After a series of major missteps, a protracted and seemingly personal battle with the popular police and several threats, both public and private, to quit her job, Coral Gables City Manager Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark resigned Monday after almost four years at the helm of the City Beautiful.
Police Chief Ed Hudak wins.
And it seems Commissioner Mike Mena is the hero.
The big question on everyone’s lips is: Does Cathy take Assistant City Manager Frank Fernandez with her?
Probably. You can’t be the city manager and the top sworn police officer in the city, which Fernandez is — the crux of a lot of the city’s problems. Las malas lenguas say that Assistant City Manager Peter Iglesias — who may or may not have resigned previously
— will be named interim until a replacement is found.
The resignation comes one day before the next commission meeting and two weeks after the last one, which featured a three-hour conversation about the structure in the city administration that turned into Swason-Rivenbark putting herself on the butcher’s block and ended with Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli basically calling her a liar.
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This job has been in jeopardy for months, at least since the botched investigation into the popular police chief from an “anonymous” complaint many insiders believe Swanson-Rivenbark or Fernandez orchestrated. There has always been at least one and sometimes two votes. But Valdes-Fauli has wavered and even, some say, protected Swanson-Rivernbark pretending to be the third vote to fire her but never really coming through.
The hero of the day is Commissioner Mike Mena, who has been acting as a sort of mediator in the ongoing “talks 
between the city manager and the police chief” (read: crisis management) and provided a report at the Aug. 28 meeting that started that three hour trainwreck. Mena had been the missing link who, apparently, had his eyes pulled wide open at the Aug. 28 meeting where Swanson-Rivenbark and Commissioner Pat Keon did everything but throw herself on the tracks to protect Fernandez and his sworn position.
The structure and the assistant city manager’s status was put on the agenda to come up again Tuesday, which will now be about Swanson-Rivernbark’s exit, the structure moving forward and a search for a new city manager.
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Ladra tried but was unable to reach Mena, who woke up from his coma just in time, or he’d be facing a real challenge in the next election. But Commissioner Vince Lago, who has been the one consistent vote to get the manager out, told Ladra Monday that he would not let Tuesday’s become a drawn out commercial about Swanson-Rivenbark’s many achievements at the city — like the last meeting became.
“It is time to move forward and concentrate on Coral Gables businesses and its residents,” Lago said. “The separation agreement hasn’t been signed. But we expect to name an interim city manager at tomorrow’s meeting.”
As Ladra updated this story the last time (just about 8 p.m.) Monday, the ink is not yet dry on Swanson-Rivenbark’s resignation and exit package, which may not be finalized until late tonight or even Tuesday morning.
Swanson came back to Coral Gables in late 2014 after Pat Salerno resigned abruptly, rather than face questioning about lies he told the commission. She immediately started to make changes, hiring her people from Hollywood, including Fernandez, who she put in charge of public safety.
She quickly fell under fire when she failed to name Hudak the permanent chief and tried instead to install two chiefs of police, which her then city attorney told her she couldn’t do.
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Swanson-Rivenbark then drew criticism for her handling of the Maj. Teresa Molina case. You remember that one, 
right? Where a police major was caught spying on a resident and commissioners at a city commission meeting and then offered the opportunity to retire with full benefits, actually maximizing her pension, rather than be fired. Let’s also remember Chief Hudak recommended termination.
She then had to take back a reprimand she gave the chief after a public and embarrassing investigation into a pool party photo that was posted on social media showed Hudak had visited an all-female officer party at a cop’s home. The investigation cleared Hudak of all wrongdoing but she felt to reprimand him anywa — then had to take it back.
Later it was discovered that Swanson — who cancelled a U.S. 1 corridor study ordered by the commission and getting a taxpayer paid public relations consultant on monthly retainer — had told the investigator to leave out certain information when vetting Fernandez.
According to las malas lenguas, Swanson most recently threatened to quit and take both Fernandez and Iglesias with her. Iglesias balked at this and quit on his own. He had been planning to do so anyway, unhappy with the direction the city had taken and the morale issues. Swanson thought this would stop her termination, which is cemented now that Mena has waken up from his coma. In fact, las really malas lenguas say she wanted to have it be up for a vote and Mena and Commissioners Frank Quesada and Lago told her nananina.
It will be interesting to see who sits in her seat Tuesday morning.
Coral Gables manager Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark quits job in battle with chief added by Ladra on
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