Cincinnati taxpayers will pay former City Manager Harry Black an additional $370,000, despite the fact Black resigned with no contractual obligation entitling him to anything beyond the $274,000 the city already paid him.

The lump-sum payment means Black, whom the majority of council wanted to fire, will have left the city with a total of $644,000.

Black had already received a severance of $174,000, with additional benefits worth around $100,000. Black's annual city was $261,283.

The settlement agreement, obtained by The Enquirer late Friday, was signed Sept. 5 and says both sides "desire a mutually amicable resolution."

Black, who resigned in April under the threat of being fired, had threatened to sue the city. He never followed through on the threat.

Acting City Manager Patrick Duhaney wrote an email to council members Friday night, explaining the settlement.

"As previously discussed, the city's exposure in legal fees alone, should we have gone to a judgment hearing and/or a trial, would have significantly surpassed the amount of the settlement," Duhaney wrote. "Therefore, we found it prudent to settle."

Black came under fire this past spring after problems with the city's 911 center came to light. He initially resisted the push to leave, but once it became clear there were enough votes on council to send him packing, he resigned before council could take the vote.

However, he left open the possibility he might sue the city.

“I have made this decision based on the reality that the work environment has become very hostile, and as such untenable,” he said in the April 21 memo announcing his resignation.

Council voted 5-0 to accept his resignation, appointing Duhaney as interim city manager.

The resignation capped a very public six-week battle between Black and Mayor John Cranley. Cranley hand-picked Black for the city manager post nearly four years ago, but the relationship soured, and Cranley on March 9 asked Black to resign.

Black initially refused, and several African American groups and a majority of council rallied behind him.

The conflict came to a head after Black pushed out Assistant Police Chief Dave Bailey following the leak of an internal audit report on police overtime.

Cranley said the reason he wanted Black out of City Hall was what he called Black's unprofessional treatment of employees. The mayor got the critical fifth vote he needed to remove Black, however, when Councilman Greg Landsman said he was dissatisfied with the city manager's response to ongoing problems at the city 911 center.

The April 10 death of Kyle Plush, a 16-year-old who called 911 twice to say he was trapped in his van, but died because help didn't arrive, was the tipping point.

Settlement Agreement - HB