I would like to thank the State Auditor and his team for their thorough work in identifying these issues and recommending solutions. Addressing these concerns has been my top priority since I first became aware of the problems stemming from the former town manager’s actions.
The State Auditor’s report does an excellent job of explaining what occurred. To gain a more complete understanding, I encourage everyone to also read the publicly released Womble Bond Dickinson report. That report provides valuable insight into how these events happened and why they occurred. You can find both reports at https://www.carync.gov/connect-engage/newsroom/bottom-line/get-the-facts-moving-forward.
If we are committed to creating meaningful and lasting change, we must understand and address all three: the what, the how, and the why.
I also believe it is important to acknowledge that the former Town Manager did an excellent job during his first six to seven years in the position. Even today, it is unclear when his performance and judgment began to change. However, by November 20, 2026, the day he was dismissed, it was evident that he was no longer the same person we had hired nine years earlier.
In reading the State Auditor’s report, it appears that spending became increasingly out of control and that there was a lack of accountability within both the staff and the Council. The natural question is: How did this happen?
Part of the answer lies in the lack of organizational infrastructure, which exposed a vulnerability in the council-manager form of government. This form of government is intentionally designed to create a separation between elected officials and staff in order to reduce the risk of political interference and corruption. It also relies on the assumption that a qualified, ethical professional will be appointed to manage the day-to-day operations of the organization.
What this model does not fully account for is the possibility that the appointed manager fails to uphold those professional standards. In our case, that was the situation with our former Town Manager.
Another critical weakness was the absence of a system that allowed employees to raise concerns directly with the Council without fear of retaliation. Without those safeguards, problems were able to continue unchecked.
Is this unique to Cary? Certainly not. Other municipalities have experienced similar situations in recent years, where the actions of town or city managers created significant organizational and financial problems, including Rocky Mount and Pilot Mountain.
It is also important to understand the timeline to provide context for this entire situation.
In early November, several staff members approached me confidentially to share concerns about the former Town Manager’s conduct. At the quarterly staff meeting on November 13, the Town Manager was asked three separate times about violating the fund balance policy. Each time, he denied any wrongdoing. At that point, I concluded that he posed a serious risk to the Town’s well-being, and I contacted our Internal Auditor the following day.
Two business days later, the Council met in closed session to discuss the Town Manager. During that meeting, I shared the concerns that had been reported to me. However, because the information had come from staff members who wished to remain anonymous, a majority of the Council was not prepared to dismiss the Town Manager based solely on those reports.
Two days later, during another closed session, I asked four senior staff members to appear before the Council and share directly what they had previously shared with me, despite the significant personal and professional risks they believed they were taking. They agreed to do so. Those individuals were Interim Towm Manager Russ Overton, Assistant Town Manager Dana Widmar, Chief Strategy Officer Susan Moran, and Town Clerk Ginny Johnson.
After hearing their accounts, the Council unanimously voted to remove the Town Manager from his position. His access to Town Hall was immediately revoked, and his system accounts were immediately suspended.
I also want to address my discussion of these closed sessions. As a general rule, the proceedings of a closed session should remain confidential except for the portions reflected in the publicly released minutes. Before including this account, I sought and received the agreement of the staff involved, the town attorney, and Council members.
Finally, since the evening the former manager was removed from his position, we have been working to address the issues that were identified and strengthen the Town’s governance and oversight.
To improve transparency, on November 20 I introduced a motion to livestream all Council meetings, which the Council approved. The Interim Town Manager also established regular informational meetings involving two Council members, the Mayor, the Town Manager, the Town Attorney, the Town Clerk, and senior staff to improve communication and oversight.
We have already implemented additional internal controls, including a delegation of authority policy that strengthens oversight of spending and financial approvals by the Town Manager and staff.
In addition to the State Auditor’s recommendations, our independent investigation conducted by Womble Bond Dickinson produced a number of additional recommendations. Those recommendations are scheduled to be considered by the Council at our next meeting, and I fully expect we will move forward with implementing them as well.
The bottom line is that no system is immune from dishonesty or misconduct. Individuals can abuse positions of trust, and when that happens, they can cause significant harm. While no system can eliminate every risk, the changes we have made represent important steps toward strengthening accountability, increasing transparency, and restoring public confidence in our Town government.
Harold's Blog 