NEPTUNE BEACH, Fla. – The former city manager for Neptune Beach is taking legal action after being fired in January.
The city said Stefen Wynn was fired for neglecting his duty and misconduct, but now in a lawsuit, Wynn claims he was fired for being a whistleblower.
Controversy over a water tower in Neptune Beach nicknamed the “big green monster” preceded Wynn’s firing. Neighbors told News4JAX it went up without notice, and they’re worried about it impacting property values.
The city found Wynn didn’t properly supervise the project, but in a lawsuit, Wynn claims he was fired after three years as city manager in retaliation for reporting financial mismanagement and a conflict of interest.
In the lawsuit, he said he alerted the city last year about the police department going over budget and going around spending rules, as well as suspected fraud in the building and permit department, although he acknowledged he wasn’t aware of any fraudulent activity actually occurring.
He also claimed he raised alarms about a potential conflict of interest: the marriage of high-ranking police department official Commander Michael Key and city councilmember Lauren Key, who was also the head of the finance committee—the person who would have needed to address budget problems at the police department.
Wynn claims the councilwoman suggested he resign and later urged other councilmembers to fire him.
Michael and Lauren Key each said they couldn’t comment due to pending litigation.
Labor and employment attorney Tad Delegal, who is not affiliated with the case, says Wynn could prevail in court if the claims he’s making are true, but there’s still a lot we don’t know.
“You always have a process of evaluating the evidence,” Delegal said. “You have the discovery process and you...get to review the documents...get to take depositions.”
Wynn claims he hadn’t seen the plans for the water tower project until December 9 and that reviewing the permit wasn’t his responsibility, but the city attorney said Wynn was charged with overseeing the project. City records show Wynn was notified about the plans for the water tower multiple times, and he even responded to one of the emails about it.
The city attorney said Wynn had also admitted to neglecting a Senior Center project, which remains unfinished two years later.
The city council agreed with the city attorney’s recommendation that Wynn be fired from his job for neglecting his duties and damaging the city’s reputation by allowing the “green monster” to be built.
“If the city says, ‘Okay, you could have been a whistleblower, but we would have fired you anyway, regardless of whether you were’, then that is a defense to a lawsuit…that we fired you for non-retaliatory reasons,” Delegal said.
An attorney for Wynn has not responded to our requests for comment today. The defense attorney for the city said based on what they know, they feel “very good” about their defense of Wynn’s lawsuit.