LEWISTON — Over the past 12 months, Lewiston has lost three department heads and a number of high-level staff.

Some left in 2023, prior to the controversial decision to move away from longtime Code Enforcement Director David Hediger and a proposal to cut the city sanitarian position, which caused an uproar in the tight-knit department on the third floor of City Hall.

But that controversy has seemingly accelerated the turnover issue. Staff members from that department have said the recent moves created a “toxic work environment,” and one staffer has since resigned. Some expect more will follow.

However, city leaders, who have been under a public microscope ever since the fallout from the DaVinci’s Eatery closure, say the rate of turnover has been on par with most years, and they are confident the city will navigate the transitions and come out better.

They are also on the defensive from a public that wants answers about the decisions regarding the code enforcement office and who was ultimately responsible for making those decisions.

The Sun Journal spoke with current and former staff and city officials about the recent rate of turnover at City Hall and whether it’s simply unfortunate timing or a symptom of continuing turmoil in Lewiston.

‘THE STRAW THAT BROKE THE CAMEL’S BACK’

Since March 2023, the city has seen the departures of longtime Library Director Marcela Peres, Public Works Director Mary Ann Brenchick; and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director Melissa Hue, along with other staffers, including former code officer and safety officer Ben Westman.

Each of those employees reported directly to City Administrator Heather Hunter. Hue left last year after a period of friction with the previous City Council over her role.

Then, the ousting of Hediger early this year seemingly sparked another string of resignations. Misty Parker, the longtime economic development expert and deputy director, left last month. This week, Nick Richard, an eight-year veteran of the code enforcement department, will also leave his post.

City administration said the latest departures are more about staff leaving for better opportunities than any workplace environment issue. But staff who talked to the Sun Journal said it’s both.

Richard, the longtime building/plumbing inspector, said that while his next job is a “vertical move up” — he will be the deputy director of code enforcement in South Portland — his decision was made easier by the recent upheaval in Lewiston’s code department.

Richard said he saw the job posting just after Christmas, but wasn’t sure if he’d apply. But once the announcement came down regarding Hediger, and the possibility his friend Louis Lachance, the sanitation officer, would be gone, he made a last-minute decision to apply.

“It’s kind of like the straw that broke the camel’s back,” he said. “What I heard was that one of these two is not going to be here next week. And for what reason? There was no reason.”

Richard also said he “wouldn’t be surprised if I’m not the last one” to leave the department.

City administration did not respond to a request for Parker’s resignation letter, but Parker left to be the director of economic and community development in Bath. She also spoke to the Sun Journal recently about the move. She did not speak negatively about her time with the city and did not share her letter.

Adam Jones, a code officer and president of the Lewiston chapter of the MSEA Local 1989 union that represents 58 city employees, said several employees have either had new job opportunities arise or are looking. That includes himself, he said.

“It’s hard to think that if none of this was going on that these people would be looking for other (job) opportunities,” he said. “What’s happening here is a domino effect.”

Jones has been outspoken during recent City Council meetings over the handling of Hediger and Lachance’s positions, and the union has been critical of both City Administrator Heather Hunter and Mayor Carl Sheline. Sheline was the subject of a recent “no confidence” vote from the union, and Jones called on the City Council to consider removing Sheline from office.

Jones has said the decision not to conduct a similar vote regarding Hunter does not mean the union supports any recent actions of the city administration, and that members are still considering other action.

Jones also confirmed this week that Lachance has been on a temporary leave from his position for the past few weeks. Jones said there’s been a lot of service industry workers asking for Lachance’s help or asking questions, but that the city has been referring everyone to the state. He said that makes clear that Lachance’s position is valuable and shouldn’t be cut.

Asked two weeks ago, city administration had no comment on Lachance’s status.

Westman, the former longtime safety officer and code enforcement officer in Lewiston who now works for the state, said while code enforcement is an unpopular job in most municipalities, the job is made more difficult in Lewiston by a lack of support from administration.

Rather than backing up staff for doing their jobs, code enforcement are told to “say yes” more often and minimize complaints. Westman left City Hall in May 2023 after roughly five years, and a total of 15 working downtown.

“Why am I beating my head against the wall?” he said about his decision to leave the city’s code officer role. “The city isn’t interested in change, just the perception of change.”

He said for at least the last three years, there’s been an emphasis on customer service versus enforcement in the department. Westman said the department was forced to go to “Verbal Judo,” a program of de-escalation and verbal communication training, while other departments didn’t have to.

“They wanted more ‘yeses’ is what we were told,” he said, so staff in the department was told to come up with ideas on how to be better at customer service.

After Hediger was placed on leave and Lachance’s position was proposed to be cut, several current and former code enforcement staff came out in support of both, and said the city gives preferential treatment to certain businesses. Westman was among those speaking up.

Westman said that after the city passed an ordinance on keeping grass cut to a certain length, he would sometimes hear complaints from city administration about his enforcement efforts when “influential” people complained.

He said he once cited the city for not following its own ordinance.

