a reason he’s the perfect man for the job.

“All of these departments work and run very, very, well, and when you unceremoniously fire the leader, what’s going to happen? I mean, I hope that we don’t have chaos between the ranks of the employees,” Gonzalez said.

In response, Gonzalez organized a rally in downtown Stuart on Wednesday, hoping to show city commissioners that residents want Mortell to remain in his position.

“There’s a lot of people in the city of Stuart that love him and respect him and like the job that he’s doing,” Gonzalez said.

Local business owner and longtime resident Jeff Bowers made it a point to attend the rally and show his support.

“He has been such a part of the fabric of this community and has done so much for the community,” Bowers said.

Some residents also expressed concern about the potential financial impact of replacing Mortell and conducting a search for a new city manager.

“As a taxpayer, I’m concerned about the cost of making an irrational decision,” Gonzalez said.

“Whatever their intentions are, it’s the unintended consequences of what could come of this that really concerns me,” Bowers added.

The city commission agreed to revisit the discussion about Mortell’s employment at its next meeting on Monday to allow them time to evaluate his performance.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and portions have been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.