A Planning Board Member sent anOfficial Town document to the Council stating that the exclosed residents statements were verbstim- there were five residents statements -four were verbatim - one was not- it stated (I... Read e-mail) but did not include exactly what was said - the e-mail that was read was sent by a sitting Planning Board Member and was very damiging to her

Thanking you inadvance for any info that you can give me

IRC

I understand the situation. What is the question and where are you?

Is this an ethics violation? - he was protecting another planning board member
Is this a denial of my free speech? - because my comments which were made at an official Planning Board Meeting that were detrimental to this Planning Board Member( I read an e-mail sent by this sitting member in which shows she was contacting many residents of our Town telling them that she would be fighting against the very item of redevelopment that she was voting on

He states in a Planning Board Meeting that all verbal comments would be verbatim - mine is far from it - which means that the information that I said will never be recorded in the Towns Official Document Records

Thank you very much for such a quick contact- greatly appreciated

Isbella

Hello I:

Yes, it IS an ethics violation for a public figure to lie. The question is, what can you do about it. I don't think you can do much. You SAY somebody was damaged because of it, but you didn't say HOW. If the damage was measurable monetary damages, the person should hire a lawyer.

excon

Thank you for you input - I am NOT looking for monetary gain - I am looking to protect my Town from acts like this- but in my opinion the family who owns the property may have some sort of case - but of course I am not a attorney

The members were voting on a redevelopment of a very old hotel in our Town - which by the way the Planning Board Member who sent the e-mail lives directly next door and if built she would definitely lose some of her Ocean view. She also had her condo on sale during the whole time she was denying the application to redevelopment I have MLS Listing to prove this

The Chairperson who lied lives directly opposite in a nine story building Penthouse and would loose a 125-130ft uninterrupted ocean view. He had published a personal article printed in the local newspaper stating his opposition and his opinion of why the redevelopment was not good for the Town - at no time did he tell anybody about his loss of view - he also did same many times at Town Hall Meetings - as did the other sitting Planning Board members that I am mentioning - they all voted sgsint the redevelopment three times I believe that ethically they should have informed everybody

And the third member who voted against the redevelopment mother lives in the same building as the e-mail writer and would also lose her ocean view. In April 2010 this member received her mothers condo via a quit deed claim - so when she voted down the redevelopment she owned the property

This probable sounds like a crazy film script but this is truly the situation in this Town in Florida!

These three Planning Board Members were rabid opponents of an redevelopment( all statements from them are recorded on Towns Official Tapes - and were appointed against our Charters instructions AFTER THE FIRST APPLICATION WAS PUT IN TO CHANGE OUR COMPREHENSIVE PLAN!

ANOTHER QUESTION: I have multiple very serious situations where the Town has not be run according to our Charter- and they are ones which the Charter states cannot be altered without a referendum - what is the Law on this problem?




I have many many instances

Did the person whose statements were not recorded correctly, notify the board of this? Was the board given evidence of the error. Was Human Resource notified of the error as was this persons manager? Was a formal complaint filed against them by anyone?

Hi.

Do not know the answer to your first questions - but I researching at the Town Hall and I am working on sending complaints to the ethics board and anybody else that I can find whom I believe maybe interested in this behavior

I just really appreciate any input that I can get from this site - thank you
Any ideas about them not adhering to our Town Charter?

Hello again, I:

I appreciate your efforts to change the way they do business in your little town... Yes, it sounds corrupt. The only way you'll fix it, is get involved in the town politics. Run for mayor. But, unless you know how to use the courts, or hire a lawyer yourself, I don't think it's going to happen.

excon

Thank you so much for your input - I am preparing a complaint to the Public Interity Dept in West Palm Beach

In my Town - and I'm in a small town - there is a Code of Ethics. Report a violation to the Board members and the Town Supervisor AND the Town Attorney and somebody takes a second look.

At future meetings I would ask for permission to tape record the meeting - there is no reason to say no (except we both know there IS a reason to say no if you are going to be misquoted) and it will solve future problems.

You sound like you have your act together. Not everyone with a similar problem does. Sometimes all it takes is one voice. Like you, I tend to be an activist. The fact that it goes on and allows to go on does not make it right or legal.

I'd take a look at the Ethics Committee Rules.

In my Town someone on the Board was excused from the meeting, and that's what the Minutes stated, because the person was out of Town. Then the Board voted and that person cast an "yes" on a proposal. If you are going to falsify minutes make sure you know what you're doing. It was a BIG concern "here" for quite a while - what else is being misquoted?

Let me put it this way. A planning board member should recuse themselves from voting on an project where they are personally involved. That doesn't mean they can't speak before the board, but they should not be voting.

- And NO ONE should be misquoted.

Thanks again and in a perfect world I would be able to take all of the steps through the Town Hall- but I already have on many occasion and the refuse to give me answers.

I learned how to request everything through Statute 119 - doesn't matter.

The Town Tapes and we video all meetings, you should have heard the abuse we had to go through because we videoed.I go to the Town Meetings and I am gavelled silent - I wish I could attach videos of some of these instances.

They have not adhered to our Town Charter for years and I went to the Town Hall to question them about it and I was gavelled to death, I requested to go onto another subject which is allowed under our Charter and Decorum Statement I was not allowed to do so and the Police Chief threatened to arrest me for trespassing!

This was the last straw and that's why I am working on all the things that I am working on

This has been a four year fight, lawyers letters from the owners pointing out that the Planning Board was loaded ageist the redevelopment, and that the members who claim themselves as "affected" residents should recuse themselves from voting- it would have passed because the other two members were very much for it. Many more statement pointed out the same thing at Town Hall meetings all completely ignored

You are right in the fact that the Board Members are allowed to talk at the Town Hall - but before they speak against the redevelopment they have to tell the people attending that the are "affected" and they also have to fill out an Ethics Form 8b and put it into the Public Record, I e-mailed a request for any 8b Forms
They had completed there are none - I knew that because I have been to every meeting but I just wasted in writing from the Town Clerk

Remind me to NEVER move to your Town!

My only other comments here are to try working on the County or State level to get reform. Involve the media. Start a citizens committee. Get honest responsible, people to run for Town positions.

Thanks I am preparing documents for State and Public Integrity Dept - takes a lot of time but I will have it altogether in about a month

If I have any success I will let you all know just to let people know that one person can get changes

Again thank you all for you input

Why don't you stay around and answer some questions? Your help would be much appreciated - and you sound like a fact finder.

I would be more than willing to help anybody regarding any steps that I have taken

It's all about finding documentation and I make sure that everything that I request from this Town is done by e-mail and answer is in e-mail format- one can of course write letters

If I have a telephone conversation I always e-mail to confirm what was discussed and ask them to let you know if any statement in my e-mail was incorrect to let me know as soon as possible. I believe that if they do not appose anything in the e-mail it will be accepted as the truth - but of course I am not an attorney

Hello again, I:

No, but you're a smart little cookie. We need more like you.

excon

Thank you for your encouragement - it's a lonely fight!