When Fort Meade leaders realized in January that an emergency repair was needed to keep the city’s electrical substation running, City Manager Edward Dean was unavailable.
Someone with the city approved a $138,000 purchase order for a contractor to do the needed work. Former interim city manager Dustin Burke alleges that the payment was improperly authorized without formal approval from the City Commission.
City records show a requisition created on Jan. 15 to pay Electrical Power Systems International of St. Louis, Missouri, for breaker replacement and substation transformer testing. The purchase order, which Burke obtained and shared with The Ledger, bears an indecipherable written signature.
Burke shared a screenshot of an approval history for the purchase order, showing credentials entered into the city’s financial system. The image showed initial approval of a general ledger and vendor review on Jan. 15 by Brittany Naranjo, a warehouse support employee, followed by approval a week later from Senior Accountant Kelsey Kitka.
That same day, Jan. 22, the credentials EDEAN were used to give the requestion final approval.
Dean has been absent from all public meetings since January for reasons that the city has not publicly explained. City commissioners approved a five-month contract for Alis Drumgo as interim city manager in late February.
Veronica Hairston, Fort Meade’s chief operations officer and human resources manager, sent an email to city commissioners on Feb. 11. Hairston said she wanted to share “important information regarding an oversight related to the emergency work approved for stabilizing our city’s electrical infrastructure that unfolded yesterday.”
Hairston wrote that all involved understood the urgent need for the repair, and work began based on “a collective assessment” of that need.
“However, it was not until Friday, when the Interim Director brought to my attention some new findings that would halt the ongoing work that we discovered a crucial step in the final approval and recording process had been overlooked: the contract for this work had not been presented to the Commission for ratification,” Hairston wrote.
Concerns about public criticism
While noting that the oversight created concern, Hairston focused on the potential for negative reaction from the public.
“But in the end, we realized we must prioritize responsibility and accountability in our leadership!” Hairston wrote. “When we uncover errors or omissions, it is our duty to address and correct them promptly, rather than conceal them.”
Hairston said she would provide a staff report and the resolution to the City Commission.
“Moving forward, we will take steps to understand how this occurred, including potential disciplinary action or necessary training and retraining for staff,” Hairston wrote.
Hairston also produced a community statement, which she included in the email. The statement provided no details on what had happened, writing only that “mistakes can occur” in any organization.
Instead, Hairston addressed what she called “bullying and negative criticism.”
“I refuse to tolerate bullying or fearmongering in any form,” Hairston wrote. “We are all human, and our response should be constructive when a city employee makes an error or fails to adhere to established policies.”
The staff report described the process that led to the emergency repair work. Several meetings occurred between Dean and individual commissioners “to discuss the urgency of these necessary repairs and their associated costs to the city.”
Fort Meade also held a town hall meeting to inform residents about the need for the repairs and the risk of service interruptions if they did not occur, the report said. The cost of the repairs was included in the city budget, and Fort Meade collaborated with the Florida Municipal Power Agency to ensure that it could afford the repairs.
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In December, Electric Power Systems provided a proposal detailing their services for inspection, testing and replacement of equipment, the report said. City staff reviewed the proposal and deemed the work necessary “to meet regulatory compliance and operational guidelines.”
“The authority to execute the agreement falls within the City Commission’s authority and must be presented to the board prior to the commencement of work,” the report said. “Work began January 28, 2025. We are dedicated to rectifying this and are committed to reinforcing our commitment to transparency and accountability in managing the city’s infrastructure.”
Staff drafted a resolution to approve the contract with Electric Power Systems. The City Commission voted 5-0 to adopt the resolution at its Feb. 11 meeting.
Hairston, whom Dean hired last year, did not respond to an email asking about the purchase order. She previously held a similar position in Haines City, when Dean was the city manager.
Commissioner: Work couldn’t wait
Drumgo said Tuesday that he had not thoroughly investigated the communications that occurred before he accepted his position. He said he is assessing how the city staff procures equipment and services.
“I won’t speak to whatever the documentation was that may have been sent out, but I will say that this entire team has been very diligent and receptive to my desire to change up the operating policies, to make sure that there are no oversights while I’m going forward,” Drumgo said. “And so that’s what my focus is.”
Fort Meade Mayor Samuel Berrien did not respond to a voicemail.
City Commissioner James Watts said he was uncertain about the details of the purchase order approval but stressed that Fort Meade faced an emergency that had to be addressed quickly. He said the city’s electrical substation has been in bad condition for years, and representatives from the Florida Municipal Power Association urged upgrades after a visit to the city.
Watts said he understood that the replacement of equipment could not be delayed or Fort Meade risked a widespread power failure. He said discussions of the repair work began before Dean’s absence.
“We can’t leave our public at risk of being in the dark,” Watts said. “So whether it’s right or wrong, something had to come about.”
Burke, who served as interim city manager for five months last year, has filed a complaint against Hairston with the Florida Commission on Ethics for “misrepresenting material facts surrounding the unauthorized purchase order from January.” Burke has also filed ethics complaints against Dean, two city commissioners, a former commissioner and a CRA advisory board member.
In 2023, the City Commission reprimanded then-City Manager Jan Bagnall for approving the purchase of a $642,000 fire engine without its approval. Bagnall said he had done so inadvertently, thinking he was signing a change order for an existing contract.
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Questions surround Fort Meade’s approval of emergency utilities work