Former Portland City Manager Jon Jennings was voted out of the same position he held in Clearwater, Florida, on Friday night.
Jennings left Portland in November 2021, taking up the mantle in Clearwater on the tail of the 20-year tenure of former City Manager Bill Horne, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
But the City Council voted 3-2 on Friday to remove Jennings, following his tumultuous time in office. Jennings’ communication style was cited as one of the exacerbating factors in his dismissal, with Mayor Frank Hibbard recently noting he felt that Jennings “was the wrong fit for the city.”
Jennings left Portland amid a shakeup in city politics and criticism from a newly elected city commissioner. He also clashed often with former Portland Mayor Ethan Strimling during his tenure.
He cited the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic when leaving Portland.
The Friday vote by the Clearwater council to dismiss Jennings is not final, as it was not a supermajority, according to the Tampa Bay newspaper. The council will meet again in the new year to discuss the decision.
