Job Offer to Ousted Hawthorne Mayor Blasted as ‘Cronyism’

Former Hawthorne Mayor Joseph Miller, who along with two councilmen was ousted from office after a bitter recall election in 1982, has been offered a job as the city’s economic development director.

City Manager R. Kenneth Jue said he offered Miller the $52,000-a-year job on Monday. In an interview Wednesday, Miller said he was “seriously considering” the offer.

The economic development director, a position that has been vacant for about 2 1/2 years, is responsible for attracting new businesses to Hawthorne Boulevard, the city’s strongest tax-producing sector.

Councilwoman Ginny Lambert criticized the offer as “cronyism at its best,” but Mayor Betty J. Ainsworth and two other council members said they support Jue’s action.

In an interview Wednesday, Lambert said that Jue and Miller are longtime friends, and she questioned why Jue did not advertise the vacancy and select a director from a pool of candidates.

“It’s really a slap in the face to the people of this city,” Lambert said.

But Ainsworth said she does not question Jue’s selection of Miller, although she said that perhaps Jue should have advertised the position. “I thought he was going to interview several people,” Ainsworth said.

In interviews Wednesday, Jue and Miller acknowledged that they are longtime friends but adamantly denied the charges of cronyism.

Jue said he offered Miller the position, not out of friendship, but because of Miller’s knowledge of how City Hall works and his close ties to important business interests in the city.

He said he did not advertise the position because he believed Miller would be the best-qualified person for the job. He also said he decided to fill the vacant post because he wants to upgrade the quality of businesses on Hawthorne Boulevard.

Miller, 64, a former Hawthorne police officer and 17-year council member who now works as a public relations and development director for Hawthorne Community Hospital, said he is well qualified for the job and is upset about Lambert’s accusations.

“I would never pass judgment on her occupation because I don’t know what she does. . . . I condemn her for condemning me,” he said.

As for his qualifications, Miller said he played a vital role in securing financing for the construction of the Hawthorne Plaza shopping mall in 1977 and also played a role in getting funds to build the new City Hall in 1978.

Miller left City Hall in 1982 when he and Councilmen Bruce Gies and Larry Guyer were recalled by decisive margins. The three had stirred community anger by voting to consolidate city and school elections, thus adding about 19 months to Miller’s and Gies’ terms.

City officials said that if Miller is hired he would be able to re-enroll in the city’s pension program, in which he had been enrolled while a police officer. After serving for a minimum of five years, he would be entitled to a pension of 10% of the highest salary he earned as a city employee.

Raymon Sulser, a city activist and former planning commissioner, criticized the offer, noting that Miller was one of four council members who voted in 1977 to promote Jue from city engineer to city manager. He accused Jue, who is retiring at the end of the year, of offering the post to Miller as a way of returning the favor.

“It’s time we get a new city manager,” he said.

But Councilman Steven Andersen said he supports Jue’s decision and believes Miller is qualified for the job. He said he does not believe the offer was an act of favoritism because Jue has already announced his retirement and does not need to return any favors.

“He’s a lame duck,” Andersen said.

Councilman Charles (Chuck) Bookhammer said he supports Jue’s right to hire whoever he thinks is qualified. Bookhammer said he does not think Jue should be required to advertise when he wants to fill a vacancy as long as the candidate is qualified for the job.

Councilman David M. York could not be reached for comment.

Don Harris, a real estate broker who unsuccessfully ran for mayor in November, criticized Jue for not advertising the position and questioned whether the city needs an economic development director.

Harris said that instead of hiring Miller the city could save money by organizing a committee of residents and business owners to help attract merchants to Hawthorne Boulevard.

Sulser said he is forming a committee of citizens that will meet Monday night to consider recalling members of the council who have voiced support for Jue’s decision.