ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Following the resignation of Mayor Nancy Shaver last week over health concerns, the remaining four members of the St. Augustine City Commission voted unanimously Monday morning to appoint former city Mayor Tracy Upchurch to complete Shaver's term of office.
Upchurch was chosen from a list of 15 people who were nominated over the past few days after Shaver announced Thursday she was resigning to concentrate on her recovery from a stroke she suffered Monday.
Shaver, who had served as mayor of the nation's oldest city since 2014, announced that her resignation would be effective immediately and released this statement:
Serving each and every one of you as Mayor of this magic city has been an amazing gift. I have been overwhelmed by your support and caring this week and throughout my years as Mayor. It appears my health will not allow me to continue to serve the city and people I love. I will be taking time to recover my health and wish the city leaders well as they do their very best for our city. Sometime soon I hope to see you along the waterfront or playing the washboard at MiCasa Café.”
The city said Upchurch will be sworn into office by the end of the week.
"I think he is well known in the community because of his experience, his diverse background, and I think that people will be happy with him," Vice Mayor Leanna Freeman said of Upchurch. "Nobody else meets his level of experience in the political world, and he is very well-respected, so I think we are really lucky that he is willing to serve."
The current term of office ends on Dec. 7, 2020, the first Monday in December following the next regular election.
Upchurch, who spent 25 years as a practicing attorney and is currently a Flagler College professor, served on the City Commission from 1988-1992 and was mayor of St. Augustine from 1990-1992. He was also a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1992-1996.
The city commissioners agreed Upchurch's experience made him a stand-out candidate for the position.
"Tracy was on my shortlist because I know him. I know of him. I have seen him work for many years and what was important to me was having someone sit at that center seat that will step right in and hit the ground running, so to speak," Commissioner John Valdes said.
Since St. Augustine has a city manager form of government, as opposed to a strong mayor form, the position of mayor is largely ceremonial with the city’s day-to-day operations being handled by the city manager.
The position of mayor, in this form of government, carries no more authority that the other members of the commission, although the mayor does chair commission meetings and signs official documents on behalf of the commission.
Also, the mayor is often the most visible member of the commission largely by virtue of being most often called upon to represent the city at formal events.
Shaver resigns
Shaver was serving her third, two-year term as mayor. She suffered the stroke before she departed City Hall following a St. Augustine City Commission meeting Monday.
“We’re devastated. We’re devastated. We’re shocked," City Manager John Regan said. "Our hearts go out to Mayor Shaver."
WATCH: Stroke signs and symptoms on The Morning Show
Regan told News4Jax that during last Monday's meeting, Shaver appeared fine, but at some point, she said that she didn’t feel well.
“There was a break when she discussed to the vice mayor that she wasn’t feeling herself and that she needed to hand over the gavel and the vice mayor said, 'Nancy, If you are not feeling that great, maybe you should see a doctor, and if you hand me the gavel, I’m worried,'" Regan said.
But Shaver continued on and at one point, she and the vice mayor got into a heated exchange over whether the city should reconsider its decision to buy land in South Davis Shores.
Following the exchange, Shaver announced that she had once again been diagnosed with cancer. After the meeting, while Shaver was in a room with City Clerk Darlene Galambos and two police officers, Galambos noticed something was not right with Shaver.
“As the mayor was walking out of the room, her walk wasn’t right and she made a wrong turn for the door and Darlene asked her to stop and sit down," Regan said.
City employees called 911 and Shaver was taken to Flagler Hospital and transferred to Baptist Medical Center in Jacksonville, where she is currently recovering, according to a family spokesperson.