Sutherland reflects on leading AP

When Avon Park City Manager Sarah Adelt resigned last November, Maria Sutherland, the city's project manager, accepted the City Council's request to step in as interim.

At the time, the interim period was supposed to be just a few months. But with changes to the position's requirements and council's relaxed approach, the search took almost nine months.

It wasn't a unanimous decision by council. Some council members thought she had enough on her plate. In the end, the majority ruled and Sutherland took the job for no additional pay for a few months.

Sutherland has worked through two city managers since she started as a project manager on March 15, 2004.

In the nine months she's been interim she's worn many hats - airport manager and planning and zoning official, and her two "day" jobs.

Recently she has worked closely with Rene Greene, finance director, to make budget cuts that could save the city thousands of dollars if approved.

Despite juggling all these responsibilities and daily personnel issues, she's found the experience to be a rewarding one.

It's allowed her to discover her weaknesses and realize her true strengths, she said.

"We have good workers in the city and I enjoyed seeing aspects of their personalities that I otherwise wouldn't have... she said in an e-mail.

The council offered James Coleman from Williston the position and is waiting to hear back from him. According to Kathy Bennett, the city's human resource specialist, the contract negotiations can take a few weeks.

The city expects their new city manager to begin by October and they are looking forward to a seamless transition.

"I would expect the new city manager will hit the ground running," Sutherland said.

In regards to what Sutherland learned as city manager she said, "The city manager has to be the ying to the council's yang."

"One must appreciate the fact that they take their civic duty seriously regardless of the way they vote," she added.

Deputy Mayor Brenda Gray said Sutherland gets a perfect evaluation on her leadership skills.

"She has made many, many tough decisions and some of those decisions have not been popular but they needed to be done," she said.