When he made the switch to safety officer, he said it was just as frustrating because of a constant resistance at City Hall to doing anything differently.

Responding to questions from the Sun Journal about the amount of turnover and criticism of the current administration’s leadership style, Hunter said she’s “well aware that my leadership style is to blame” for what some staff have called a “toxic environment.”

“I get that I am an easy target,” she said. “I hear them. I admit I can be a mama bear when it comes to my work and protecting this $112 million combined city budget.”

“Each staff has been chosen for their expertise and dedication — qualities we need to propel Lewiston forward,” she added. “And for those who feel that our environment needs improvement, I hope they accept our invitation to work together. It will be hard work, but this is Lewiston and we’ve proven over and over again, we do not back down from difficult and challenging times. Together, we will navigate these transitions and emerge stronger than ever.”

Hunter also said the amount of turnover isn’t necessarily beyond an average year.

According to a city spokeswoman, 23 employees have left so far in fiscal year 2023-24, which began in July 2023, while 39 have been hired. In all of fiscal 2022-23, 36 employees left, while 42 were hired.

“The city of Lewiston is not immune to the ebb and flow of employment,” she said. “Yes, over the last six months to a year, there have been staff who have departed the city, which is no different than other municipalities across the state. In fact, throughout the state, there are at least 400 municipal job openings right now.”

THE ULTIMATE DECISION

Ever since the decision to oust Hediger and the proposal to cut Lachance’s position were made, questions have swirled from the public and staff over who made the final call.

The events since January have heightened a lack of trust, not only from the public, but also among staff and elected officials.

According to Brian O’Malley, the deputy city administrator, he has received 35 Freedom of Access Act requests since the beginning of 2024. That includes one request from a city councilor for all communications between two other city councilors and the mayor.

City administration has until now not commented on the Hediger decision, calling it a personnel matter, and again refused to comment recently when asked who made the ultimate decision. When Hediger was first placed on administrative leave, Mayor Carl Sheline said the city was “moving in a different direction,” making him the only official to publicly comment on the issue.

Asked last week, Hunter said the recent departure of Hediger has “undoubtedly raised questions and concerns,” but said the past three City Councils have “expressed goals to improve customer service and make our city more business-friendly to grow our economic development.”

“To this day we continue to meet with developers to help facilitate doing business here in spite of today’s current rising construction costs,” she said.

The City Charter states that the city administrator can, “when deemed necessary for the good of the city, suspend and remove any city employee or appointive administrative officer.”

“A man like Hediger who has a 25-year career without a blemish on his record, is suddenly out. The only person who can fire him is the city administrator,” Westman said. “Others can suggest it, but the only person who fires a director is the city administrator.”

Hunter was also responsible for putting the proposal to cut Lachance’s position on the council agenda, which was ultimately tabled until March 19.

Asked about the Hediger decision last week, Sheline said, “as most residents are probably aware, the charter doesn’t grant the office of the mayor the power to hire or terminate staff, that rests solely with the city administrator.”

“It would be inappropriate to do, and so I have never asked for a candidate to be hired or an employee to be terminated,” he said. “There have been some decisions made that I’ve supported and some that I haven’t, and I’ve said so publicly at the time.”

Bob McCarthy, a former city councilor who served from 2021-23, said he believes that up until this year, the amount of turnover at City Hall was normal.

“Things are not boding well for the city right now,” he said. “The DaVinci’s incident, and all of the behind-the-scenes shenanigans, has negatively impacted a lot of the staff.”

Referencing the recent “no confidence” vote in the mayor from the Local 1989 union, McCarthy said, “The employees union has placed the blame on the mayor. I don’t disagree with that assessment.”

McCarthy defended Hunter, saying he has “great respect for her knowledge and integrity.”

Derrick St. Laurent, public information officer for Lewiston Police Department, also defended Hunter’s leadership, saying she “stepped up to the plate” to address a dire issue two years ago when the department was experiencing an exodus of officers to smaller agencies for similar pay.

Sheline, who was also criticized for a proposal to survey business interactions with code enforcement staff, pushed back against some of the public perception that he doesn’t support Lewiston’s staff.

“I really appreciate city staff and the work that they do every day for our city,” he said. “I’ve advocated for saving city staff positions during budget negotiations and highlighted their achievements and contributions toward making our community a better place.”

Regarding the recent staff turnover, he said, “The significant number of high-level staff departures are concerning to me. I think it’s past time to take a hard look inward and determine the root causes for people wanting to work elsewhere. Our city employees need to feel safe and supported or we will continue to have turnover.”

Luke Jensen, a former councilor and mayoral candidate who is often outspoken during City Council meetings, said City Hall seems to have “a very different culture” from when he was on the council. He’s been critical of both city administration and Sheline.

“From an outside perspective, I’m honestly pretty alarmed,” he said, adding he believes there will be more resignations to come.

Westman has a similar feeling.

“The ability to have people in positions and allow them to do their jobs because they’re competent is really what good leadership is about,” he said. “Given the current direction of the city, they’re going to continue to lose very good hardworking people with integrity.”

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