Clearwater mayor shocks city council with sudden resignation — during meeting

Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard unexpectedly resigned Monday morning during the city council’s special budget session, expressing frustration with his colleagues’ plan to allocate $90 million for a new city hall and municipal services building, an expenditure he says would plunge the city into debt at a time when it's already spending $84 million on the Imagine Clearwater project.

“I’m having problems sitting here looking at this list and looking at the bottom line of a deficit of a quarter of a billion dollars,” Hibbard said, adding that the city needs to figure out “what the bucket is that we’re going to be drawing from, or if we’re willing to bond a certain percentage of this deficit.”

Hibbard continued to complain about the numbers, saying: “It’s very difficult to prioritize. You guys have different math than I do. I don’t know how you prioritize without determining how much of a financial commitment we’re willing to make, either through bonding or digging into reserves.”

About 12 minutes later, the council, which had been in session for about 45 minutes at that point, took a brief recess. Five minutes later, they returned, and Hibbard gaveled the meeting back into session. That’s when he made a stunning announcement.  

“I’m not a quitter, but I’m not the right leader for this council anymore, and I’m concerned where the city is going,” he said. “This is simple math, and we’re not doing very well on the test. In good conscience, for my family, for my own health and other things, I can’t remain the mayor.”

Hibbard said he called his wife during the recess and told her of his decision.

“She’s shocked,” he said. “I don’t ever quit anything, but it’s been more and more obvious to me that, as much as I love this city and as much as I want to stick around for some of the things that are going to occur over the next couple months, I simply am not the right person to be here anymore.”

He added, “This is probably one of the toughest things I’ve done in my entire life, but I know it’s right. I wish all of you the best.”

Hibbard has been a resident of Clearwater since 1979. He previously served on Clearwater City Council from 2002 to 2012, including two terms as mayor from 2005 to 2012.

During his years in the private sector from 2012 to 2020, Hibbard served as chair of the board at Ruth Eckerd Hall, vice chair of Clearwater Marine Aquarium, a Homeless Empowerment Program board member and a Calvary Christian High School board member.

Hibbard ran for mayor again in 2020 and was elected with 55% of the vote, though he said he would not seek re-election in 2024.

“I’m a busy guy, but I’ve always believed in making sacrifices for public service, and I love Clearwater, and I love some of the things we’ve gotten done,” he said before gathering his things and leaving Monday morning’s city council session.

Vice Mayor Kathleen Beckman will presumably fill Hibbard’s role on an interim basis.

The City of Clearwater is governed by a council/manager form of government with the council serving as the governing body, according to the city's website. The Clearwater City Council is comprised of the mayor and four council members, who each serve four-year terms. The council is the legislative and policy-making body of the city, responsible for approving the budget and determining the ad valorem tax rate on all real and personal property within the corporate limits of the city. Council members also evaluate the job performance of the city manager and city attorney.