Miami Beach Mayor Matti Bower

Mayor Bower leaves Miami Beach in the lurch

Miami Beach
July 7, 2010

David Arthur Walters, a self-styled investigative reporter, wrote to Miami Beach

Mayor Matti Bower on June 25, 2010 and asked her to place an item on the July 6
Commission agenda, to discuss whether or not an independent investigation should
be conducted into the contractual relationship between Green Square, Inc., the
manager of the city's Flamingo Park Tennis Center and North Shore Tennis Center,
and the City of Miami Beach.

"Violations of the terms of the contract are alleged," wrote Mr. Walters, "and
serious questions have been raised about the letting out of the contracts and the
process for renewal. Indeed, circumstances surrounding the letting out of the
original contract nearly a decade ago appear suspicious. If half of the allegations
are true, the Gonzalez Administration has been, to say the least, grossly negligent
in its conduct in regards to the tennis court issue. If an investigation finds that the
Administration has in fact been negligent and/or engaged in some malfeasance,
that might be indicative of widespread mishandling of City contracts, and that of
course would call for the firing of the City Manager and a shakeup of the entire
Administration. I urge you to place an item on the agenda for the next City
Commission meeting to at least discuss the appointment of independent
investigators to inquire into the Flamingo Tennis matter, and if the investigation
indicates maladministration, to conduct a widespread investigation into the
handling of City contracts by the Gonzalez Administration over the last ten years
of Jorge Gonzalez' tenure."

Rebecca Wakefield, Mayor Bower's chief of staff, replied the same day as follows:
"Thank you for writing. If you have specific questions that you’d like answered,
we will do our best to get them answered.”

To which Mr. Walters responded: "There is a mass of detail which may be

organized for the investigators. I see from various senders' email delivery detail
that Mayor Bower and the City Manager are aware of numerous detailed
complaints about contractual violations and apparently nothing was done to
address them or acknowledge them. There was plenty of time to answer questions.
Many people are tired of waiting for answers and want a sea change. I did not ask a
question. I asked for one thing, that discussion of an independent investigation of
the entire affair at least to put on the next agenda - so I will ask you one question
here: Will that be done? Once the investigators are empanelled, I am sure that all
the material delivered to the Mayor and City Manager before will be delivered
again to the investigators, and no doubt many people will come forward in
confidence to testify - some of them are fearful of retaliation. We trusted Mayor
Bower to deliver on her promise to clean this town up. This is her chance.
Otherwise she will leave office with that trust broken."

Despite allegations of under-reporting of revenue, from which part of the city's rent
is calculated, there has been no city audit of the contractor's books as authorized by
the contract. In fact, the city acknowledged that the books have not been audited
since the inception of the management contract in 2002. Certain unaudited
financial statements, budget reports and other records were reportedly not regularly
supplied to the city when due, and what the contractor did furnish was either
ignored or left virtually unexamined. Sketchy information has emerged to the
effect that the records now on hand indicate irregularities, wide fluctuations in
rents reported due from time to time, and delinquent payment of rents.

Notwithstanding the apparent financial irregularities, there are longstanding

complaints by amateur and professional tennis players, alleging grossly inadequate
maintenance of the courts by the management firm. Since Green Square's general
manager either was not available to receive the complaints or did not respond to
them effectively, complaints were lodged with Miami Beach Parks Director Kevin
Smith, who is a good friend to one of Green Square's principals, tennis pro Jimmy
Bollettieri, son to Nick Bollettieri, reputedly the best tennis coach in the world. Mr.
Smith apparently oversees the city's contract with Green Square.
After a frequent tennis player alleged that the maintenance had improved
significantly "since the city took it over," Mr. Walters contacted Andrew Plotkin,
Park Facility Manager for the Parks and Recreation Department on June 25, 2010,
and asked, "I am informed that Parks took over the major maintenance of the
courts from Green Square Inc because of a number of complaints, and has done a
good job of it for the players. Would you please confirm that info?"

"Green Square Inc.," Mr. Plotkin replied on June 28, "is responsible and provides
the daily court maintenance. Since the June 5, 2009 storm and the restoration of the
courts that summer, the Parks and Recreation Department has taken a more
proactive approach by assisting with the development and monitoring of the daily
maintenance process. If I can assist you with anything else, please do not hesitate
to contact me."

Mr. Plotkin did not respond to Mr. Walters' further question despite follow ups:
"Do you have any sort of estimate of the monthly cost of Park's contribution to the
maintenance? Would that be charged to Green Square? I noticed that, on one of its
unaudited financials, only around $276 was expensed to maintenance, I think for
an entire year."

Another tennis player sent an email on April 12, 2010 to Mayor Bower, City
Manager Jorge Gonzalez, and City Attorney Jose Smith among others including
members of the press, detailing alleged contract violations, open drug use by a pro
around both Green Square managed tennis centers, and asking pointed questions,
such as how could a contract be given to a firm whose general manager was
arrested and charged with felony drug distribution?

