Ocala City Hall: Four charter officers re-appointed, and new city attorney begins
Editor's note: The new city attorney was appointed during the Oct. 18 city council meeting. This story and its headlines have been revised to reflect that.
Four charter officers were unanimously re-appointed to their jobs by the Ocala City Council at Tuesday's meeting, and the new city attorney was appointed.
Police Chief Mike Balken, City Clerk Angel Jacobs, Internal Auditor Randall E. Bridgeman and City Manager Pete Lee received 5-0 approval. City Attorney William Sexton was appointed with a similar 5-0 vote.
According to their contracts, they all have two-year agreements.
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Council President Ire Bethea said the vote of confidence shows they're doing "an outstanding job."
Though everyone was given a nod for their respective job, there was a light-hearted moment when Council Pro-Tem James Hilty paused for several seconds before announcing his yes vote, much to the laughter of everyone, for the city clerk.
Police Chief Mike Balken
Balken, who has worked at the police department since 1994, has served as a patrol officer and held many positions through the years.
Promoted to deputy chief in 2018, Balken became interim chief in 2020 following the death of Chief Greg Graham, who was killed in a plane crash that year.
Mayor Kent Guinn nominated Balken to assume the role as police chief not long after Graham's death. Guinn, whose duties include overseeing the police department, said he's happy with Balken's performance and thinks he's done a wonderful job.
The chief thanked council members for their support. Balken's contract calls for an annual salary of $198,500.
Aside from individual council members, the chief received support from those in the audience and fellow law enforcement officials including Sheriff Billy Woods and Chief Deputy Robert Douglas, both of whom attended the meeting.
City Clerk Angel Jacobs
Jacobs started her career in the clerk's office in 1999.
A decade after she started working in the clerk's office, Jacobs became the city clerk. She has been clerk for more than 10 years.
The city's website states: "The City Clerk’s Office maintains official records, provides notice of public meetings for the city, prepares meeting agendas and coordinates municipal elections."
The clerk's annual salary is $92,352.50.
Internal Auditor Randall E. Bridgeman
Randall E. Bridgeman has been with the city for three years.
"The Internal Auditors serve the citizens and taxpayers of the City of Ocala by promoting sound internal controls and processes that assist City Council, City management and City employees to meet their operational, financial, and regulatory goals and objectives," according to the city's website.
His annual salary is $132,000.
City Manager Pete Lee
Lee took over for former City Manager Sandra Wilson earlier this year when Wilson was fired in a 3-2 vote.
Lee first worked for the city from 1994 to 2004. He left, but returned in 2009 and has been with the city ever since.
Along the way, Lee has been an assistant city manager. He was the interim city manager after Wilson's departure, and last month was given the job full time.
His annual salary is $225,000.
City Attorney William Sexton
Last month, city officials approved an employment agreement with Sexton to be the new city attorney. On Tuesday, he was appointed to the job by council.
Sexton was admitted to practice in 2007 and attended the University of Florida Fredric G. Levin School of Law. He specializes in city, county and local government law, according to the Florida Bar website.
Sexton's annual salary is $200,000.
An agreement with former city lawyers
In another 5-0 vote, city council on Tuesday approved an agreement that Robert Batsel and Jimmy Gooding, of the law firm Gooding & Batsel, will serve as outside legal counsel on an as-needed basis, with fees not to exceed $250,000.
Batsel thanked everyone for their support over the years.
In other city news, council voted 5-0 to purchase a piece of property needed for the construction of the second downtown parking garage.
The property, owned by IOM LLC, cost $250,000, plus $6,575 for closing costs, doc stamps and other fees.
Several months ago, city council members decided to move forward with the purchase of six parcels owned by Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church. The price for the 1.62-acre parcel is $1.76 million.
City officials said they expect to close the deal within the next few weeks.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala, Florida charter officers re-appointed for two-year terms
