More questions raised about ethics of ex-City Manager

Menifee Mayor Neil Winter poses a question to a speaker during Wednesday night's City Council public hearing. Menifee 24/7 photo: Doug Spoon

In attempting to bring a new level of transparency to City Hall, the Menifee City Council Wednesday night peeled back another layer of the alleged deception of previous city leadership.

A public hearing was held to address an appeal, filed by council member Matt Liesemeyer, of a decision last November by former City Manager Rob Johnson to sign off on a significant change in the specific plan for the upcoming Menifee Town Center project. It was Liesemeyer who last year requested a performance review of Johnson following discovery of a $12,400 check Johnson wrote (never cashed) that was intended to pay for a Harvard seminar for then-Mayor Scott Mann -- without City Council approval.

At the time, Liesemeyer and his colleagues agreed that although Johnson had the authority to authorize such an expense without council approval, the ethics of doing so were questionable. Ultimately, following a loss in the mayoral race by Mann to Neil Winter and mounting pressure, Johnson resigned. Almost immediately, council members stressed the importance of being transparent with actions in the future.

It has also been well documented that Mann was fined $60,000 by the Fair Political Practices Commission for misappropriation of campaign funds for items including a vacation and family wedding, according to the FPPC.

Wednesday night's public hearing appeared to show once again just how sorely lacking transparency was during the Johnson-Mann regime.

A report by city attorney Jeffrey Melching to council members explained that Liesemeyer's appeal was filed "to ensure transparency regarding the city manager's approval of a second amendment adjustment to the development agreement" with Regent Properties regarding the Menifee Town Center. You know, the much-discussed 172-acre project to be built on Newport Road west of Haun Road, including a theater complex, hotel, housing, civic center and a 5-acre "Central Park."

Melching told the council in his report that as plan revisions were exchanged between the City and Regent, escalating costs began to be a factor for a Central Park project that had no set budget. Thus in November 2016, in what has been termed a second amendment adjustment to the development agreement, Johnson signed off on a document removing the construction of a restroom and splash pad from the project, a cost saving estimated at $400,000-$500,000.

According to Melching, Johnson's decision to propose such cuts went against the wishes of Community Services Director Robert Lennox. Not only that, his decision to sign such an amendment without council approval went against Melching's own advice. (Photo at left: Melching and Johnson at a 2016 council meeting).

Transparency? If there is any, apparently it is just starting now.

Although for much of his report Melching referred to City officials involved in the plan revisions as "staff", he revealed the depth of the former city manager's actions and their impact under questioning from council members.

"The big question," council member Greg August asked. "We're here about transparency. Who wasn't being transparent to the City Council?"

Melching's response: "This issue was not presented to the City Council. Mr. Johnson signed the agreement, so the answer to that question is Mr. Johnson.

"The development agreement had a provision in it that he had the ability to approve an administrative adjustment. My view was then and my view is now, that the approval of an adjustment was within the authority of the city manager to do. My view also is, the very last sentence of that paragraph says that notwithstanding the fact he can approve an administrative adjustment, he has the power, should he choose to use it, to push an item to the City Council. He chose not to do so. If you're talking about transparency, that's an issue."

Council member John Denver then asked Melching why the city manager should be allowed to make such an important decision without the city attorney or other city official being involved in the process.

"I did look at the second administrative adjustment, and I told this council privately, but I suppose I'm now at the precipice of having to tell the council publicly, that I recommended to the city manager he discuss this with the City Council," Melching responded. "He didn't take my recommendation, and I didn't know he didn't take my recommendation until after it was signed."

Melching explained that council members had the authority to overturn Johnson's removal of the restroom and splash pad from the plans, although it didn't have to be done that night. Ultimately, the council unanimously approved a motion to appoint Liesemeyer and Sobek to an ad hoc committee, along with a staff appointee from new interim City Manager Ron Bradley, to discuss the situation with Regent and come back with a decision by the March 15 council meeting.

"I am incredibly sorry for the Regent team to have to go through this," Liesemeyer said in reference to the lengthy public hearing. "At the time, there was not a person sitting in (the city manager's) chair with the ethics or ... well, transparency was a word he didn't like. He would admit that."

So for the time being, specifics of the Central Park feature of Menifee Town Center remain uncertain. Has transparency been brought to City Hall? Like the Town Center itself, that is a work in progress.