City Manager Julio Avael's incompetent handling of Catherine Harding's dismissal simply illustrates, once again, that it's time for him to go. Sooner or later, it will dawn on the majority of the City Commissioners that Avael is nothing more than a two-bit bureaucrat, moving from one smalltime government job to another, conning each new set of commissioners with his "Reinventing Government" and "Core Values" mumbo-jumbo.
Concerning the way Avael fires people, City Commissioner Tom Oosterhoudt may have said it best: "He doesn't seem to know how to make a `clean kill.'"
It seems that time and time again, Avael shoots from the hip, saddling the City with huge financial settlements. But why should that bother him? First of all, it's not his money. And the City Commissioners do not seem inclined to hold him accountable. If anything, they seem to reward his bungling.
City elections are coming up. We think Julio Avael should be an election issue. Those running for Mayor and City Commission should be asked to take a stand on whether they would, if elected or reelected, keep Avael on the job or send him packing.