Photo by Christopher Richard
Treasure Island commissioners removed District 1 Commissioner Tammy Vasquez as vice mayor on Oct. 6. Vasquez said the move was retaliation for her request to investigate City Manager Charles Van Zant.
Commissioners chose District 4 Commissioner Arden Dickey to replace her in a 4-1 vote. Vasquez cast the only no vote.
The change did not appear on the meeting agenda. District 2 Commissioner Chris Clark brought it up during commissioner comments.
Clark said his main concern was whether Vasquez could work with Van Zant. The city needs a vice mayor who can work with the mayor, commissioners and city manager, he said.
“Up to this point, you have not shown a willingness to do that,” Clark told Vasquez.
Retaliation Claim and Responses
Vasquez disagreed. In an email to The Gabber Newspaper the next day, she pointed out that Clark, Dickey and Mayor John Doctor also voted to end the investigation she requested. She said the same three commissioners later refused to pull a related $16,480 legal bill off the consent agenda, a list of routine items the commission approves without discussion.
“Removing my title as Vice Mayor does not remove me from the Commission, and it certainly will not silence me,” Vasquez wrote.
Dickey told The Gabber Newspaper that the investigation request played no role in his vote.
“Commissioner Vasquez’s request for an investigation into the City Manager had nothing to do with my decision to support her removal as Vice Mayor,” Dickey said in an email.
Dickey said his vote was about her performance as vice mayor. He listed several concerns: her working relationship with the city manager, public disputes with residents on social media, what he called inaccurate information she shared at meetings and online, and her change of votes on the city’s tax rate and budget in September.
Clark and Doctor did not respond to questions about the retaliation claim by deadline.
Van Zant, in a statement sent through the City’s Public Information Officer Jason Beisel, said the decision belonged to the commission.
“The Commissioners have sole discretion to determine whom they wish to represent the full Commission as Vice Mayor,” he said.
How the Vote Happened
Clark moved that “the commission consider and act upon the designation of a different vice mayor,” and Dickey seconded it. Commissioners voted 3-2 to take up the change. Vasquez and District 3 Commissioner Arthur Czyszczon voted no.
Next, Clark moved to make Dickey vice mayor, effective immediately. Dickey seconded the motion. Czyszczon joined Clark, Dickey and Doctor to approve it.
Vasquez said the change belonged on an agenda so residents could attend and comment. City Attorney Ralf Brookes said the vice mayor is not an elected office. Under the city charter, the commission picks the vice mayor with at least three votes.
The Investigation
In August, Vasquez asked for an outside investigation of Van Zant. She raised concerns about city finances, workplace conduct and the treatment of women.
On Sept. 9, commissioners voted 3-1 to withdraw that request. Clark, Dickey and Doctor voted yes. Czyszczon voted no. Vasquez did not vote because she had raised the concerns.
Clark, Dickey and Doctor each said they had talked with Van Zant’s nine direct reports. They said none of the employees reported problems with him. The motion also said the commission still had confidence in Van Zant.
Brookes said at that meeting that no formal investigation had started. No independent investigator ever reviewed the claims. That means no one found the claims true or false.
In his statement, Van Zant said, “Commissioner Vasquez’s allegations were unsubstantiated.” Van Zant, who said he served 33 years in the Florida Army National Guard, said he takes accusations against his character seriously and remains committed to serving everyone in the community with respect.
Read our earlier coverage: Treasure Island Drops Investigation Into City Manager Van Zant.
The Text Messages
When The Gabber Newspaper asked Clark about ending the investigation, he forwarded an email from an anonymous group called Responsible Citizens. The email linked to about 360 screenshots of texts between Van Zant, Vasquez and city staff. The group said the texts came from a public records request in late 2025 and that they show a friendly relationship. The Gabber Newspaper has not confirmed the messages.
Vasquez said she does not dispute that the texts show a friendly relationship. She said she welcomed Van Zant when he arrived in early 2025. Her concerns came later, she said, based on what she saw while working with him.
Public Comment
Resident Scott McKenney said he did not know enough about Vasquez’s complaints to judge them. But he worried that asking for an investigation could cost someone a leadership role.
“If people aren’t allowed to put forth their concerns for proper investigation without retribution of losing a position like this, that is retaliation,” McKenney said.
Resident West Evans disagreed. He said he understood Clark’s reason as Vasquez’s failure to communicate with the city manager.
The next Treasure Island Commission meeting is Oct. 20 at 6 p.m.
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