We’ve said all along, the forensic audit for the Great Park is a taxpayer-funded political witch hunt orchestrated by Council Republicans and today’s OC Register offers more proof.
The public affairs firm of Forde & Mollrich was subpoenaed for records that they have already provided the city of Irvine and the Great Park Corp. But because the audit seems unable to locate these documents, the Council subcommittee issued a subpoena for records they should already have. Can you see the mailers this fall already?
From the Register’s story: Stu Mollrich, one half of Forde & Mollrich, said Thursday that the subpoena requested 13 things, 11 of which his firm had already supplied, including nearly 25,000 pages of business records including invoices and canceled checks dating back to 2005.
Other requests include the results of polling and correspondence, “which we’re happy to give them,” he said, adding that his firm was already in the process of pulling together the poll results before the subpoena.
“I didn’t quite understand why they issued a subpoena,” Mollrich said, adding that every piece of research and polling data the firm conducted on behalf of the Great Park was given to the Great Park Corp., a city department, when the work was complete. “There is nothing that they’re asking for that the corporation hasn’t previously received.” Mollrich has asked for clarification on one of the requests in the subpoena.
Councilman Jeff Lalloway, who is on the council subcommittee with Councilwoman Christina Shea, said Thursday that the auditor had indicated that Forde & Mollrich, “have not fully complied with the document requests,” prompting the subpoena request.
“It’s unfortunate that we have to take this action, but I would think that a city contractor would fully comply with a city auditor hired to get to the bottom of where the money from the Great Park went.” Shea said there are specific documents that the auditor and attorney have asked for that haven’t been offered up.
Mollrich called that contention, “categorically false.”
Shea made a categorically false statement? I’m shocked. Shocked.
The good councilwoman and I got into in via email last month where she denied having been paid by Katherine Daigle’s 2012 council campaign effort. That was until I produced a copy of the cancelled (and deposited) check.
In fairness, one vendor seems to not being cooperative with auditor and they should be. And that is Ten Arquitectos, an architectural firm. But perhaps, the auditors ought to check with the city and the Great Park Corp first.
This is an extended Forensic Audit after the first one conducted last fall by the auditor failed to even contact the largest Great Park subcontractors until a week before the final report was due. It hard to convince me that the delay in contacting Forde & Mollrich and the Ken Smith Design Studio so late in the process wasn’t done deliberately to extend this investigation well into the new election cycle. And hey Irvine Taxpayers, you paid for this Partisan witch hunt.
Dan, a better closing sentence for your lame article might have been, “Hey, Irvine taxpayers, over ten years, you paid $200 million dollars that Larry Agran shoveled out to friends, like hogs feeding at the Great Park trough.” The cost of the Audit is miniscule compared to that and as we all know, will achieve more results. As far as citizens giving credibility to who is lying and who is not, I am confident that the vast majority will believe Christina Shea over Stu Mollrich any day of the week and twice on Sunday.