REHOBOTH BEACH — Rehoboth Beach Commissioners held a public hearing today regarding the hiring of city manager Taylour Tedder. This comes after The Delaware Attorney General's Office recently found that the city violated Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) laws during Tedder's hiring process.
Today's public hearing was held as a result of the FOIA violation, where it was found that the city did not discuss Tedder's hiring in public, instead opting for executive sessions. Following the advice of the AG's office, the meeting was held in public, and Tedder's hiring was once again unanimously approved by the commissioners, despite intense debate from the public.
Tom Gaynor, a Rehoboth homeowner who originally filed the FOIA complaint said he was satisfied with the Attorney General's decision but emphasized that it only addressed part of the problem. Citing concerns with the charter violation and salary, which FOIA does not address.
"It does not fix the substantive concerns of the people of Rehoboth - that they hired this guy with the people's money, and an egregious amount of people's money - a candidate that was ineligible under the charter that governs us all." Gaynor said.
“If we don't take a stand for their illegality and for the illegal contravention of the terms and provisions of the charter that govern their behavior - than what's next?” he added.
Dozens of residents voiced their dissatisfaction at the public hearing, criticizing Tedder's hiring and some even calling for commissioners to resign.
"The compensation is not generous, it’s not lavish - it’s outrageous," one resident stated.
Another added, "I’m very disappointed as a resident - and Mr. Tedder, Stan Mills, and the commissioners aren’t paying you, we are."
Mayor Stan Mills and the commission defended their decision, emphasizing the difficulty of recruiting a strong candidate. Noting they were struggling to retain strong candidate's without a strong compensation package.
"Lots of good things were selling me on the hiring of Mr. Tedder. He has the experience and credentials the city needs - familiarity with CDP, CIP, and strategic plans and grants and he had more to offer than the other candidates. He is a very effective communicator and much, much more," Mayor Mills stated.
Tedder himself did not comment during the meeting.
Tedder's contract includes a $250,000 annual salary and a $750,000 loan that will be forgiven after seven years.
Tom Gaynor added that he and other residents will continue to press the city on the issue of the charter violation and salary, even looking into a future lawsuit against the city.