A split Loxahatchee Groves Town Council agreed to launch an investigation into Town Manager Francine Ramaglia after another setback in negotiations for her exit.
Before the council’s special meeting on Monday, June 1, Ramaglia rejected the town’s latest offer to terminate her without cause, which included 10 weeks of severance pay, compensation for accrued paid time off, and forfeiture of any remaining balance in her flexible spending account.
Attorney Johneeka Simpson from the law firm GrayRobinson has been leading exit negotiations with the town manager, who was placed on administrative leave in April. In response to the council’s offer, Ramaglia’s legal team requested that the council either accept her retirement and continue paying her through the end of her contract on Sept. 30 or provide 20 weeks of severance in accordance with her employment agreement.
The town has already paid more than $28,000 in administrative leave pay to Ramaglia and has a pending $7,200 legal bill for the negotiations. Council members have held a series of special meetings to discuss how to move forward in the dispute, but continued disagreements between the council majority and Ramaglia’s legal team have kept negotiations deadlocked.
Council members had to decide whether to pay Ramaglia more than $103,000 in salary and benefits through the end of her contract, or more than $86,000 in severance and current accumulated paid time off. One of the few remaining options was to launch an investigation to find evidence to terminate Ramaglia with cause.
Simpson recommended that it would still be in the town’s best financial interest to terminate Ramaglia without cause and pay 20 weeks’ severance. “The town manager’s counsel has stated several times that litigation is certainly underway should she be terminated with cause,” she said.
Mayor Lisa El-Ramey proposed a motion to terminate the town manager with cause and presented the council with a memo that listed Ramaglia’s alleged improprieties.
“These are not isolated incidents but represent a pattern of behavior that materially impairs the effective operation of town government and violates the fundamental obligations outlined in both the town manager employment agreement and position description,” said El-Ramey, who clashed repeatedly with Ramaglia before she was put on administrative leave once two newly elected council members were seated in April.
Simpson at previous meetings advised the council that terminating with cause could lead to litigation and could cost upward of $100,000. El-Ramey’s motion failed 3-2 with council members Anita Kane, Joe Stephens and Paul Coleman dissenting.
Vice Mayor Manish Sood subsequently proposed a motion to launch an investigation into Ramaglia. However, others on the council believed that the town should focus on saving money and moving forward.
Kane pointed out there have already been multiple complaints made against Ramaglia during her tenure to various oversight bodies, but none resulted in any charges or penalties.
“I just think this is… the continuation of a witch hunt,” Kane said. “I think it’s grossly irresponsible, and I think that there will most certainly be litigation, and the cost of that will far exceed what we’re talking about here.”
Former Councilman Todd McLendon, who spent his time on the council prioritizing cost-saving, criticized the current council members during public comment.
“This town needs to move on,” he said. “We have so many issues in this town, and we need to divorce and be done with it. You guys want to keep going… and the only people who win are the attorneys.”
The council passed the motion to launch an investigation into Ramaglia 3-2, with Kane and Coleman dissenting. Simpson and her law firm will be handling the investigation. The motion authorized spending up to $12,000 on the matter. Investigators will go through the documents that allegedly support some of the accusations and interview witnesses to determine if any of the claims against the manager would warrant cause.
