I have been asked what rule Escambia County Library Services Director Christal Bell-Rivera broke when she moved Jon Fay’s political campaign signs to cover up his competitor Trei McMullen’s face.
Escambia County’s Human Resources Policies and Procedures manual has a policy that covers political activity.
Under Section 27.14: “A County Public Officer or employee is prohibited from using County resources to aid or boost the political campaign of any elected public officer.”
I drove out to the Bellview Library, which is one of the 10 early voting locations, to confirm McMullen’s sign was on county property. It clearly is on the median of the library’s parking lot.
Had the Bell-Rivera moved around political signs at the Asbury Place or UWF Center for Fine and Performing Arts, she might have been okay. It’s crazy that she and her husband did it boldly when other campaign workers could photograph them.
For County Commissioner Ashlee Hofberger, this incident is particularly embarrassing because she vouched for Bell-Rivera. In early March, Hofberger told her constituents in emails sent by her former aide: “I want to clearly express my full support for the decision to hire Christal Bell-Rivera as Library Services Director.”
At the March 5 commission meeting, Hofberger explained her endorsement of Bell-Rivera: “Sometimes you have to hire somebody for the heart that they have for the community, for the job that they are doing, and sometimes that’s not exactly what’s on the job description.”
- Hofberger’s support for Bell-Rivera has cost her aide, Melanie Luna, and inspired the campaign of her opponent, Joe Vinson, whose wife Hofberger and Luna disparaged.
Past Sign Shannagans
In the 2010 GOP primary for Florida House District 1, Greg Brown got caught on video pulling up the campaign signs of his opponent, Doug Broxson, on a lot north of Milton. Broxson’s campaign manager took the video to Santa Rosa County’s Sheriff’s Office and to the Pensacola News Journal. The Broxson campaign also put it on YouTube. Brown said he had permission to remove the signs from property owned by a campaign supporter.
Broxson won the four-person primary and served in the Florida House from 2010 to 2016 and the Florida Senate from 2016 to 2024.
Brown was elected Santa Rosa County Property Appraiser in 2020 and still holds the office.
FYI, Christal Bell-Rivera’s picture has been removed from the West Florida Public Library’s website and the position of Library Director is described as “Vacant.” If she violated county policy, why was Bell-Rivera allowed to resign vice be fired? Who is running the Library? The website describes Rachel Nicholas-Kahalley as the Library’s Deputy Director. Since when? Is Nicholas-Kahalley also now the Interim Library Director? Is she qualified to be the Library Director? Has anyone told the Library Board? If only the Library Board has the power to “recommend” to the County Administrator the name of the Library Director doesn’t it follow that the Library Board also exercises the power to recommend the Interim Library Director? This situation is what got us into the mess in August 2025 when Library Director Humble submitted his retirement papers, “with immediate effect” according to people told the news by Bell-Rivera who also advised that she was not in charge. Perhaps the Library Board’s By-Laws should be amended to put in place a policy providing for a “continuity of library” process to ensure stability. FYI, County Administrator Moreno has now decided to allow the Library Board to begin meeting again in late September, “after” the BCC approves the budget. On Monday, I told someone who told a Library Board member who had not been told of the meetings. One issue still unresolved is that the BCC failed to appoint new Library Board members to take the place of John Bullock and Liza Campbell whose term of office expired. They did not resign. Florida Attorney General Opinion 2010-51 “Vacancy Not Created By Expiration of Term” would seem to infer that Bullock and Campbell are still members of the Library Board. Seems a good question for someone to ask new County Attorney Nelson. Other than Councilwoman Brahier and Councilman Bare, no one else in city government seems to care about the library scandal, just enlarged even more this week. As Andrew McKay discussed on his radio show on May 28th, County Administrator Moreno does not have the authority to manhandle the Library Board as he has been doing. Effectively, Moreno acting under the authority of the BCC has stripped the Library Board of its legal function. The city’s only viable response is for the city council to vote to terminate the Interlocal Agreement. That kicks the county out of three city buildings and ends collection of the county’s library tax inside the city limit, something city property owners would like. Putting that action on the agenda might at least get the commissioners to give a hoot.
Rick, thank you for being a wonderful watchdog for the library community. Could you confirm whether she resigned or was fired? Unfortunately, Nikki Powell is good at hiding records.
Mayor DC, when will the city speak up to protect the libraries in our city? The city residents deserve better. We are the Friends of the Library.