Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/87353
Sarasota News Leader October 12, 2012 OPINION strategy is bearing fruit by uncovering wrong- doing left and right. The city has been clobbered recently by law- suits over Sunshine questions, and it is build- ing a very poor track record. Most recently was the $7,000 settlement over an ad hoc com- mittee meeting totally "off the books" – no minutes, no notice – and then making recom- mendations on how to spend $50,000 in public art funds. Oops. And there is the $70,000 settlement after mem- bers of the Civil Service Board were caught talking about a controversial case well outside the envelope of Sunshine. The entire board was fired to remove any taint on the eventual decision. New members were seated and the settlement was paid. Additionally, there's the current investigation into the erasure of emails by members of the Downtown Improvement District, erasures two members admitted in open session as we have previously reported. To quote Homer Simpson: "D'oh!" The icing on this increasingly expensive cake is the missing-email debacle that resulted in the resignation of City Manager Bob Barto- lotta in January. Along with the suspension with pay of city IT Manager Sandra Coleman and the subsequent $150,000 investigation by Sylint – which so far has not turned up any substantial evidence of wrongdoing – the price for this public records issue is still climbing — especially if you include Bartolotta's nice severance check and the fact that Coleman is still on the payroll. This "city investigates self" case could even- tually cost $400,000 or more. Altogether, the city in the past fiscal year has flirted with half-a-million dollars in needless Sunshine-related expenses. The reach has ex- tended from the top administrative officer to the lowest unpaid advisory board members. If Sunshine requirements were new, perhaps these mistakes would be understandable. Sunshine is not new. It is an almost half-centu- ry-old reality of how policymaking should and must be done. The City of Sarasota is sliding backwards at an increasingly rapid rate for no discernable reason. Meanwhile, the city is closing restrooms in parks because it does not have enough mon- ey. D'oh! Keep medical decisions between a woman, her family, and her doctor. Visit www.VoteNoOn6.com VoteNoOn6.com Join the campaign today! Paid political advertisement paid for by Vote No on 6, 736 Central Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34236. Distributed in-kind by Sarasota News Leader, Post Office Box 5099, Sarasota, Florida 34277. Page 73