BRADENTON BEACH – City commissioners approved a contract to retain City Attorney Erica Augello on a permanent basis.
In October, the city commission approved a short-term contract with the Trask Daigneault firm in which Augello is a partner. That initial contract secured Augello’s services as interim city attorney for up to six months in the wake of then-city attorney Ricinda Perry’s immediate retirement.
Attorney Robert Lincoln represented the city during the gap between Perry’s Sept. 18 retirement and Augello being named interim city attorney in October.
During the April 16 city commission meeting, Augello said, “We are on our six months and it’s about time to decide if you’d like for me to continue services as an interim and put it out to bid for another city attorney or would you like to secure my firm’s services as city attorney, or something in the middle of that?”
“No middle of the road for me,” Mayor John Chappie responded. “I want to sign you up.”
Commissioner Scott Bear asked if the city has the right to terminate the contract with Trask Daigneault if an attorney other than Augello provides the city’s legal services.
“The contract is not with me, it’s with my firm,” Augello said. “I can add a provision in there that lists me as the principal on the contract, and if there’s a change it needs to be approved by the commission.”
Bear said he would like Augello named in the contract as the city’s principal legal representative.
The commissioners unanimously approved the contract with Trask Daigneault, with the stated changes.
In October, Augello was approved to serve as the Bradenton Beach city attorney on an interim basis for up to six months, or until a permanent replacement for Perry was selected.
Augello was already serving as the Holmes Beach city attorney when she was named Bradenton Beach’s interim city attorney, but plans were already being formulated for her to vacate the Holmes Beach position to accommodate the law firm’s overall scheduling needs.
Perry’s 21-year tenure as city attorney came to an end on Sept. 18, when she announced her immediate retirement during that day’s city commission meeting.
Perry’s retirement announcement came after city commissions met on Sept. 16 to evaluate her job performance following allegations that she had incorrectly named a Bridge Street business owner as the source of an FDEP complaint allegedly filed against a neighboring business.
FDEP later confirmed that no complaint had been filed, which triggered the Sept. 16 job performance review meeting.
