Dear Editor,
I have regularly attended Milton City Council meetings for many years. Last Tuesday night, April 10, the Council took its biggest leap forward in a long time by firing city Manager Brian Watkins.
Admittedly Mr. Watkins is a talented individual with an impressive resume.
He could have been a valuable asset to the current Council. Could have been but wasn't. In many instances Watkins seemingly used his considerable abilities to delay, thwart and subvert actions by the elected Council rather than facilitate them. Actions by the Council which should have taken weeks to implement instead took months.
Often these delays could have been prevented if Mr. Watkins had simply communicated with the Mayor or Council members. He regularly failed to do so, however, generating a crippling disconnect which regularly hobbled Milton from achieving progress.
With a serious stumbling block removed I believe Milton has now turned a corner toward attaining its impressive potential.
I know this was a difficult step for the Council to take, but it is the kind of leadership we expect from our elected officials. It proves the wisdom of oversight by elected officials over paid staff.
ROB JOHNSTONE
Milton
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This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: LETTER: City takes leap forward in firing manager