City manager fired
Reports recommends Woolston resign or divest business interests
By Debby Woodin Globe Staff Writer
February 5, 2014
http://www.joplinglobe.com/topstorie...-manager-fired
http://whitenationalist.org/forum/sh...0141#post10141
JOPLIN, Mo. — City Manager Mark Rohr was ousted Tuesday night after the City Council met in a long closed meeting and then publicly heard the results of a council-ordered investigation.
The report also concluded that Councilman Bill Scearce was clear of wrongdoing in a FBI investigation of local gambling and that Councilman Mike Woolston should divest his business interests or resign from the City Council.
When the council voted on a motion by Scearce to accept the report, the count was 8-1 with Woolston voting against it.
Councilman Benjamin Rosenberg then read a resolution terminating Rohr “without cause” and ordering that any salary owed Rohr be paid.
Rohr said he wanted the public to note that the resolution was drawn up before the vote to terminate him. He later said the resolution was drawn up before the meeting.
The vote to fire Rohr was 5-4 with Rosenberg, Scearce, Jack Golden, Trisha Raney and Mayor Melodee Colbert-Kean voting in favor of it.
Scearce then made a motion that City Attorney Brian Head be appointed as acting city manager.
Both Councilmen Gary Shaw and Woolston said the assistant city manager, Sam Anselm, should be the acting city manager. Rosenberg said Anselm was not the council’s employee, but that Head has reported directly to the council. Head is the only employee qualified to step in and deal with the intricacies of the city’s redevelopment and the details of the redevelopment agreements with Wallace-Bajjali Investment Partners, the city’s contracted master developer.
That attempt failed 4-5 with the mayor, Woolston, Shaw, Mike Seibert and Morris Glaze voting against naming Head as acting city manager.
Woolston then made a motion to name Anselm acting city manager and that passed 6-3.
The meeting concluded minutes before midnight and Rohr called on reporters to hear his remarks in reaction to his firing. He called the report by Osage Beach attorney Tom Loraine “incomplete and inaccurate.” Rohr said that in August there was an effort to force him to resign but that in October he was given a merit raise and was given directives which he had accomplished or was working on.
“You figure out what’s going in this town,” he said, adding that he intends to look into his legal options.
The report implies, based on testimony Head gave the investigator, that the city manager made no effort to have development agreements with the Wallace Bajjali firm reviewed by outside legal counsel to protect the city’s interests.
Rohr said there seemed to be a lot of advance knowledge among some members of the council about what the report would contain and repeated his contention that the resolution dismissing him was written in advance of Tuesday’s meeting.
“There were agendas at play,” Rohr said.
Woolston is a real estate agent who initially worked to buy land that was eventually purchased as the site for the proposed new Joplin Public Library and movie theater. Loraine said in the report that Woolston’s repeated abstentions from council votes citing his business interests made it seem he had a personal interest in the redevelopment work and diminished the public’s confidence in the council.
Woolston one time cited a personal interest as the reason for an abstention and subsequently cited the involvement of his former employer, Pro 100 Realtors.
Woolston said he was not aware of any inappropriate property dealings. He said the investigator did a poor job and that “he strayed into areas he didn’t belong.”
He called on the public “to raise up and let them know how you feel” about the outcome of the report and Rohr’s firing.
He said that the investigation seemed to have been steered and said “it just doesn’t pass the smell test.”
Woolston said does not intend to resign.
“They may want me to, but they’ll have to remove me,” he said.
Scearce had already left City Hall after Rohr and Woolston spoke in reaction to the events.
Reports recommends Woolston resign or divest business interests
By Debby Woodin Globe Staff Writer
February 5, 2014
http://www.joplinglobe.com/topstorie...-manager-fired
http://whitenationalist.org/forum/sh...0141#post10141
JOPLIN, Mo. — City Manager Mark Rohr was ousted Tuesday night after the City Council met in a long closed meeting and then publicly heard the results of a council-ordered investigation.
The report also concluded that Councilman Bill Scearce was clear of wrongdoing in a FBI investigation of local gambling and that Councilman Mike Woolston should divest his business interests or resign from the City Council.
When the council voted on a motion by Scearce to accept the report, the count was 8-1 with Woolston voting against it.
Councilman Benjamin Rosenberg then read a resolution terminating Rohr “without cause” and ordering that any salary owed Rohr be paid.
Rohr said he wanted the public to note that the resolution was drawn up before the vote to terminate him. He later said the resolution was drawn up before the meeting.
The vote to fire Rohr was 5-4 with Rosenberg, Scearce, Jack Golden, Trisha Raney and Mayor Melodee Colbert-Kean voting in favor of it.
Scearce then made a motion that City Attorney Brian Head be appointed as acting city manager.
Both Councilmen Gary Shaw and Woolston said the assistant city manager, Sam Anselm, should be the acting city manager. Rosenberg said Anselm was not the council’s employee, but that Head has reported directly to the council. Head is the only employee qualified to step in and deal with the intricacies of the city’s redevelopment and the details of the redevelopment agreements with Wallace-Bajjali Investment Partners, the city’s contracted master developer.
That attempt failed 4-5 with the mayor, Woolston, Shaw, Mike Seibert and Morris Glaze voting against naming Head as acting city manager.
Woolston then made a motion to name Anselm acting city manager and that passed 6-3.
The meeting concluded minutes before midnight and Rohr called on reporters to hear his remarks in reaction to his firing. He called the report by Osage Beach attorney Tom Loraine “incomplete and inaccurate.” Rohr said that in August there was an effort to force him to resign but that in October he was given a merit raise and was given directives which he had accomplished or was working on.
“You figure out what’s going in this town,” he said, adding that he intends to look into his legal options.
The report implies, based on testimony Head gave the investigator, that the city manager made no effort to have development agreements with the Wallace Bajjali firm reviewed by outside legal counsel to protect the city’s interests.
Rohr said there seemed to be a lot of advance knowledge among some members of the council about what the report would contain and repeated his contention that the resolution dismissing him was written in advance of Tuesday’s meeting.
“There were agendas at play,” Rohr said.
Woolston is a real estate agent who initially worked to buy land that was eventually purchased as the site for the proposed new Joplin Public Library and movie theater. Loraine said in the report that Woolston’s repeated abstentions from council votes citing his business interests made it seem he had a personal interest in the redevelopment work and diminished the public’s confidence in the council.
Woolston one time cited a personal interest as the reason for an abstention and subsequently cited the involvement of his former employer, Pro 100 Realtors.
Woolston said he was not aware of any inappropriate property dealings. He said the investigator did a poor job and that “he strayed into areas he didn’t belong.”
He called on the public “to raise up and let them know how you feel” about the outcome of the report and Rohr’s firing.
He said that the investigation seemed to have been steered and said “it just doesn’t pass the smell test.”
Woolston said does not intend to resign.
“They may want me to, but they’ll have to remove me,” he said.
Scearce had already left City Hall after Rohr and Woolston spoke in reaction to the events.
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