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Prosecutors: Two groups not in cahoots
By MELIA BOWIE, Times Staff Writer TAMPA PALMS -- Homeowners and taxing district supervisors did not violate Florida's Sunshine Law as they hired an outside firm for landscaping, the State Attorney's Office has ruled. Suspecting collusion, homeowner Bob Doran asked prosecutors in March to investigate the Tampa Palms Community Development District board and a citizens tax watch group called Resource Tampa Palms. Doran alleged that the two groups were in cahoots and that board supervisor Mark Fitzpatrick suggested the formation of Resource Tampa Palms to act as the tax district's alter ego. "It's a difficult thing to prove," Doran said Friday, noting he still has the option to file a civil lawsuit. Assistant State Attorney Patricia Cullen Turpin found no evidence to support Doran's claim. In a memo to Doran, Resource Tampa Palms members, the tax district's attorney and State Attorney Mark Ober, Turpin said Doran's leads proved unfruitful. She also recounted a series of interviews that pointed to a "hostile" relationship between board members and Resource Tampa Palms rather than a collusive one. "I feel vindicated," said Mark Fitzpatrick, who chairs the board of supervisors. "I'm not surprised." Members of Resource Tampa Palms have long maintained that they came together independently of the board to brainstorm money-saving ideas in lieu of a tax increase. Members estimate they saved more than $300,000 by recommending an outside landscaping firm. The citizen group presented its findings to the board at a public meeting in January. The board voted in March to outsource the work. Doran, a former supervisor who sued the district successfully in 1999 over a Sunshine Law violation, lodged his complaint the following week. In her conclusion, Turpin wrote of her concerns that "Doran is trying to use the power of the state attorney to intimidate his neighbors." Doran contends that Turpin's remarks were "not only inappropriate but were apparently made under pressure." The state attorney's job is to "determine if there's any criminal intent," he said. Only a judge can rule on a Sunshine Law violation.
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