By The Arizona Republic
An issue that long has been an undercurrent in this year’s Cave Creek Town Council election has bubbled up at the outset of a new term.
The new council will be sworn in Monday and among its first orders of business could be ousting Town Manager Usama Abujbarah.
At the May 28 Town Council meeting — the final one for the sitting council — Councilman-elect Adam Trenk during the call to the public submitted a request for an item to be added to the Monday agenda.
The item states that the council should discuss and take possible action regarding the “employment, compensation, benefits, promotion, demotion, dismissal, termination and/or resignation of the town manager.”
Town Clerk Carrie Dyrek said the agenda item would be discussed at a special Town Council meeting June 10. She said legal counsel for the town manager is not available Monday, therefore the need for a special session.
Dyrek said Councilmen-elect Mike Durkin and Reg Monachino, also challengers in the election, supported the agenda item.
The request comes more than a year before the town manager’s contract is up for renewal.
Abujbarah, town manager since 1999, would not comment.
Trenk said he submitted the letter because of speculation regarding where the challengers stand on the manager, possibly undermining the new council’s ability to work with him.
“In order to accomplish priorities laid out during the campaign, I need to know the manager is going to work with me for the good of the community,” Trenk said. “How can I trust the manager is going to do that if he thinks the new council is after his job?”
