What happened:

Former Building Official Belinda Tarver recently resigned from her position with the City of South Padre Island.

Why it matters:

According to the Hostile Work Environment letter written by former Fire Inspector Alexana Torres, Tarver experienced similar treatment to Torres while working alongside each other.

Mentioning Tarver 12 times in the 10-page report, Torres explained that Tarver contacted Torres on several occasions concerning missing information on the Fire Departments end and also been blamed for holding up projects. “The owner and contractor blame Belinda and I for holding up the project when their insufficient plans, field changes, and non-compliance are the issue,” said Torres in her letter.

What now:

This resignation is now the fourth resignation in 1 year after previous Fire Inspector Ashley Bowen and previous Building Official David Travis resigned from their positions within one month of each other early last year.

Currently, the City’s third-party attorneys requested a ruling from the Attorney General to withhold information from an Island Matters public information request stating that they are now expecting “Pending and reasonably anticipated litigation” from former Fire Inspector Alex Torres.

According to the City’s Brief to the Attorney General, Torres notified the City of South Padre Island that she has “submitted two letters – one from herself in which she advises she will be seeking alternative legal solutions. Additionally, on January 15, 2021, Ms. Torres advising that she has retained counsel and a request to preserve evidence.”

[Island Matters is following this story]