Mr. Walters made a public records request for background checks and drug screens
on June 21, 2010: "Section 8.4 of the April 15, 2007 City contract with Green
Square Inc. reads: ‘The Contractor and its employees and/or independent
contractors shall undergo a comprehensive background check and drug screening
in accordance with the City's process....’ Section 8.1 identifies the principals as Jim
Bollettieri, Tom Mar, and Victor Weithorn. Please provide me with copies of the
background checks on all three named individuals together with the drug screening
results on same. If there are none, please indicate accordingly. I assume that any
files will be in the Contractor folder, therefore research will take less than one hour
hence there will be no charge for your good services.”

City Clerk Robert Parcher responded on June 28 with copies of three internal email
between the city's human resource department and the parks department, dated in
2002, bearing Kevin Smith's official name and address, indicating that the
"contract employees" were "clear."

Therefore, there have been neither background checks nor drug screenings since
2002. Since the email did not make it clear what was being cleared, either the
individuals' background or drug screening (one email stated "Subject:
Backgrounds") a further inquiry was made of Mr. Parcher, asking for copies of the
documents themselves - Mr. Walters has stated that he does not trust the Gonzalez
Administration, and has expressed a suspicion that someone might clean out the
files before they can be examined by investigators.

“At the inaugural meeting of the Civic Circle, Gonzalez publicly scoffed at the
90,000 residents who think he works for them,” said Mr. Walters, “and he has
complained that complainers are always complaining about one bad blade of grass
in his lawn, and that if they do not like it they should move, but there are lots of
bad blades in it, and as far as I am concerned, several snakes too, and there is an
alternative to moving – get rid of his administration and install one that works for
everyone concerned.”

Mr. Parcher stated that the request for background checks and drug screens had
been forwarded to City Attorney Jose Smith to determine if it is legal to provide
copies of the documents. It is anticipated that Mr. Smith will respond that law
prohibits the release of drug screening information, as there are laws on the books
that protect drug abusers. Whether or not the city attorney will admit that there are
no drug screens is another matter, hence employees and former employees of
Green Square are being polled.

“This might just be a case of good-old-boy patronage,” admitted Mr. Walters.

“Well, then, if some of the boys may be good, but they have grown too old in the
same office, rendering the office stagnant and careless, and fresh blood is needed –
now is a good time for some creative-destruction, in my view.”

As for the area's only major daily press, the Miami Herald has been remiss in
reporting matters of great interest to Miami Beach residents, and the reports that
were made were usually biased in favor of the reporters' source of information, the
Gonzalez Administration, so as not to alienate that source and therefore to retain
one's job at the paper. The Miami Herald's latest Miami Beach beat reporter, David
Smiley, has been furnished with ample information about the allegations of
misconduct and mismanagement, but has complained within earshot that he is tired
of working on the tennis court issue no matter what it means. However, he has
written only about 1,500 words on the subject, about two hours of work for a
competent writer, and has made a number of misrepresentations while doing so.

It is highly unlikely that Mayor Bower would be willing to allow the Commission
to discuss an investigation into the Gonzalez Administration on her watch, Mr.
Walters said, as she is a very close friend of Jorge Gonzalez, who has
extraordinary power due to a weak-mayor and part-time commission constitution.
In late March of early April of this year, she took him on a junket to Peru along
with Roberto Da Torre. A few Miami Beach taxpayers who happen to attend
closely to city affairs have expressed outrage over the frequent trips by the mayor,
although it is unclear at this time as to what extent the trips have been privately
funded, funded by the city, or funded by excess campaign funds left in so-called
office accounts.

Mr. Walters said, “Mayor Bower's fellows on the city commission have privately
remarked that she is not as dumb as her detractors make her out to be, nor is she as
nice as her supporters claim, that she is sharp as can be when being mean and
vindictive. However that might be - and every person has idiosyncrasies as well as
friends and enemies - she has severely disappointed a large part of the usually
apathetic electorate, already disaffected by the arrogance of the longstanding
Gonzalez Administration and the continuing degradation of Miami Beach, and
especially South Beach, into another Sin City.”

Mayor Bower came into office on the coattails of her mentor Mayor David
Dermer, explained Mr. Walters. He had won over the electorate with promises to
curb the construction of high rises, but developers overran his office like roaches
and construction of high rises actually accelerated on his watch, sinking Miami
Beach into a grand canyon. And the gentrification program he advanced, often
under the guise of promoting the arts, put the cost of a decent living on the beach
even further beyond the reach of working people who support the leisure of tourists
who pay hundreds of dollars a night for party hotel rooms around the beach. In
turn, Mayor Bower promised to help the poor and clean up the town.

Thus has trust been broken twice over, by mentor and protégé, and residents have
been left in the lurch to fend for themselves, insisted Mr. Walters. Some of them
have formed a sort of cabal, called “The Squeaky Wheel Club,” he disclosed, and
are discussing a reorganization of the constitution of Miami Beach, in the spirit of
the reorganization famously contemplated on the real tennis court in France in
1789, where the Tennis Court Oath was sworn. Two current commissioners are the
Club’s favorites for a strong mayor position.