Kennesaw City Manager Fired, Comes to Work Anyway

A member of the Kennesaw city government who learned that his contract with the city would not be renewed on Monday came to work on Tuesday and even called a staff meeting, according to reports.

The Marietta Daily Journal writes that Steve Kennedy, who had been the Kennesaw City Manager since 2004, was not given a contract extension at Monday’s Kennesaw City Council meeting, essentially putting him out of a job. Technically, Kennedy was unemployed on Dec. 31, when his previous contract expired, the MDJ says.

Despite not having a contract for over a month, and learning he would not be getting a contract extension on Monday, the MDJ reports that Kennedy came to work as usual on Tuesday and even invited city council members to sit in on a staff meeting chaired by the ex-city manager.

Several council members told the MDJ that they were surprised that Kennedy showed up to work on Tuesday, with councilwoman Debra Williams chastising Mayor Mark Mathews for a liberal interpretation of Kennedy’s contract. Mathews said that Kennedy’s last day has not been officially decided yet, and added that a special meeting will be held on Feb. 11 to consider an official separation agreement.

City Attorney Randall Bentley told the MDJ that he is working on specifics of ending Kennedy’s contract, including whether or not he will get severance pay or retain city benefits.