The Hoover mayor's race is just one of the major contested campaigns that will be on the ballots during municipal elections along the 280 corridor on Aug. 26.
When Hoover voters go to the polls Aug. 26, there will be 16 names on the ballot.
Two of them are highly familiar — two-term Mayor Frank Brocato and his challenger, Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis. The others are 14 people battling for five seats on the Hoover City Council.
The mayor’s race pits two longtime public servants against one another.
Brocato served 42 years with the Hoover Fire Department. He was the city’s first paramedic and first fire marshal and spent 24 years as head of emergency medical services before retiring in 2015. The next year, he defeated Gary Ivey to become mayor and has served in that role for nine years.
Derzis has served with the Hoover Police Department for 45 years, the last 20 as police chief. In 2017, the National Association of School Resource Officers named a new Safe Schools Leadership Award after him.
But the mayor’s race isn’t so much about their history with public safety. It’s about leadership of the entire city and who is best suited for the job.
ENDORSEMENTS, DONATIONS
Derzis in March launched a spirited campaign with a host of well-connected backers that includes a majority of the current Hoover City Council, former Mayor Tony Petelos, Jefferson County Commissioners Jimmie Stephens and Mike Bolin, Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, Former Hoover City Administrator Allen Pate and several former Hoover school and park board members.
Derzis also had racked up about $350,000 in campaign contributions as of June 30, compared to about $200,000 for Brocato, campaign finance reports show.
Derzis said while he is humbled to receive so many endorsements, the endorsement he seeks the most is the vote of Hoover residents on Aug. 26.
Brocato said he has some well-connected backers, too, including Shelby County Commissioner Lindsey Allison, state Rep. Susan DuBose, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, Auburn Mayor Ron Anders, Dothan Mayor Mark Saliba and a host of Hoover neighborhood leaders, business owners, educators and first responders.
However, “elections shouldn’t be about who someone’s connected to; they should be about what kind of leadership you want,” Brocato said. “And I believe when voters look at the full record, they’ll see a clear difference in vision, experience and results.”
Derzis certainly has received some support, and that’s part of politics, Brocato said.
“But I think it’s important to look at where that support is coming from and why,” the mayor said. “Some of the loudest voices backing him are tied to special interests who haven’t always had the city’s long-term best interest at heart — and who were frustrated when I wouldn’t give them the deals they wanted.”
Brocato wouldn’t mention specific names in an interview in July, but it was no secret last year that Brocato and City Council President John Lyda were in a heated dispute over a proposed development deal for the second phase of Will Kadish’s Stadium Trace Village development, which included an outpatient surgery center that Loree Skelton wants to build. Skelton and her company for months unsuccessfully contested the city’s effort to get state approval for a competing surgery center in Riverchase.
“That’s the reality of leadership — you have to make tough decisions, and sometimes that upsets people who are used to getting their way,” Brocato said. “But I’ve always put the good of the city first, even when it wasn’t politically easy.”
As for campaign donations, Brocato said he was heavily outspent in both of his previous election campaigns.
“In the first race, I won without a runoff. In the second, I won in a landslide,” he said. “That tells me that Hoover voters care more about leadership and results than political spending. … My goal isn’t to outspend anyone — it’s to connect with voters, be honest about our record and lay out a clear vision for Hoover’s future.”
Derzis, who declined a verbal interview for this story but agreed to answer questions in writing, said the mayor’s comment about his backers shows that Brocato is out of touch.
“I think he is in a state of shock that so many people are no longer buying into his spin and are frustrated and fed up with his failed record and broken promises,” Derzis said. “Support for me comes from Hoover residents across the city, civic and business leaders, former mayors, educators, elected officials and longtime community members — united by a shared belief that Hoover needs new leadership. If that’s garnering the support of special interest, I’ll wear it proudly.”
CHIEF FIRES HIS SHOTS
Derzis hasn’t been shy about offering up criticism of Brocato and his administration. While Hoover is a great city that excels in public safety and education, it has fallen behind in other areas, the police chief said.
“We need new leadership that values being proactive and planning for our needs rather than reacting and fixing problems as they surface,” Derzis said. “Hoover remains one of Alabama’s best cities, but that success is in spite of, not because of, the current mayor. Even Mike Shula went 10-2 one year at Alabama before being fired a year later.”
Derzis said Hoover once was a city that others emulated as a leader, but not so much anymore. Hoover has become “tired,” as evidenced by vacant stores at the Patton Creek and Riverchase Galleria shopping centers, he said.
“With new leadership, implementing strategic planning coupled with a strong economic development team, we can turn Patton Creek and the Galleria mall around,” Derzis said. “The Galleria‐Patton Creek exit — with over 100,000 cars passing daily — should be a top destination in Alabama. Instead of losing revenue to The Summit and Birmingham, we need proactive redevelopment.”
FINANCIAL ‘CHAOS’
Derzis also said the city’s Finance Department has been in chaos the past five years, as was evidenced by a forensic audit that found serious shortfalls in the department’s practices. Brocato repeatedly has stressed that the audit determined there was no fraud, malfeasance or misappropriation of funds, which he considered good news.
But Derzis said the mayor has been downplaying a “very bad report” on the state of city finances and trying to spin it as something good.
