Above this post is Page 1 and following are Pages 2-15 of the Lowland "Asset Purchase Agreement" that was negotiated by former City Administrator Jim Crumley and that was approved by the previous City Council in a 5-1 vote in February 2009. Voting YES: Mayor Barile, Claude Jinks, Frank McGuffin, Doc Rooney,and Kay Senter. Voting NO: Rick Trent. Click on each page to enlarge and read or to print the page.
When two new councilmen were elected in May 2009, one of them--Gene Brooks--spearheaded the initiative to terminate Crumley who "retired" in the face of termination proceedings. This was probably the most important action of the new council. Everything else has been like peeling an onion as the true magnitude of Crumley's financial shenanigans have gradually come out layer by layer.
After addressing the Crumley matter, Brooks turned to another major concern and campaign platform-- the Lowland Wastewater deal with MPLG (Mike Ball and Joe Fielden). After new City Administrator Tony Cox was in place, Brooks told Cox of his concerns about the Lowland purchase and requested copies of all Lowland documents. Brooks reviewed the documents, showed them to several people, and continued to have serious concerns not only about the Lowland Agreement but also other financial issues.
Since the State Comptroller was already looking at city financial actions, Brooks went to Nashville to discuss his concerns about the Lowland Agreenent, illegal interfund "loans," and other financial questions directly with the Comptroller's Division of State and Local Finance. Carl Murphy and I accompanied Brooks. (Carl is Gene's father-in-law.) Shortly after that meeting, the Comptroller's Office sent a letter to the City in July 2010, pointing out discrepancies in the 2009 audit, raising questions about illegal interfund "loans," and perhaps most importantly raising serious questions about the Lowland Wastewater Plant Agreement. Click here to see the Comptroller's 5-page July 8, 2010, letter. Click here for a very brief discussion of just a few of the questions that surround the terms of the Lowland Agreement and its approval.
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