Mantua’s engineering firm quit, citing ‘mistreatment’ from the village

CT Consultants, Mantua’s engineering firm for over 20 years, has severed its relationship with the village, citing unspecified mistreatment of its employees.

“We will not knowingly place our employees in positions to be blatantly mistreated,” CT Consultants VP Diane Oress stated in a June 26 letter to Mayor Linda Clark and village council.

The letter, obtained through a records request from The Portager, did not identify what the mistreatment was. Clark declined to comment.

But Village Council President Tammy Meyer told The Portager in an interview that the problems stemmed from Clark. Meyer is challenging Clark for the mayor’s office in the November election.

“There’s an ongoing theme of accusations against the mayor of employees, council members, and now a contractor citing a toxic work environment in Mantua,” Meyer said. “I wish the mayor would take accountability for her actions.”

Oress’s letter stated that her firm’s six-month contract with Mantua would terminate in 30 days. The firm would complete a handful of ongoing projects and design services, but “all other services shall cease at the end of the 30 days,” she wrote.

In a July 24 email to Oress, Clark requested details as to the alleged mistreatment and stated that CT Consultants never let her know “that an irreparable rift was developing in our professional relationship.”

She also stated that Oress had contacted Meyer in late June “to discuss the circumstances leading up to CT’s decision,” but that Meyer had said the conversation was private.

Oress confirmed she had held a private conversation with Meyer, but would not confirm they had discussed the alleged mistreatment.

Meyer said she doesn’t know exactly what mistreatment Oress was referencing. Meyer said her phone conversation with Oress took place weeks after Oress had informed Clark of the firm’s decision, “so it was a done deal by that time.”

“I didn’t ask for details. We didn’t talk details. But I wasn’t surprised because of past behavior,” Meyer said. “This has been an ongoing issue dealing with the mayor’s poor professionalism.”

Oress declined comment, only saying, “We went ahead and handled that situation by severing that contract. These relationships come and go, and I think that’s not unusual.”

Meyer has submitted a petition to the Portage County Board of Elections to run for mayor of Mantua. She will face off against Clark, who has also filed her petition to run in the November election. The Board of Elections will meet to certify the petitions on Aug. 21.

Meyer said she is running for mayor because she feels “a deep sense of community pride” in the place she has called home since 2000.

“I am committed to making sure that we don’t lose sight of what makes us unique: our small-town feel and our spirit of togetherness,” she said.

Since Meyer joined village council in 2020, council members Paula Tubalkain, Matt Rosolowski, Scott Weaver, Ben Prescott and Heather Paisley have resigned, and Council Member Chuck Peterson left but later returned.

Meyer herself came on board when her predecessor Dave Sluka resigned.

In her May 2 resignation letter, Paisley wrote that she was quitting because of what she characterized as a stressful confrontation between herself and two village officials that included unsubstantiated hearsay about other village employees. She did not elaborate as to what the confrontation or alleged hearsay involved.

Village administrative assistant Chelsea Gregor resigned in March 2020, citing Clark’s abrasive management style for her departure. Gregor, who had served since May 2016, filed a complaint against Clark with the Portage County Prosecutor’s Office. A subsequent investigation found that the mayor “lacks leadership skill, causing conflict,” but stopped short of accusing her of criminal wrongdoing.

In July 2021, council declined to discipline Clark for allegedly creating a disrespectful, unprofessional, and hostile work environment, and asked her to enroll in a professional leadership and or interpersonal communication skills workshop or training program. Clark never did.

Gregor’s post, which morphed into that of clerk/treasurer, was filled by Jenny August, who resigned in September 2021, citing Clark’s micromanagement and abrasive leadership. She was the sixth person to take on the duties of administrative assistant, clerk and treasurer since Clark was elected as mayor in 2012.

After August left, council recast the clerk-treasurer’s position from elected to appointed, serving at the mayor’s and council’s pleasure. They hired Maryanne Fabian, who had previously served as Mantua’s administrative assistant, zoning inspector and floodplain manager, and she remains the village fiscal officer.

Greg Thomas, who served as village administrator for five months, was fired in January, allegedly for using work time for personal reasons. He denied having done so, and also said he was not adequately trained for the position.

“Unfortunately, they make certain things very personal,” he said. “It could be a really good job and good people to work with, but they make it so you don’t want to work there. I wouldn’t recommend anyone to work there.”

Thomas was replaced by Ryan Klemm, who continues to serve in that position.

Street supervisor Dave Akerly was fired in June 2021. Clark gave no reason for his termination, citing only Ohio’s at-will employment law.

Another former employee is Kenny Middleton, who told The Portager in June 2021 that he would still be working for the village service department if not for the mayor.