The forensic auditors found that Hoover’s Finance Department was understaffed and lacked documented policies and procedures, training on roles and responsibilities, experience and skill in key functions and adequate communication. One of the most significant concerns was missing and/or destroyed financial records, and the city also had to pay penalties to the IRS for failing to reconcile errors in compliance reporting.
The auditors wrote that “although we did not identify specific evidence of financial malfeasance or asset misappropriation by Hoover employees, the deficiencies noted throughout this report could create an opportunity to commit financial fraud.”
Derzis noted that Brocato has had three CFOs and two city administrators, which he called “an indication of poor leadership and institutional instability.”
“The city’s auditing firm even stated to the president of the City Council that ‘the wheels had come off the bus,’” Derzis said. “That should alarm every citizen.”
Brocato has said the people raising red flags about the city’s finances are doing so for political purposes. The Finance Department faced a “perfect storm” of problems with the retirement of the chief financial officer and revenue director, the unexpected death of the lead payroll clerk and implementation of a new financial software system all at the same time the new chief financial officer found out her son had a terminal brain tumor, he said.
While there were problems, the city has brought in a new, highly qualified CFO, added key staff positions, implemented stronger internal controls and rewritten policies and procedures that were decades out of date, Brocato said.
“Throughout all of this, Hoover’s financial strength never faltered,” the mayor said. “We maintained a AAA bond rating, built our reserves up to over $80 million and passed a balanced budget every year. … Today our financial house is in order, and Hoover is as strong as ever.”
Derzis also noted how garbage collection in Hoover has repeatedly failed and said current city leaders have failed to adequately address stormwater problems, traffic congestion and aging infrastructure.
“But the biggest challenge is restoring trust,” Derzis said. “The Kroll report lays bare financial mismanagement. We’ve signed bad economic development deals, ignored basic infrastructure needs and let trust erode. Rebuilding trust begins with listening, transparency and responsible leadership — not spinning a narrative that ‘all is well.’ Hoover needs leaders who confront hard issues head on and deliver solutions … Residents who ask tough questions are dismissed and labeled as pawns of special interests. Trust and transparency are broken. This election is about raising the bar and returning Hoover to its standard of excellence.”
‘AT A CROSSROADS’
Brocato said the city has taken stormwater issues seriously but faces legal and financial constraints. Also, the economic incentive packages like the one for Riverwalk Village in Riverchase were well worth it because that project will revitalize the southern end of the city with a $2.5 billion economic impact, he said.
Brocato said he’s proud of his administration’s accomplishments over the last nine years. When he took office in 2016, the Finley Center and surrounding sports fields had not been built, and the Hoover Met Complex now is an international sports destination with a $90 million annual economic impact. Hoover repeatedly has beat out other cities vying to steal the SEC Baseball Tournament and secured its presence in Hoover through at least 2028, he said.
When he took office, office parks in Meadow Brook and Inverness were half empty, he said. “We’ve turned that around. Now we’re attracting major employers like McLeod Software, Bassmaster International, Trader Joe’s,” he said. “We’ve opened or have under construction four new hotels. Hoover is back on the map as a destination for world-class medical care and STEM-based industries. Today we open a business every nine days.”
Brocato said he’s proud of the relationship the city government has rebuilt with the Hoover school system and major investments in quality of life, such as miles of new sidewalks and hundreds of new acres of parkland and public access to the Cahaba River with trails and canoe launches. Plus, under his leadership, the city for the first time adopted a comprehensive plan that provides a long-term blueprint to guide the city’s growth and protect what’s special, he said.
“All of this has happened because we built a vision, stayed disciplined and never lost focus on the people we serve,” he said.
“This election is about the future of Hoover,” Brocato said. “It’s about whether we continue moving forward with steady, proven leadership, or risk handing the city over to people with narrow, self-serving agendas. … We’re at a crossroads. This election is about whether Hoover continues to be a city of vision and stability, or whether it’s turned into a political playground for people who are more interested in power and payback than in public service.”
CITY COUNCIL RACES
The Hoover City Council has seven members, and two of the current councilmen — Steve McClinton and Casey Middlebrooks — were unopposed and are already certified for their next four-year term.
Three other current council members — Council President John Lyda and members Curt Posey and Sam Swiney — chose not to run for re-election.
Three people — artist Liz Lane from McGill Crossings, health care equipment saleswoman Ashley Lovell from Greystone and retired attorney turned Realtor Robert Williams from The Preserve — are seeking to gain Lyda’s Place 3 seat.
Two technology gurus — Tanveer Patel from Cahaba River Estates and Robin Schultz from Bluff Park — are vying for Posey’s Place 1 seat. And four people are competing for Swiney’s Place 2 seat — Clint Bircheat from Southpointe, Kenneth Cox from Ross Bridge, Copeland Johnson from Greystone and former City Council President Gene Smith from Magnolia Grove.
Councilwoman Khristi Driver, a utility executive from The Preserve, is facing a challenge from former Councilwoman Donna Mazur of Pinewood and freelancer writer and stay-at-home dad Christian Coleman of Chapel Hills in Council Place 4. And Councilman Derrick Murphy, a Central Alabama Water executive from Ross Bridge, is being challenged by commercial insurance broker Steve Lawrence of Trace Crossings in Council Place 5.
Read more in-depth interviews with Brocato and Derzis here. Topics include city finances, stormwater, an arts center, economic development, health care, Riverwalk Village, Hoover City Schools, online sales taxes, budgeting, planning, leadership, trust and transparency.
