North Florida Water Utilities Authority: Only one 'insider' applicant until former City Manager Joe Helfenberger filed a last minute application
April 5, 2025 10:45 pm | 5 min read
Ex City Manager Joe Helfenberger being interview by the
North Florida Water Utilities Authority board. Left to
right: Com. Tim Murphy (Col. Cnty.), Com. Rocky Ford
(Chairman, Col Cnty), Com. Franklin White (Suw. Cnty.),
Com. Leo Mobley (Suw. Cnty.), Citizen Steven Dicks (Col.
Cnty.)
In a rush: read the one minute version here.
COLUMBIA COUNTY, FL – North Florida Water Utilities Authority (NFWUA) met this past Wednesday morning to hear a bunch of presentations and interview the applicants for the executive director position of the Authority.
In Part I of the executive director search process, the Observer provided the Authority minimum qualifications for the prospective candidates and questions from the Authority questionnaire with candidate answers.
While none of the three candidates met the minimum qualifications, it made no difference to the Authority members. There was almost non-existent advertising for the position, a subject not breached by any of the Authority board members.
"It was obvious who they wanted"
One long-time political insider, under the condition of anonymity, commented to the Observer: "This is North Florida, everyone knows how it works up here." Another commented, under the same conditions, "It was obvious who they wanted."
Two candidates were interviewed for the executive director position.
Joe
Helfenberger, most recently the City Manager of Lake
City, which has a city utility system of 8,500
residential and commercial customers. Lake City
Utilities is involved in drinking water, wastewater,
reclaimed water, and natural gas.
Shannon
Roberts, a Suwannee County Administrator, has been
involved with the North Florida Water Utilities
Authority since its sub-rosa beginning in 2023.
Suw. County Administrator Greg Scott. He put the kibash
on video recording NFWUA meetings in Suw. County. (file)
After the Authority began meeting as an independent special district in July 2024, Suwannee County Commissioner and Authority board member Franklin White said that Suwannee County would be video recording the meetings and posting them to YouTube, as Columbia County was already doing. Suwannee County Administrator Greg Scott put the kibosh on recording the meetings, claiming that the Clerk of the Court would have to record the meetings -- but they were too busy.
As a result, Columbia County stopped recording and posting the meetings because they didn't want Suwannee County to look bad, although both Counties agreed they would audio record the meetings. None of those recordings have been posted to the Authority website.
The lack of any relevant history regarding the Authority put Mr. Helfenberger at a distinct disadvantage to Mr. Roberts, who didn't need minutes, audio, or video recordings to get familiar with the history of the Authority. He was there from the beginning. "This is North Florida."
As far as producing minutes for the organization, Clerk of the Court Jay Swisher volunteered Columbia County resources to prepare minutes of the NFWUA, even though he has been unable to keep Columbia County's minutes up-to-date. The last set of official minutes offered to the Authority are of the September 2024 NFWUA meeting. "This is North Florida."
The Interviews
Joe Helfenberger threw a monkey wrench into what seemed like the Authority's plans to have the 'insider' candidate be the only applicant. This is a well-honed trick used by Columbia County to fill many positions. Mr. Helfenberger's last minute before the deadline application gave the Authority something to think about.
As the interviews got underway, NFWUA Chairman Rocky Ford, rather than flip a coin, asked Suwannee County's Shannon Roberts if he would like to go first. He did.
The interviews with Joe Helfenberger and Shannon Roberts (alphabetically) reveal distinct professional backgrounds, management philosophies, and approaches to leading the Utility Authority.
Professional Background and Experience
Former Lake City City Manager Joe Helfenberger takes
notes before his interview. (Photo: Columbia
County Observer)
Mr. Helfenberger has 36 years as a city/county manager across nine communities and rapidly growing suburbs and rural towns. He emphasized hands-on experience with infrastructure projects (e.g., launching water systems and managing a 17-mile sewer pipeline).
