Lavish praise for city manager’s job performance
PALM BEACH GARDENS — After 17 years on the job, Palm Beach Gardens City Manager Ron Ferris earned glowing performance reviews from his bosses on the City Council who encouraged him not to retire any time soon.
The council evaluated Ferris’ performance at its July 12 meeting, praising him for his vision and ability to assemble a first-rate staff. Ferris, 72, has been the Palm Beach Gardens city manager since 2001. During that time, the city’s population has swelled from about 35,000 to roughly 55,000 residents amid bursts of residential and commercial growth.
Mayor Maria Marino said when she attends meetings and other government entities talk about the problems they have, they’re problems that Palm Beach Gardens hasn’t experienced. She called Ferris the “best city manager in the state.” “The staff he has put together are family. They talk to each other. They do not operate in silos,” she said. “This takes a manager who allows them to do their jobs and do their jobs well.”
Marino concluded her public review by asking Ferris to “please stay as long as you possibly can.”
Elected in 2016, Marino and Vice Mayor Carl Woods have worked with Ferris the longest. In the course of two years, retroactive term limits forced the turnover of all five seats on the City Council.
“One of the hardest things for this city manager to do is to juggle our five personalities. We are a super-diverse council,” Woods said.
The turnover could have caused the city to go an entirely different direction, but it didn’t, Woods said, noting he needs Ferris’ guidance, intuition and knowledge of the inner workings of the city.
Woods said he’s proud of what they’ve accomplished in two years, including the creation of a pocket park on a vacant lot at Holly Drive and Ironwood Road.
“The people are giddy about the parks,” he said.
Councilman Matthew Lane said the city has one of the best police departments in the country and a highly decorated fire department. The recreation programming is “exceptional,” the finance department does an “excellent” job. People compliment the planning and zoning department’s work, he said.
“The vision for this city and for all of these departments comes from one person, and that’s our city manager,” Lane said. “None of this happens by accident. It’s all done with planning, foresight, intellect and wisdom.”
Councilman Mark Marciano said the council’s job is to represent residents, not the city manager, and be the conduit between the two parties. When he has ideas about what he wants to do, he has to keep in mind that there’s “been somebody sitting here for a long time that’s created an environment that’s unique,” he said.
“We’re not going to be buddies, but we will be very respectful and friendly, and that’s the key,” Marciano said.
Ferris’ tenure hasn’t been without controversy, most notably a community uproar over plans for a spring training baseball stadium in a quiet neighborhood off Central Boulevard and national scrutiny of the city’s police department following the fatal shooting of Corey Jones by then-Officer Nouman Raja, who was wearing plainclothes.
The city fired Raja about a month after the shooting, and Ferris, the police chief and the mayor held meetings with community leaders to listen to their grievances and work out solutions. The changes were implemented within a year of the shooting.
Ferris always puts the city first when difficult decisions need to be made and often “thinks outside the box” when confronted with a challenge, said Councilwoman Rachelle Litt.