Former Hawthorne mayor and city manager, John Martin, will serve as an interim part-time city manager for Archer until the city commission hires a permanent part-time city manager within the next four to six weeks. 

This month, Archer’s current interim City Manager Deanna Alltop announced an indefinite medical leave of absence.  

Although she said she could continue working remotely, the city commission raised concerns about not having someone in the office for day-to-day administration, leading to the opening of the interim part-time city manager’s role. 

Out of the six candidates who applied, Martin secured the position with a 3-2 vote from the city commission during a special meeting on Dec. 22. Commissioners Karen Fiore and Kathy Penny voted against Vice Mayor Iris Bailey’s nomination, which Commissioner Marilyn Green seconded. 

Martin started the role immediately following the meeting, with one of his first tasks being the creation of a document detailing tasks Alltop will be responsible for during her leave. 

Interviews of candidates for the permanent city manager will begin in person or via Zoom from Jan. 5 to Jan. 7, before the next regular city commission meeting on Jan. 12. 

“I have an extended history of serving a rural community at the local, county, state and federal level,” said Martin in his application. “My experience, combined with my knowledge of the issues facing Archer, as well as my working relationship with current elected officials, gives me the best chance to effectively manage the city from day one.” 

According to backup documents for the special meeting, Martin, 65, is a Hawthorne High School and University of Florida graduate.  

He ran for the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners’ District 1 seat in 2012, served on the Hawthorne City Commission for 13 years, with five as mayor, and spent three years as Hawthorne’s city manager until resigning in Oct. 2024. 

Martin disclosed a criminal conviction for possessing cocaine in 1988 and set a minimum acceptable salary of $45,000. 

Although he said in his application that he resigned from the Hawthorne city manager role due to health reasons that he’s completely recovered from, Fiore flagged the resignation as a reason for her disapproval.  

She said she learned he was forced to resign as Hawthorne’s city manager during a city commission meeting, which she called unprofessional, and that the timeline in his application for when he transitioned from Hawthorne’s interim to permanent city manager was inaccurate. 

“Back to ethics, I don’t think that that’s being truthful,” she said. “I don’t think that’s the kind of person that we want to see come in the doors. I don’t care if it’s only for three months.” 

Fiore also said she’d heard from hearsay that Martin was forced to resign as city manager. Bailey said she confirmed the rumors after speaking with Hawthorne Mayor Jacquelyn Randall about Martin.  

Bailey said Randall told her the Hawthorne City Commission did ask Martin to resign, but it was because of his health. Until then, Randall told Bailey that Martin did good work.  

“He was really big in the community, getting to know people, helping them,” Bailey said. “[Randall] also said that he was a go-getter for grants and different things, and that if we were looking for an interim manager, if it was her, she would definitely hire him for that.” 

Other applicants for Archer’s interim part-time city manager position included William Lewandowski, Donald Barber, Scott Littman, Daniel Blumberg and Paul Dyal, whom the commission discussed hiring after a motion from Bailey.  

Dyal is a former Lake City city manager whom the city council sued for an inflated severance payout.  

Fiore also made a motion to hire Lewandowski; however, there was no discussion after the motion failed to receive a second.  

Archer Mayor Fletcher Hope said after a permanent city manager is hired for Archer, Alltop will likely be offered the deputy city clerk position.