Mr. Helfenberger built "systems from scratch," including water treatment plants and wastewater networks, often in resource-challenged environments.
Mr. Helfenberger has expertise in grants acquisition (e.g., securing $65M in grants for downtown revitalization) and collaborative governance (e.g., creating a joint police department).
Mr. Helfenberger focused on public consensus-building, financial sustainability, and practical problem-solving.
Mr. Roberts has a hybrid background consisting of 8 years in government and 20+ years in private-sector executive roles (COO, VP, private equity). Mr. Roberts said he is familiar with the Utility Authority and has worked on it since its inception.
Mr. Roberts stressed strategic planning, regulatory awareness, and navigating funding.
Mr. Roberts also stressed that the lack of a strategic plan and a business plan impedes the forward motion of the Authority.
Approach to Governance and Leadership
Mr. Helfenberger emphasizes public communication/transparency, in the past hosting community meetings to demystify projects. He also emphasizes financial pragmatism, phased project rollouts, and collaborative intergovernmental relations.
Mr. Helfenberger relies on long-term consensus over majority rule for stability.
Mr. Roberts focused on adaptability to shifting legal/funding environments, mentioning $1 billion in upcoming grants. Mr. Roberts ignored the everyday uncertainty coming out of Washington.
Mr. Roberts highlighted the need for relationship-building with state agencies, utilities, and districts to resolve challenges like consumptive use permits.
Mr. Roberts also advocated for expanding utility membership (e.g., adding counties) to strengthen the Authority’s influence.
Key Challenges
Both candidates identified what they considered the key challenges facing the Authority.
Mr. Helfenberger thought multi-county collaboration was key to ensuring equitable cost-sharing and fostering trust among officials. He also thought that ensuring financial viability in a post-asset transfer environment was essential, stressing that rates must sustain systems regardless of grants.
Shannon Roberts address the NFUWA board in March 2025.
(Photo: Columbia County Observer)
Mr. Roberts thought navigating regulatory uncertainty (e.g., consumptive use restrictions) and aligning projects with economic growth goals was important.
Mr. Roberts also stressed securing timely funding and paying attention to reimbursable grants that required upfront capital, along with balancing operational demands with long-term strategy.
Salary and Benefits
Mr. Helfenberger, demonstrating his public-sector background, was upfront about the salary and benefits requirements out of the gate, beginning with his answers on the job questionnaire. Mr. Helfenberger is seeking salary parity with city/county managers, while at the same time declining health insurance, and preferring a 401(k) over the Florida Retirement System (FRS).
Mr. Roberts, demonstrating his private-sector background, did not want to commit to a salary; instead, he wanted a "conversation to finalize this."
However, during his interview, he changed course, suggesting alignment with county administrator salaries as a benchmark and expecting standard benefits.
Vision for the Utility Authority
The Authority was looking to have the candidates articulate what it should have done years ago.
This was a tough question for the candidates. The Authority, from its sub-rosa beginnings, through the ineffective leadership of North Florida Professional Services and Dale Williams as the temporary Executive Director, has not come up with a vision statement of its own, or even a business plan.
In the civilized world, it would be the Executive Director's job to facilitate the vision of the Authority – not come up with one.
Mr. Helfenberger spoke about leveraging his past successes in project execution, phased infrastructure builds, and grant procurement. He prioritized public buy-in and incremental, consensus-driven progress.
Mr. Roberts aimed to finalize strategic plans/rate studies within 6–18 months to guide post-transfer asset operations. He focused on legislative/legal readiness and expanding utility membership for resilience.
Epilogue: the Choice
Joe Helfenberger offers proven public sector
expertise in infrastructure management and
intergovernmental cooperation. His style is
consensus-oriented.
Shannon Roberts combines private-sector experience
along with 'insider' knowledge of the Authority.
The audio interviews of each candidate are provided. One can listen online or download the interviews.
You be the judge.