Photos by Jon Anderson
From left are Hoover Council President John Lyda, Councilman Casey Middlebrooks and Councilman Steve McClinton
An effort to replace John Lyda as the Hoover City Council president failed at Monday night’s council meeting.
Near the beginning of the meeting, Councilman Steve McClinton made a motion to make Councilman Casey Middlebrooks the council’s presiding officer instead of Lyda, but the motion failed to gain enough votes to pass.
Three councilmen — McClinton, Posey and Middlebrooks — voted in favor of the change, but Councilwoman Khristi Driver voted against it, and Councilmen Derrick Murphy and Sam Swiney abstained. Lyda was out of town.
McClinton, in an interview, said he took no joy in calling for Lyda’s replacement but said he felt it was time to go in a different direction for leadership. He has been disappointed by Lyda’s behavior and pettiness toward developer Will Kadish, who in March called Lyda “the most evil, despicable person I’ve seen in local government.”
After that comment was made, Lyda in April called out Kadish in a public meeting for having a felony conviction for grand larceny more than 20 years ago and then refused to let Kadish defend himself in the meeting, instead telling Kadish to sit down.
Kadish’s company, Broad Metro, is seeking tax breaks as incentives for developing the second phase of Stadium Trace Village, and Lyda said he would never want to do business with someone who was a convicted felon.
McClinton, who has favored tax incentives for Broad Metro, said no mayor or council member should let vindictiveness or personal grievances affect city business. “That behavior and those actions are unconscionable,” McClinton said.
McClinton said Middlebrooks would have been a very transparent leader who is respectful and works with all members of the council. Lyda has done a lot of great things for the city, and it would go a long way if he would apologize for his behavior and actions, McClinton said. “To prove you’re sorry, you have to repent and change your ways.”
Posey said he, too, didn’t think it was right for Lyda to bring up Kadish’s past felony conviction in a public meeting on April 1. Typically, if you’re going to question someone’s character, that is done in an executive session, Posey said. It also was unfair for Lyda to bring that issue up and not allow Kadish to respond, Posey said.
Posey also took issue with Lyda hastily calling a special meeting at a time he knew would be difficult for at least two council members to attend and then criticize people for not showing up, saying they weren’t doing their jobs.
“It was very nefarious in nature in my opinion,” Posey said.
Lyda also has taken some actions as council president that should have been discussed with other council members before taking action, he said. Leaders seek input from and listen to their fellow council members, he said.
Lyda, reached via text late Monday, released a statement.
"Hoover has been fortunate to be a city where only a handful of times in our history have we seen a political sideshow like this," Lyda said. "We have a mayor and majority council with executive business level experience who are laser-focused on meeting the needs and expectations of our residents in maintaining a top-tier education system, delivering world-class public safety and creating a quality of life that is second to none in the United States. That focus remains the same, and we’ll continue to strive to exceed those goals and not be distracted by political games that attempt to derail our mission.”
Driver during Monday night’s meeting asked McClinton if he had a conversation with Lyda about this change previously as he had committed to do, and McClinton said he had not had such a conversation with Lyda.
“Where I come from, having leadership courage includes doing something like this when the person is present in the room, and I am very much opposed to moving forward with this tonight,” Driver said.
Swiney, after the meeting in an interview, agreed with Driver and said he didn’t feel comfortable voting to change council presidents when Lyda was not there. When asked how he would vote if the matter came up again with Lyda present, Swiney said he wasn’t sure. He wants to talk with Lyda and gauge how the council can move forward with more togetherness, he said.
“Clearly, after the vote tonight, there seems to be some discontent among some members,” Swiney said. “I’d like to sit down with John and see how we can bridge that gap.”
Murphy said he abstained out of a concern for process. The council president in Hoover typically remains the council president for the duration of the term in which he or she is elected, and he didn’t feel comfortable making that change mid-term, he said. Perhaps the council in the next term can decide from the beginning to hold a mid-term vote on the council presidency, he said.
McClinton said he respects all his colleagues and their opinions but disagrees with the idea of abstaining from voting unless there is a genuine conflict of interest. "We were elected to represent our views and philosophies," he said. "Our constituents expect us to vote 'yes' or 'no' and to handle all the consequences that come with those decisions."
Middlebrooks, after being nominated to serve as council president, said he called Lyda Monday after he found out he would be nominated to discuss the matter with him. He said he didn’t ask to be nominated.
“I appreciate the leadership that Mr. Lyda has given us, As for myself, …. if elected, I will try to serve with honor and dignity and bring a little more togetherness to the city to help the city move forward, and I will certainly rely on John to help me out with that, as all of you,” Middlebrooks said.
But the vote to make Middlebrooks council president failed.
Lyda has been on the Hoover City Council for 12 years and was elected to serve as president in 2020 when this council convened for the first time after the 2020 election.
MAYOR VETOES COUNCIL ORDINANCE
Meanwhile, City Clerk Wendy Dickerson on Monday night announced that Mayor Frank Brocato had vetoed an ordinance the council passed at its previous action meeting on April 15 that would have changed the way the city attorney is appointed.
A previous city ordinance called for the mayor to appoint the city attorney, subject to council approval, but the council three weeks ago voted 5-2 to replace that ordinance with another one that would have given the council sole authority for appointing the city attorney.
Posey said then that it frequently seems like the council’s requests for legal services get put on the back burner, and the mayor’s requests for legal services get priority.
Second, the council has had concern about rising legal bills, questioning the reasoning for extending appeals of certain cases and certain expenditures being billed through the city attorney, Posey said. Costs have gotten way out of hand, he said.
Brocato last month argued against the change, saying the historical way of appointing the city attorney provided the necessary checks and balances and was more reasonable because the mayor and city staff utilize the city attorney on a more regular basis.
Any change in the appointment of the city attorney would only further divide Hoover’s elected officials and politicize the position, the mayor said then.
Monday night, Brocato said he tries to be responsive to the City Council and said he sat down with Middlebrooks earlier Monday and they identified some things that the mayor and council need to address together.
“That is what the citizens of Hoover expect us to do, and that is what we are doing,” Brocato said.
Council members considered overturning the mayor’s veto but decided against it, with some saying the mayor has agreed to provide more details to the council regarding legal dealings.
Middlebrooks said the ordinance concerning appointment of the city attorney may need some rewriting, “and we’ll do that together, sharing equal voices.” That likely will come in August or September, he said.
Editor's note: This story was updated with a response from John Lyda at 10:41 p.m.
