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Pinellas County Manager Quits

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By CARLOS MONCADA, The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 12, 2007

CLEARWATER - Pinellas County Administrator Steve Spratt, on tenuous political footing since he was mentioned in a grand jury report on a county land purchase, has resigned, effective Sept. 30.

The six-year administrator is the second casualty from the land deal. Last week, commissioners fired longtime County Attorney Susan Churuti for her role in the transaction, in which Pinellas County paid $225,000 for Property Appraiser Jim Smith's 1.4-acre tract in north Pinellas County for flood control.
County commissioners unanimously accepted the resignation, which Spratt made Tuesday at the end of a daylong commission work session. The resignation was not on the agenda.

'There was a question of whether he had the confidence of the majority of the board,' commission Chairman Ronnie Duncan said. 'And he made the decision to bring his resignation forward.'

The grand jury, chosen by State Attorney Bernie McCabe to examine the June 5 land deal, found no evidence a crime had occurred. However, the panel did determine the transaction's handling created 'the clear public perception' that Smith received preferential treatment, eroding public trust in government.
Spratt last week acknowledged not telling the commissioners more details about the purchase before the board approved it based on his recommendation. He said he felt pressured to rush the deal to get out of a situation in which the county could be sued after the workers went on Smith's property.

Some commissioners, though, said they thought Spratt could have slowed down the process regardless of any pressure to close the deal quickly.

Rather than fire Spratt last week, commissioners decided to reprimand him publicly and said they would re-evaluate him by the end of the year.

He decided not to wait until then.

'I want to thank you for your support over the years,' Spratt told commissioners Tuesday after they accepted his resignation. 'You have been a pleasure to work with.'

The 52-year-old administrator declined requests for interviews after the meeting. In a public statement, he wrote that he would work to implement the recommendations of the grand jury 'and attend to other important transition work' before leaving.

'This resignation is submitted with no negativity or ill feeling as I am proud of the accomplishments we have achieved together,' Spratt wrote.

'I would hope that this action makes your discussion of the 'reprimand' moot and that you would be willing to formally acknowledge my positive service to the county,' Spratt wrote.

He wrote that a meeting he had Friday with department directors 'was consumed by discussion of the public repercussions from the grand jury presentment.

'Frankly, they are hurting, and this is a very real distraction from our important work for the people of Pinellas County,' Spratt wrote.
Spratt is paid $223,476 annually. He was hired in 2001 and is a former assistant county manager for Miami-Dade County.

County Commissioner Bob Stewart said he was disappointed that Spratt chose to resign and that the commission accepted it.

'But I totally understand Steve's conclusion,' Stewart added, 'that without solid support from a majority of the board he wouldn't have been able to continue as the administrator.'

Reporter Carlos Moncada can be reached at (727) 451-2333 or cmoncada@tampatrib.com.

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