- Local Government
Text messages obtained by Inweekly reveal how Commissioner Ashlee Hofberger and her aide Melanie Luna mocked the Library Board’s top pick for director while helping deliver the job to their preferred candidate.
Escambia County Commissioner Ashlee Hofberger and her aide, Melanie Luna, wanted Christal Bell-Rivera to become the new library services director—and County Administrator Wes Moreno agreed to make it happen.
Background: The West Florida Public Library Board of Governance had conducted a months-long search that included structured interviews and unanimously recommended Bradley Vinson as its top choice. Vinson holds a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh, has worked in libraries since 2004, and has direct experience with the WFPL system. At the time, she was serving as coordinator of media services for the Escambia County School District.
Bell-Rivera’s path was different. She joined WFPL in 2022, was promoted to deputy director in 2023, and was appointed interim director in August 2025 following Todd Humble’s retirement. Before entering county government, she spent 12 years with the Florida Division of Motor Services—as Senior Clerk (2008–2009), Compliance Examiner (2009–2012), and Senior Highway Safety Specialist (2012–2022).
- Neither the Library Board’s unanimous recommendation nor public pressure moved Moreno. The Board of County Commissioners ultimately sided 4–1 with Bell-Rivera on March 5.
Behind the Scenes
It took four weeks, but Inweekly finally received the text messages from Hofberger and Luna that the newspaper had requested following the March commission vote. They reveal how little the pair cared about the views of the Library Board or the public—and how freely they mocked the candidate the board had chosen.
Luna texted Hofberger: “I talked with Wes, and he is firm in his decision. He also told me Bradley took OFF her shoes during the interview * (Green-faced sick emoji) and bombed it completely. So there’s that.”
Hofberger replied: “Shoeless librarian….I can see the memes.” Luna tagged it with “Ha Ha.”
Human Resources Director Nikki Powell apparently joined in. Luna texted Hofberger: “Nikki came by and said Bradley has ZERO managerial experience.”
Luna followed up: “I am sending & printing a packet for you with their resumes.”
Hofberger replied: “Thank you! This is ridiculous.”
Luna agreed: “Truly ridiculous!”
*Note: Wes Moreno did not attend the interviews conducted by the Library Board.
Inweekly Public Record Request
2) Please send me Melanie Luna’s text messages concerning Christal Bell-Rivera, Bradley Vinson and any library-related matter from March 1, 2026, through March 7, 2026. Digital copies are preferred. PRR 2026-794
Text Messages Quoted Above
Missing Text Messages
In fulfilling our public record request, Commissioner Hofberger failed to include a series of text messages with Pensacola City Council member Jennifer Brahier on March 5, the day of the vote. The exchange paints a different picture of her and Luna’s involvement in Bell-Rivera’s hiring.
The commissioner flatly denied working behind the scenes for Bell-Rivera to get the job.
- “The word on the street is that it has been you and your assistant, working the manipulation of the library director,” Brahier wrote. “Please tell me that’s not true! I have so much faith in you!!!”
“Prior to this whole situation, I didn’t even know the Director of Library Services was a position in the county,” Hofberger replied. “Melanie has attended several of the meetings. And I do support Crystal, but no one’s manipulating anything.”
- Wanting Kohler Gone: The commissioner acknowledged the rumor and took a jab at fellow Commissioner Mike Kohler. “I have heard that rumor too,” she texted. “And I’ve also heard the rumor that if we don’t vote for Crystal (sic) that Ronnie’s gonna run against Mike Kohler. I’ll be 100% honest, if that’s all it took to get running (Editor’s note: Ronnie?) to run, I would do that.”
Hofberger added, “If it’s not Fire Services or EMS, I pretty much stay out of it.”
Brahier questioned Hofberger’s statement that Luna sat through the interviews. “They say she only sat through Christal’s and then left.”
- The commissioner backtracked. “I know she sat through a lot of meetings and some interviews, but again, I’m not super involved, so I don’t know,” Hofberger stated. “I will say I looked at all of the resumes, and the candidate that the board nominated has no management experience. There’s no way I would put her over an entire library system.”
They went back and forth on what the resume stated, and Hofberger held to her belief that a coordinator had no managerial experience.
- Brahier replied, “The coordinator IS the manager, just like the director IS the manager! She manages the entire K-12 school district.”
Hofberger wouldn’t budge.
- Brahier texted, “My goodness, the title of manager for the school district is called coordinator– all the professionals know this! Your pick has much less experience in management and NO librarian experience. I am in shock!”
Note: Inweekly will request Commissioner Hofberger review her text messages again to ensure no other messages were inadvertently overlooked. If any readers texted with Hofberger and Luna from March 1 to March 7 regarding the library and the director position, please email me screenshots of your texts.
