Orange Beach Official-Developer Meetings Established

Wednesday, March 22, 2006
By RYAN DEZEMBER
Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- The City Council on Tuesday evening adopted new guidelines for elected officials to follow when they meet with developers or others bringing zoning-related matters to the body.

Among the requirements of the policy are that the meetings be held during normal business hours -- weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. -- either on the proposed project site or at municipal facilities, such as City Hall or the Community Development office. Also, the rules require elected officials to be accompanied by a peer or a city employee.

Any deviations from the guidelines are to be reported at the council's bi-weekly work sessions, according to the policy.

Previously there were no rules governing encounters between elected officials and developers that took place outside public hearings and other open forums.

In January, state prosecutors indicted then-Mayor Steve Russo, former Councilman Joe McCarron, local builder Jim Brown and longtime City Attorney Larry Sutley, alleging a host of public corruption charges related to development deals. Federal prosecutors have also charged Russo, who resigned soon after the indictments were announced.

All four men have pleaded innocent to the various charges, but current Orange Beach officials said they proposed the meeting policy earlier this month to shake perceptions that City Hall operates through secret, prearranged deals with development interests.

"I think it's important to because it lets the citizenry know that this council wants to do things in the correct manner, that we don't any of these backroom deals or anything like that," Councilman Larry Alexander said on Tuesday.

Councilwoman Tracy Holiday said that she and her colleagues have to occasionally meet with developers in order to do their jobs, but the policy "takes a lot of pressure off of all of us."

Even before the unanimous vote to approve the policy, council members discussed broadening it to include phone conversations.

"We're going to get phone calls, but the only thing to do there is to address the time, set up a meeting if they want to do that," said Councilman Jeff Silvers. "Nothing changes, but lengthy phone calls and discussions about development, I think, need to be addressed in this policy, too."

City Administrator Jeff Moon said that he would have an amendment to the policy regarding phone calls for the council to review at its work session next week and vote on in early April.