In North Miami Beach, the hunt is on for a new city manager.
During a recent meeting, commission members expressed interest in kick-starting the search by issuing a notice for a new manager, though the effort remains in its early days.
In an interview with Biscayne Times, Mayor Michael Joseph said that, while the commission is still determining the specifics regarding a timeframe, he is committed to making the search for a new manager thorough and transparent.
“Ideally, we would like to have a permanent city manager in place by late fall or early winter of this year after the city budget season,” Joseph said. “This timeline allows for a comprehensive search and adequate public engagement without unnecessary delays to passing the 2025-2026 budget.”
(Rafael Hernandez for Biscayne Times)
Residents and staff fill the city commission chamber during the June 17 meeting.
City leaders say they’re looking for someone with proven executive experience running complex municipal governments, particularly in areas like water utilities, public safety, economic development and community programs.
The next city manager, Joseph said, should have a strong record of ethical leadership, budgeting, infrastructure planning and gaining the trust of the public and other stakeholders.
“Community involvement is the cornerstone of this process,” he said. “We want the public to have an opportunity to hear from the top candidates and understand their vision for North Miami Beach.”
Over the past two years, city managers in North Miami Beach have each served for less than a year on average.
Since March 2023, the city has seen four individuals fill the role of city manager in both a permanent and temporary capacity – Arthur “Duke” Sorey, Mark Antonio, Mario Diaz, and the current interim city manager Andrew Plotkin.
The instability is a point of frustration for former North Miami Beach Commissioner Barbara Kramer, who likens the city to a revolving door for city managers.
(Photo taken from NMBTV Steam)
Barbara Kramer speaks at the podium during the public comment section of the June 17 city commission meeting.
“Either it's not a great job market out there in government, or people see North Miami Beach is not a solid place where they feel they can remain,” said Kramer.
Kramer hopes whoever the commission chooses will understand finances and budgets and have the leadership skills to push her city forward.
Another sticking point: they also have to play by the rules.
“They have to hold the employees accountable. And you can't protect the employees if they're not doing a good job. You need to let them go and find someone else, because I feel like our foundation is crumbling,” Kramer said.
SOREY’S SETTLEMENT
Members of the commission also decided last month to settle a lawsuit brought forth by former city manager Sorey, closing the book on a years-long legal and public scuffle with a 5-2 vote.
(Rafael Hernandez for Biscayne Times)
The North Miami Beach City Commission speaks during a packed meeting, where one key agenda item was the proposed settlement in former City Manager Arthur Sorey’s lawsuit against the city.
Though the majority voted to settle during the meeting, several commission members emphasized that their decisions were based on the counsel of the city and insurance attorneys and made in the interest of fiscal responsibility.
“There’s a few issues that could bring us in front of a jury, and that’s where my vote has to really pay attention to what that could cost the city,” said Commissioner Phyllis S. Smith. “If it even went over a million dollars, that responsibility would be on your tax dollar.”
The decision follows years of debate over Sorey’s firing and subsequent allegations of misuse of taxpayer funds during his tenure. City officials confirmed a $260,000 settlement, saying it will be fully covered by insurance.
The Biscayne Times reached out to Sorey’s attorneys, who declined a request for comment on the settlement.
Sorey was hired as North Miami Beach city manager in April 2021 but fired in March 2023, just four months before an investigation conducted by private attorney Michael Pizzi found over $1.4 million in unauthorized funds using the city’s procurement card (P-card) under Sorey’s leadership.
Sorey denied any wrongdoing and filed a lawsuit against the city in June 2023. In the suit, he argued that former North Miami Beach Mayor Anthony DeFillipo acted “outside the scope of authority,” and sought the severance pay he was denied after his dismissal.
Around the same time, DeFillipo was removed from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis after being thrice charged for voting using an address where he didn’t live, which is a third-degree felony. In January 2025, he pled guilty to those charges.
Mayor Michael Joseph voted in favor of the Sorey settlement last month, saying his decision was driven by a desire to move forward and leave the controversy in the past. Joseph — who along with Commissioners McKenzie Fleurimond and Daniela Jean was also named in Pizzi’s report as having misused city credit cards — had backed Sorey at the time of his removal and later referred to the investigation’s findings as baseless and malicious.
Mayor Michael Joseph
Shortly after Joseph’s swearing-in as mayor this year, a new audit conducted in partnership with the city and a CPA firm found that 99% of city purchase card transactions completed during April 2020 through April 2023 were appropriate.
“Taxpayers have unfortunately been burdened with up to a million dollars to cover up former Mayor DeFillipo’s residency fraud — an issue that Mr. Sorey bravely help brought to light. This settlement was an effort to right that wrong. Moving forward, the city will work to recover these funds from those who inappropriately benefited,” said Joseph in a written statement to the Times.
During last month’s meeting, Joseph expressed interest in drafting legislation to investigate whether DeFillipo had benefited from any unlawful funds, hoping to recover money that could help lessen the financial impact of the suit on residents.
“It’s truly unfair that nobody is gonna be held accountable besides the taxpayers,” said Joseph. "That’s wrong. That’s very wrong.”
Joined by Commissioner Fortuna Smukler, Vice Mayor Jay R. Chernoff voted against the settlement, arguing that it sets a troubling precedent for the city’s future.
“I don't like the precedent of somebody who gets fired, suing us, threatening us, and then getting paid.” Chernoff said. “It's just the wrong signal that we're sending, and that's why I'm saying no.”