📢 The Time for Action is NOW: A Timeline of Dismissal and Silence
For nearly a year, the people of Sanford have raised their voices. We’ve signed petitions, attended meetings, and made our frustrations clear. And instead of being heard, we’ve been dismissed, ignored, and silenced.

Here’s what has happened:

🔍 TIMELINE OF DISMISSIVENESS & MISMANAGEMENT
June 26, 2024: A Motion of No Confidence in City Manager Norton Bonaparte was made and seconded during a City Commission meeting. This was a clear signal from our elected officials that his leadership was failing.

October 21, 2024: A petition was launched calling for the City Manager’s retirement due to continued frustration over his dismissive and reactionary leadership.

November 14, 2024: A call to action was made for the public to attend the City Manager’s annual performance review.

December 9, 2024: Despite overwhelming concerns from citizens, business owners, and commissioners, the City Manager was given a $14,000 raise. Instead of accountability, he was rewarded.

March 10, 2025: Commissioner Sheena Britton spoke out during a public meeting to hold the City Manager accountable. The City Attorney declared her comments should be silenced and removed from the official record.

March 31, 2025: In yet another attempt to avoid transparency, the Commission rescheduled a public meeting with poor notification.

The meeting was not streamed online.

The City’s Communications Officer and new digital media specialist were both absent.

We were forced to pay to download the audio recording — something that should be public and freely accessible.

A 2-2 tie vote occurred on whether to erase Commissioner Britton’s comments from the record. No consensus. No accountability.

📌 What We Know From His Contract:

The City Commission has the power to terminate the City Manager WITHOUT CAUSE by a simple majority vote at a public meeting.

Severance pay would only be 12-20 weeks of salary — a small price to pay for true leadership.

📣 We have tried to collaborate, we have tried to communicate, and every attempt has been met with dismissiveness and reactionary, short-term fixes instead of real solutions.

Enough is enough.

📅 April 14th at 7 PM: We will present our petition during public comments for the record. This is our last chance to make sure the Commission hears us loud and clear.