Board Member’s Non-disclosure Has Placed City at Risk
Posted: February 18, 2008
Once again, the City of Winter Springs had no management controls in place to determine whether or not a person serving on a City Commission’s advisory board was in fact a resident of the City. This goes to show that the City has done NOTHING to institute policy and controls since the dispute over the residency of former City Commissioner Ed Martinez came into question. We all know the former commissioner served time on the commission while he took up residency in Altamonte Springs, and NOT residency in the home of a former board member of the Tuscawilla Homeowners’ Association.
See "Commissioner Illegally Makes Appointment".
Now, the same thing has occurred again on the City’s Code Enforcement Board with a board member who has lived in unincorporated Seminole County probably dating back to March 16, 2007. However, PFGG does not accept the board member’s lame excuse that they did not know the residence was not within the city limits of Winter Springs. Regardless of the residence’s postal address, did this board member not realize since April 2007 that the City of Winter Springs delivered no utility bills or that no city issued garbage can or recycle bin emblazoned with the City’s crest was delivered to the new home by Waste Pro? Please, PFGG is not that stupid.
Since this board member was appointed by a commissioner who is notorious for such deceptions across Winter Springs, PFGG has little doubt that the board member was ill-advised to keep things quiet by the very same commissioner, and that commissioner’s cohorts in deception, including the nefarious former city commissioner Ed Martinez.
Of course the commissioner in question would know of the board member’s change in residence, since the board member’s other residence that was left behind for the unincorporated Seminole residence was in the Wildwood subdivision. This commissioner’s employer is the property management firm for the Wildwood Homeowners Association, and the commissioner is involved in the management of Wildwood because she notarizes claims/releases of liens and other legal documents for the Wildwood HOA.
This code enforcement board member maintained the charade even at the January 2008 code enforcement board meeting and allowed themselves to be elected to an officer role. Fortunately, some one wised up when the homestead exemptions for this person’s home was removed from the Wildwood property to the unincorporated Seminole County property for 2008. This discovery was the catalyst for the board member to resign on February 14, 2008. This board member’s actions of nondisclosure placed the city in jeopardy of legal entanglements and accountability by not disclosing the change in residency when it occurred in March 2007 so that it could be verified that the residence was indeed within the city limits. Code enforcement cases adjudged by this board member since March 16, 2007 could have been thrown out, and perhaps still could.
Plain and simple: City code requires that for a person to qualify for the commission, an advisory board, or committee they MUST be a resident within the city limits of Winter Springs at ALL times. Anyone signing an oath provided by City for appointment to these positions declares that fact.
Again, this all goes to the question as to why the City does not regularly check residency of anyone serving in a capacity that requires residency within the city limits of Winter Springs. However, that would require someone in City Hall to actually establish policy and then lead staff to institute it and follow it. PFGG knows that the City Manager is incapable of policy making and leadership because, quite frankly, that would require him to actually think and work.
Past history of some UN-ETHICAL maneuvers by your city hierarchy !
