Retiring Palm Beach County administrator Verdenia Baker looks back on a career of firsts
WEST PALM BEACH — For the past 38 years, Verdenia Baker's fingerprints have been all over Palm Beach County's budgets. After May 31, those budgets will be someone else's job.
The trailblazer — the first woman and the first Black person to lead Palm Beach County's government — is retiring after 10 years as county administrator.
"WOW WHAT A RIDE!" Baker said in her retirement letter in early March to county commissioners.
Her path to the helm of one of Florida's largest local governments began in Broward County, where she spent three years as a budget analyst. In 1987, she moved north up Interstate 95 to take a similar position in Palm Beach County. Within eight years, she was managing the budget department.
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Five years later, she was promoted to assistant county administrator. Then-County Administrator Bob Weisman selected Baker to be his deputy, a position she held for 15 years before Weisman retired.
"I'd still be his deputy if he had not retired," she joked during an interview May 27 in her office at the County Governmental Center in West Palm Beach.
Bake reflected on her lengthy tenure with the county, candidly describing the challenges and rewards of overseeing a multibillion-dollar budget and more than 7,000 employees. In 1987, when she first began her career with Palm Beach County, the population stood at 784,800. It has nearly doubled since then.
"It was a real challenge to accommodate all that growth but I believe we did a good job," said Baker, 66, a Royal Palm Beach resident who grew up in Fort Pierce. "I'm leaving the county in good shape, a triple-A bond rating and services that make the county a great place to live in."
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Baker's path to the top of Palm Beach County government began as a teenager. She went to an integrated St. Lucie County middle school, her first encounter in a school with white students. Her principal was the first Black principal there. She was the first Black student council president, and she quickly began dealing with racial issues.
She was aware of the mantle she was carrying. "Being first carries a lot of responsibility," she said in a 2017 profile. "It means going above and beyond, and that is how I was brought up," she said.
Her service also taught her to find common ground. "Everyone wants the same things — decent jobs, to take care of our family, to take care of our elderly," she said.
Baker remembers her first involvement in community activism. There was a dangerous intersection in a Black neighborhood. There were numerous accidents. The coach of the Youth Movement Club urged her and others to go to City Hall and make a case for the traffic signal.
"We got our signal," she said.
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As Palm Beach County administrator, she accomplished so much more. She said she is most proud of the county's AAA bond rating. The county, Florida's fourth-largest, is just one of 58 nationally to have such a high rating, which allows it to borrow money at interest rates lower than most other counties.
She also is proud of bringing a second spring training baseball stadium to the county to join Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter. Major League Baseball's Houston Astros and Washington Nationals train there, and their fans who travel there help to boost the local tourist industry.
Baker also oversaw the issuance of grant money during the COVID-19 pandemic and helped to steer the government through providing services during virus-triggered shutdowns.
One of her concerns is that Office of Equal Business Opportunity could become a victim of President Donald Trump's efforts to wipe out diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, programs. The department certifies minority, women-owned business enterprises to make them eligible for work on county contracts. Successful vendors are required to award a percentage of the work to those certified businesses.
"It would be a shame to see it eliminated," Baker said. "It has helped to level the playing field. But unless court challenges overturn what the president wants to do, I expect the program will be suspended. There would be a risk of losing millions of dollars in federal aid."
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As for the budgets over the past 38 years, this year's was the most difficult of all, said Baker. "There's the impact of presidential security costs. That is a $45 million hit. We never expected that. I'm hopeful the federal government will reimburse us, but there's no guarantee.'
If that doesn't happen, she has recommended using reserve funds to cover most of the costs. She also reached an agreement with Sheriff Ric Bradshaw to reduce his budget by a record $37 million and has asked him to cut his budget by an additional $20 million. Regardless of whether there is another budget cut, his spending plan for the first time will exceed $1 billion.
The problem with dipping into the reserve is that it is already well below what similar Florida counties are maintaining. She said she is concerned that it could affect the county's bond rating, which she has worked hard during her tenure as county administrator to maintain.
She said she was reluctant to ask Bradshaw to cut his budget but it was necessary to prevent core county departments from reducing their spending to the level that it would affect their ability to provide needed services. 'They have already been cut enough,' she said.
She said her successor will have to analyze public safety spending, which has increased at a pace far in excess of the rate of inflation and far in excess of other county departments. The sheriff's budget has increased 183% during the past 18 years; County Commission departments have risen 71%. The inflation rate was 60%; the population increase 21%.
"It is just not sustainable," Baker said of the increase in the sheriff's budget. "I'm all for making sure that first responders have all the tools they need, but we need to balance the needs of departments that fall under the direct supervision of county commissioners."
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Before Weisman retired, he recommended that the commission hire Baker as his replacement. So who does Baker recommend as her successor?
She favors her deputy, Patrick Rutter. "I had enough confidence in him to make him my deputy. He would be a great administrator.' But, she added, Assistant County Administrator Isami Ayala-Collazo, another finalist, is also very well-qualified to hold the position.
Baker's last day will be May 31, after which she plans to travel and spend time with family. There has been a whirlwind of recognition for Baker during the last month.
May 18 was proclaimed Verdenia Baker Day by county commissioners.
May 20, county commissioners voted to name the Vista Center complex on Jog Road after her.
In June, county commissioners are expected to name a portion of Crestwood Boulevard in Royal Palm Beach after her.
The Florida Association of Counties recently provided her with a plaque recognizing her for her years of public service.
Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government and issues concerning HOAs. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Verdenia Baker proud of her record as Palm Beach County administrator
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