No Admitted Complaints = No Solution
City fails to address Board of Ethics need for reform |
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The Board of Ethics Committee met Sept. 27 to discuss their annual reports to City Council and elect new board chairs. The board re-elected Christiana Dijkman as Chairwomen of the board and Bill Best as Vice-Chair.
City Secretary Angelique Soto discussed the annual report process for the board to submit to the City Council. According to Soto, the report shows no complaints or recommendations to change the code of ethics.
Dijkman confirmed since her start on board in 2018 that there has never been a complaint filed. "So, I could vouch from 2017 'til now. I suppose any complaints would also be on file."
Contrary to the record, City complaints do exist. In the past, complaints were submitted to a third-party anonymous vendor Lighthouse Services the City discontinued.
However, the Mayor of SPI, Patrick McNulty, is not a fan of anonymous complaints. According to a Facebook post in response to the coverage, McNulty (against whom some of the complaints were filed) condemned Island Matters for creating a false narrative by reporting anonymous complaints. "Unfortunately, under the leadership of President George Block and VP Brandy Buntin, the organization has continued to lie to the public, by creating false narratives based on ‘anonymous’ complaints and meritless innuendo," said McNulty in his 2020 Facebook post. |
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In the past, the Lighthouse services served as the only route for city employees to be honest about their work environment without fear of retribution. Despite the complaints, the City did not investigate further, according to the documents. |
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Lighthouse is a worldwide, anonymous reporting provider that helps companies identify improper behavior and protects confidentiality and anonymity of employees. |
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Records reflect many serious accusations concerning racism, sexual harassment, sexual advances, City Council micro-managing staff, threatening employees, interference in job promotions, conflict of interests, and spreading false and malicious statements.
The City did not investigate any complaints, primarily geared toward present sitting council members or City Manager Randall Smith. One complaint pointed out that it was unsafe to go to the board of ethics for fear of retribution due to members of the board of ethics having “political ties to elected officials.” [Note: The Chair of the Board of Ethics is Christina Dijkman, wife of Councilman Kerry Schwartz.]
Soon, a Hostile Work Environment letter was sent to the entire city council later that year (2020) and confirmed by the former South Padre Island Fire Inspector Alexana Torres.
No disciplinary action was taken by the board of ethics nor investigated by the City despite genuine fear and anonymous outcry through City employee complaints. The letter revealed similar control issues caused by Mayor Patrick McNulty and Councilman Joseph Ricco. In an attempt to follow the story, Island Matters was billed several times in amounts up to $24,000 for public records. |
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Earlier in 2020, Ms. Ashley Bowen (Former Fire Inspector) and Mr. David Travis (Former Building Official) turned in resignations along with Mr. Aaron Hanley (Former Planning Director), whose position was eliminated during budget cuts.
Mr. Hanley's position was eliminated months after suggesting the Development Standards Review Task Force (DSRTF) decline McNulty's request for a variance, due to lack of financial hardship, to follow the building code. Nevertheless, McNulty ignored the board's recommendation and continued the construction of Tequila Sunset Bar and Grill. |
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In the months following, the City tasked its Attorney, Edmund Cyganiewicz, to present a new law passed on Sept. 1, 2019. restricting local municipalities from regulating their city's building materials used for construction. (HB 2439) After the elimination of the Planning Department, long-time Developmental Standard Review Task Force Chairman Garr Treharne resigned from the board.
Building Official Belinda Tarver submitted her resignation four months later, after the resignation/termination of Alexana Torres. Since then, the City has struggled to maintain building officials and fire inspectors. Island Matters requested relevant public information from the City of South Padre Island and did not receive any information. Island Matters requested an interview from the Board of Ethics Liaison, Angelique "Nikki" Soto, and Chairwoman of the Board, Christiana Dijkman.
Mrs. Dijkman declined an in-person interview for this article.
The last time the Board of Ethics amended its handbook was in 2011, intending to protect city officials running for election by incorporating a fee of $250 to submit a complaint. The motion for a modification to charge $250 did not pass at this meeting.
Under these circumstances, making anonymous complaints about Council members or the City Manager to a third-party vendor such as Lighthouse Services serves no purpose unless the anonymous reporter decides to identify themselves. South Padre Island has no independent, third-party investigator to protect employee anonymity. The result is that the employee is unprotected, the public is uninformed, and information is withheld under attorney-client privilege.
Part two of this series to follow. |
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