Record reporter late to the party – finally requests documents

St Augustine City Manager John Regan and St Augustine Mayor Nancy Shaver have received notice from St Augustine Record reporter Sheldon Gardner that she wants to see official records of communications surrounding persons of interest identified by Historic City News over the past five years for their involvement in fraud, waste and abuse in the management of the city’s 450th Commemoration.

Gardner is requesting extensive records of communications going back to January 1, 2009.  No indication was given as to the timing of the request, perhaps the recent threats against the city by former 450th contractor, Charlie Seraphin, or our ongoing investigation into improper 450th contracting with other favored individuals. If the city responds with the requested records, it will be voluminous.

“It appears that someone at the newspaper finally got drift of what Historic City News readers have been hearing all along, as it was happening,” Michael Gold, editor of Historic City News said.  “I’ll be interested to see if they decide to report the facts as they come out, or, if they will attempt to sanitize them as ex-reporters, editors, and publishers were known to do when Joe Boles was the city’s mayor.”

In addition to the historical records, some of which Historic City News has obtained in the past, The Record wants the city to put a system in place to review all future incoming and outgoing emails for City Manager John Regan, 450th Executive Director Dana Ste. Claire, and Mayor Nancy Shaver.

The current request is for the following:

Pursuant to Florida Statute 119, we are requesting copies of the following records:

• Any and all memos, notes, reports related to an investigations, contract review or allegations about Charlie Seraphin since October 1, 2014.

• Travel and expense reports for Dana Ste. Claire, Joseph Boles, John Regan, Nikole Alvarez and Mark Litzinger since November 2009.

• All draft and final budget reports involving the expenditure of any public money for the 4501h celebration and projects since January 1, 2009.

• A copy of the city’s procurement laws and implementing rules, including those for sole source contracts, in effect at the time of Seraphin’s contracts with the city.

• A copy of any request for proposals or bids that were issued prior to the city entering into a contract with Seraphin. If he was hired under a sole source contract, we’d like to see documentation of the steps taken under the city’s sole source process rules.

• Copies of all contracts for professional consulting services related to the 450th.

• All of Nancy Shaver’s incoming and outgoing public emails (including those stored on personal email accounts) since November 5, 2014. We request the information be provided in an electronic, searchable format.

• All of Dana Ste. Claire’s and Charlie Seraphin’s incoming and outgoing public emails (including those stored on personal email accounts) since September 1, 2014. We request the information be provided in an electronic, searchable format.

• All of Joe Boles’ and John Regan’s incoming and outgoing public emails (including those stored on personal email accounts) that include the terms 450th, Seraphin, Focus 450, Shaver, termination, budget, since September 1, 2014. We request the information be provided in an electronic, searchable format.

The Record also requests a system that allows for us to review all incoming and outgoing emails for Nancy Shaver, John Regan and Dana Ste. Claire.

We are happy to discuss the best way to do this, but until a system is in place, we’re requesting electronic copies every Monday.

We request the information be provided in an electronic, searchable format.

We would like to get copies of records as they are available, rather than waiting to receive the documents when all of the records are available.

Please provide us an estimate of how much it will cost to satisfy this public records request.

Should you deny my request, or any part of the request, please state in writing the basis for the denial, including the statutory citation authorizing the denial as required by F.S. 119.07(1)(d).