Questions for city council concerning ethics

In the closing days of the last Bangor City Council actions were taken involving approximately $36 million or about $1,000 for every citizen in Bangor. I am referring to the new Bangor police station awarded to WBRC Architects Engineers and the racino contract with Capital Seven. These contracts have several things in common:

1. They were done without any competitive bidding or requests for proposals

2. Both firms, WBRC and Capital Seven, had a member of the Bangor City Council closely associated with the firm or in an ownership position.

3. Both of these contracts are not routine in nature. I seriously doubt that the city has in-house expertise in either of these areas.

We only build a police station every 50 years.

I envision the construction of a modern police station is a complex endeavor entailing security and communications considerations. I have not heard any conflicting comments about the need for a new facility. Although the city may have some expertise in construction, I don’t think the city management is particularly skilled in the intricacies of building a new police station.

Although WBRC has designed jails and does have a good reputation in the community, I would bet WBRC has not designed a great number of police stations. There is an architectural firm in Texas that specializes in the design and construction of police stations but the city officials elected not to ask them or any other architectural firm for a competing proposal.

I am aware that this project has grown from a simple renovation of the old police station to a proposal for a new building. WBRC was originally selected for the renovation from a list of firms approved for small jobs where bids may not be necessary. Since this project has grown, it has ceased to be a small no-bid project and has become one in which competitive proposals should have been solicited. This is especially true given the interlocking relationship of the city council and WBRC.

The second case is more troubling. Capital Seven is proposing to convert Bass Park from a seasonal racetrack to a resort facility with slot machines – an investment of $30 million.

Although the city does have expertise in construction and engineering and does have some consultants in this area, neither the city management nor the council has any expertise whatsoever in the gambling industry. Unlike WBRC, Capital Seven is an unknown entity and there has been a great deal of speculation about this firm’s reputation. Given recent events before the racing regulators, the courts and articles in the Bangor Daily News, it is clear that something is amiss.

Worse yet, this deal was made with the benefit of outside legal counsel. Our city attorney may be an expert in municipal law but I seriously question his expertise in the gambling industry. This may have serious repercussions as the contract is fulfilled.

We have a member of the council, David Nealley, employed by Capital Seven and recently elevated to executive vice president, after he was elected to the council. He has no experience in the gambling industry. One could speculate why this was done. This put him in conflict with the interests of the voters who elected him, not a pre-existing condition known to the voters at the time of his election.

I don’t question the legality of these issues but we as citizens should ask the city council two questions. First, is committing $36 million in contracts in areas where we do not have expertise good management practice? This is not a routine purchase where the city has experience and expertise. Edward Barrett’s title is city manager – note the second word. He should have been doing all in his power to get alternative proposals and doing it publicly.

Second, is this situation ethical? The city council votes to award major contracts to its own members without formal alternative proposals; I seriously question the ethics of these acts. Although the city may have a code of ethics, if these acts do not violate that code it is time to seriously re-examine this code.

Nick Bearce of Bangor is a certified public accountant who works on international financial projects.