The following letter was sent to Rehoboth Beach commissioners with a copy provided to the Cape Gazette for publication.
I’d like to respond to Toni Sharp’s comment referring to the citizens as disrespectful at the July 8 meeting about City Manager Taylour Tedder’s contract and hiring process. The crowd may have taken a harsh tone at times, but this is a natural human reaction when state law is disrespected three times in 90 days. By doing so, commissioners are disrespecting the law of Delaware and, thus, they are disrespecting the people who elected them. In a word, Sharp is being arrogant to refer to the crowd as disrespectful when, in fact, commissioners are the disrespectful ones. This being my first ever meeting, I found Sharp’s response to be arrogant and acting as if she’s better than those who elected her and that she’s above the law.
Secondly, I have commuted 45 to 60 minutes one way to my job many years during my 44-year career. Thousands of people throughout America do this type of commute daily. There is reasonable housing within 30 to 45 minutes of Rehoboth. A $750,000 relocation package is not at all necessary. I’m sure that this relocation assistance amount was not in the job posting, yet Tedder applied for the job. This was not necessary and a careless use of taxpayers’ funds.
Lastly, it was so inappropriate to have Tedder in the room. This had to be very awkward for him. He seems like a great guy. It was a very poor decision to have him at the table.
All of this could have been avoided if commissioners had followed the law and, frankly, if they simply had used common sense. Why didn't they say this?: “We didn’t follow the law. We broke the process. We need to redo the search process. In the meantime, Tedder will be asked to stay on as we reopen the search and renegotiate the contract.” Commissioners would have saved face and regained trust.
Commissioners missed a big opportunity to show that they listened and respect input, which would calm the people down and bring us together.
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