STUART, Fla. (CBS12) — Less than a year after being fired without cause, Mike Mortell is preparing to return to City Hall as Stuart’s city manager.

The Stuart City Commission voted 3-2 earlier this month to bring Mortell back, citing his experience and long history with the city.

Mortell told CBS12 in an exclusive interview that despite the controversy surrounding his departure, he’s excited to return and hopes to be back at City Hall by Sept. 28.

“My professional adult life, I’ve been tied to the city,” Mortell said.

Mortell’s roots run deep in Stuart. Over more than two decades, he has served as a city commissioner, mayor, city attorney and, most recently, city manager.

That tenure came to an abrupt end last October when the commission voted to fire him without cause.

“It came as a surprise, and I thought I’d done everything they’d asked me to do, but it was, very much politicized,” Mortell said.

Now, less than a year later, a new commission majority has voted to bring him back.

Under his new contract, Mortell will earn a salary of $225,000 per year, about $40,000 less than he earned before his firing. He also keeps the severance package he received following his termination.

Mortell said his decision to return comes down to helping the city address challenges he believes still exist.

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“I have a lot of respect for the employees,” he said. “And when this opportunity arose, I could see that there were some concerns and some issues, and I wanted to go back because I know that I can help fix them.”

One of his first priorities will be reviewing the city’s recently approved budget, which he believes could leave the city spending more than it brings in.

“I believe that some of the numbers in the budget are going to result in deficits later in the future,” Mortell said. “An example of that would be the estimated state revenues.”

The vote to rehire Mortell exposed divisions on the commission, but he said he intends to move past the controversy and work with all five commissioners.

“Last year is over,” Mortell said. “My intention is to do what’s best for the city of Stuart, and we will hopefully continue to have public engagement. I’m going to follow the direction of the city commission and administer what that direction is.”

Mortell’s new contract also prohibits him from doing outside legal work.

He resigned from his position as a court administrator for the 19th Judicial Circuit on Sept. 10 in preparation for his return to City Hall.