Thursday, March 11, 2010

This is in response to your editorial of March 5, "Level playing field helps build public trust." Please be fair and publish this response, as your editorial distorts the facts and covers the playing field with what seems to be journalistic bias.

This response includes [references to]: a Jan. 14, 2009, letter to the mayor and city commissioners on the Jim Young whistle-blower case; a letter to file from [former City Manager] Julio Avael on reasons for firing of [Code Enforcement officer] Jim Young; correspondence concerning the expungement of charges brought against me; and acceptance of the letter of my retirement.

There is no mention in Julio Avael's letter of the [Bill] Grosscup incident being involved in Jim Young's firing. You can refer to the official records of the Key West City Commission reinstating Jim Young to his position. Julio's letter was read into the record, and I entered my objections to my involvement at this meeting. I stated I had no objections to Jim Young's reinstatement and Jim Young's attorney concurred.

Capt. Grosscup's home was a two-story hard structure built on pilings permanently connected to a two-story semi-floating structure on cradle pilings, all of which was built over privately owned submerged lands in the mid-1960s or early 1970s. Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority records show a water meter at the location issued to Dr. Jamie Benevides in November 1965, and I had visited this house in 1975 and 1976 and can verify it was one of the few residences built over water in Key West.

I had the "red tag" removed because I believed he did not need a city permit to replace his grandfathered, destroyed pilings on his bay bottom under the jurisdiction of the state Department of Environmental Protection and the Army Corps of Engineers. After replacing the pilings, he would have to apply to the city for a permit to construct a structure on them.

I believed that Richard "Rick" Malloy, the local Corps of Engineers agent, objected to the installation for personal reasons. Malloy had ordered city Code Enforcement to red tag the installation of the pilings, and called me and ordered me to put the red tag back.

I told him that I work for the city of Key West and my responsibility was to its citizens, and that he had no authority to order city Code Enforcement to red tag the installation of the pilings. I thought it was the responsibility of Corps Code Enforcement Officer Shelly Carter in the Miami office to do so. I found out later that Ms. Carter had declined to do so, and later accepted a joint application from Capt. Grosscup to build a home on the pilings.

I did strongly state to Joe April, who was responsible for the Building and Code departments, Jim Young, the acting code supervisor, and the other city code officers that they worked for the city of Key West, and their first concern was for the citizens of the city and they did not take orders from other agencies.

At the time, I did not want to get the city involved in a lawsuit on account of the city being responsible for preventing Capt. Grosscup from replacing the pilings, which were under the jurisdiction of the Corps and DEP, and I was correct in that he did sue them and the city was not a part of the suit.

I understand a pending settlement was reached with the Florida DEP and Department of Community Affairs, and was acknowledged in the presence of then-interim City Planner Amy Kimball-Murley, Commissioner Rossi and Wendy Tucker.

Now the city is involved, and I feel the city is wrong. I suspect bias and possible conspiracy on the part of some officials, and a complete disregard for the legal and human rights of one of its citizens. I urge the staff of The Key West Citizen to really do an unbiased investigation of this matter.

John Jones is a former assistant city manager of Key West.