Three of five supervisors on the RiverBend Community Development District board in Ruskin have submitted resignation letters, triggering a rare wholesale leadership turnover at the special district that manages infrastructure and amenities for roughly 752 single-family homes.
Chairman Steven Face, Vice Chairperson Martha Fleck and Assistant Secretary Gene Breazeale will formally step down when the board accepts their resignations at its Thursday, Aug. 13, meeting. The board will then appoint replacements to Seats 1, 2 and 4, swear them in and elect new officers the same evening.
The departures leave only two sitting supervisors: Richard DeBrosse, a long-tenured board member in Seat 5, and Shanell McMiller-Brown in Seat 3. Together they will constitute the quorum that reconstitutes the board.
No reasons for the three simultaneous resignations have been made public.
The agenda posted to the district's website lists the resignation letters as action items but does not include the letters themselves or name the proposed replacements.
Budget hearing on the same night
The same meeting includes a public hearing on the district's fiscal year 2027 budget and special assessments. Resolution 2026-07 would adopt the new budget; Resolution 2026-08 would impose special assessments and certify the assessment roll that determines what each homeowner pays on their annual tax bill.
The board approved the proposed FY 2027 budget and set the hearing date at its May 14 meeting. Specific dollar amounts for FY 2027 assessments have not been released in the agenda document. For context, the district's FY 2026 gross assessments totaled $2,036,196 across all funds, according to financial statements from March 2026, with a 97% collection rate.
New vendors under consideration
Beyond governance and budget matters, the reconstituted board will weigh two significant contracts. The agenda lists a proposed fee agreement with Sniffen & Harmon, a Florida law firm specializing in employment law and representing special districts, for employment lawyer services. The board will also consider a proposal from GMS-Tampa to provide amenity management services at the district's pool, gym, tennis courts, dog park and dock.
GMS-Tampa, formally Governmental Management Services-Tampa LLC, has previously served RiverBend CDD in a management capacity and manages multiple community development districts in the South Shore area.
A pattern, but not at this scale
This is not the first mid-term vacancy at RiverBend. In August 2024, Supervisor Andrew Pouget resigned from Seat 1, and the board appointed a replacement at its next meeting. That was one seat. Losing three of five supervisors at once is unprecedented in the district's recent history.
The meeting begins at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13, at the RiverBend Amenity Center, 2502 Dakota Rock Drive, Ruskin. Audience comments are limited to three minutes per person. A Zoom link is available for viewing, though the district notes the "right to be heard is not promised on Zoom." The next regular meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 10.
