Our Conclusion: "The Fix Was In"

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We thought we were done posting regarding the Oro Valley Conceptual Design Review Board"(CDBR) on the non reappointment of member Gil Alexander.

Our curiosity was piqued, however, from a comment that Vice Mayor Waters made at last week's council meeting.  We posted a video that includes that comment.  Vice Mayor Waters said that Ms. Huber was the only person to apply for the CDRB position.

We knew that was not the case since Mr. Alexander had wanted to continue on the Board but been denied the opportunity first by Mayor and Vice Mayor Waters; then by the Council on a 4 to 3 vote.

Our curiosity drove us to check dates, dates of when things occurred. Like we said, we hoped that this matter would simply go away; but it won't.

Start with the fact that there were no openings on the CDRB.  Therefore, an opening had to be created in order for an individual to join the DCRB.

Now, follow the key dates:

• October 5, 2012: Gil Alexander sends letter to town clerk Julie Bower requesting reappointment to the CDRB.
• November 21, 2012: Mayor Satish Hiremath sends Gil Alexander a letter telling him that the Council had decided that Gil would not be reappointed to the CDRB.  As we previously posted, the mayors statement was factually incorrect. the Council had not made such a decision. We believe that he, Mayor Hiremath, and vice Mayor Waters had made that decision.  In addition, the letter accused Mr. Alexander of certain actions that were not factually based.
• November 26, 2012: Kelly Huber files her application for appointment to the CDRB.  Note that this is just 5 days after the date of the letter to Mr. Alexander.
• December 7, 2012, a notice seeking applicants for the open CDBR position, is posted on the Oro Valley Web Site.
• January 23, 2013, The Town Council votes 4-3 to not reappoint Mr. Alexander.  
• January 23, 2013: Vice Mayor Waters states that the "town" has been nurturing someone to join the CDRB.
• February 6, 2012, Town Council votes 5-1 with 1 abstention to appoint Kelly Huber to CDRB

It appears that Mayor Hiremath and Vice Mayor Waters rigged this entire deal so that an individual of their liking would sit on the CDRB.  The "fix was in."

Yes. What they did is ethically wrong. They smeared the reputation of one individual so that they could favor another.  Yes. It was a violation of public trust.  And, by making it a rigged deal, it was a violation of town policy which requires open and honest dialogue for these volunteer positions.

The implications of what happened here for appointments to volunteer boards and commissions is significant.  It means that any appointment can be tainted. Any process can be corrupted.  Why bother applying when the process might be rigged? 
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