The Tampa Bay Water board has placed the organization’s general manager on administrative leave and ordered an investigation into his performance as it decides whether to fire him.
General Manager Matt Jordan was the subject of an anonymous letter from “proud supporters of Tampa Bay Water and its mission” this summer that alleged poor leadership, sexism and low morale in the region’s main drinking water supplier. By the time it came in, a few of the organization’s board members had already soured on his leadership. Where the organization goes moving forward remains an open question, shadowed by tensions between the elected leaders who make up the board.
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“I don’t see the value that he brings daily,” said Tampa Bay Water chairman Dave Eggers, a Pinellas County commissioner who brought forward a motion Monday to fire Jordan outright. “I am not going to be responsible for kicking the can down the road for another chairman and another board.”
Other board members were bothered that Eggers had already asked Jordan for his resignation, without first consulting the board, and said the agency should hire an outside investigator to produce a report before deciding what to do. The board members voted 5-4 to place Jordan on paid leave and pursue an investigation.
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“We cannot operate like this,” said Hillsborough County Commissioner Sandra Murman, one of the members who opposed Eggers' push to fire Jordan immediately. “We cannot be HR professionals on this board.”
Jordan attended but did not speak at Monday’s meeting. He did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent by email and through a Tampa Bay Water spokeswoman. He has led the organization since 2013.
Tampa Bay Water provides water for more than 2.5 million customers across Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco Counties, along with the cities of St. Petersburg, Tampa and New Port Richey. Public officials from each government serve on the board, which was born out of a desire for harmony in the late 1990s following a territorial conflict over water.
That collaboration has been fraying. Last year, Murman said it seemed like Tampa Bay was moving toward another water war when officials in Pinellas and Hillsborough squabbled over a City of Tampa plan to pump highly treated wastewater into the aquifer before using it for drinking.
The recent anonymous letter specifically cited issues with how Jordan handled communication during the debate over that plan. When it surfaced in August, board members said they could do little with the letter because they could not verify its claims. Some encouraged employees with issues to approach Eggers, as the board chair.
Since then, Eggers said, he has talked to several staffers who confirmed parts or all of its contents. On Monday, he read snippets of notes from those conversations, saying he had promised anonymity.
Among the criticisms of Jordan he listed: “disengagement,” “comes in late and leaves early,” “definitely listens to men more and demeans women” and “doesn’t listen and cuts people off.”
Several board members took issue with what they said was a lack of verification for those claims. They said they were surprised when they received an email from Eggers earlier this month recommending they fire Jordan. In that message, he noted he had asked for Jordan’s resignation, accompanied by the board’s lawyer, but Jordan had declined to step down.
“I was left in the dark about what the problems are,” Hillsborough County Commissioner Mariella Smith said Monday.
In the past two years, Jordan has mostly earned average or better performance reviews, according to agency records. Eggers, Murman and St. Petersburg City Council member Darden Rice have criticized aspects of his leadership and communication with local officials.
Over an hour and a half Monday, board members argued more about process than Jordan’s performance. Tampa City Council member Charlie Miranda called for the investigation, saying “an anonymous letter is not a fact.”
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“I want the facts,” he said. Miranda is the only board member who has not filled out performance reviews for Jordan. He said that is not how he works, instead making just a yes-or-no judgment on retaining a person.
Tampa Bay Water board lawyer Barrie Buenaventura suggested it was unclear what the board wanted attorneys to investigate. She suggested the debate was essentially a continuation of Jordan’s performance review, which is the board’s duty.
“You have a right to retain or terminate the general manager,” Buenaventura said.
She and Eggers are now supposed to bring in an outside firm and set parameters for the investigation. The board members want it to be finished by their next meeting Dec. 14. It’s not clear how much the investigation will cost.
Miranda took note of Monday’s meeting as evidence of how hard it is for someone like Jordan to manage the personalities of nine politicians from different local governments.
“You can see how difficult the general manager’s job is,” he said.
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