Citizen Journalist: The real wall at County Hall may be definition of duties

by Mike Martin

July 25,2008

Wrap your head around this situation:  An elected public official breaks the law; a subordinate gets fired over it; and another public official who spoke out against the violation takes heat—–mostly generated by the public official who broke the law.

It all started about 18 months ago when the Boone County commission leased one big space for the county clerk and sheriff then decided to build a wall to separate them.  I'm ashamed to say that only with the upcoming election have I paid attention to the story.

Boone County Commissioner Skip Elkin summed it up this way for the Columbia Daily Tribune:

"The bottom line is [southern district commissioner Karen] Miller got her boyfriend to construct a wall to separate these spaces without a bid," Elkin said. "I didn't even know the wall was being built until two weeks ago, when Karen came into the office and was asking to be paid for her boyfriend's work for this. That's when our county auditor started asking questions: ‘Well where's the bid on this?' And there wasn't one."

The bill for $4,800 from builder David Brown exceeded state and county mandates that require bids exceeding $4,500.

The $300 difference wasn't a big deal, at least not for Commissioner Miller.  But it cost county maintenance supervisor Ken Roberts his job, a situation whose personal toll on Roberts Tribune reporter Jacob Luecke took the extraordinary step to describe:

"Roberts, usually a jovial man with a reputation for good humor, was depressed and pale yesterday as he told his side of the story. He said he hasn't been sleeping well and has been sick over losing his job with only a year and a half to go before retirement."

Roberts' termination and concerns over possible legal repercussions prompted Elkin to speak out, setting off a "he said, she said" firestorm.

"I found out that Ken Roberts was forced, and I use that word ‘forced,' to resign," Elkin told the Tribune. "And I thought, ‘No, this is wrong, folks. There's a worm in the apple barrel right here.'"

Miller said she did not force Roberts to resign and that her role in getting Brown the construction job was minimal.

"They decided to wait until after Labor Day" to build the wall, Miller countered in the Tribune.

"I told Ken, ‘If you want David to do this, you need to call him and get it scheduled because he has lots of jobs going. He can't just drop what he's doing to meet your needs.' I didn't tell Ken to do it. I told him, ‘If you want him to do it, you have to get it scheduled because you're not going to get it done otherwise.'"

But that's not where it stopped.  An Elkin-Miller melee ensued that indicts the entire management culture at County Hall.

First we hear that teamwork was compromised.

"We're a team. Aren't we suppose to be a team, the three of us?" Miller told the Tribune. "I have never had one conversation with Skip Elkin about this. He has never once asked me my side of the story or what had happened."

Then came Roberts' condemnation of the county commission's poor planning.

"Roberts said he was just doing his job and helping his bosses solve a problem," the Tribune reported. "‘They're not organized, they don't plan ahead, and then they get in some kind of crisis situation and they want me to save them,' Roberts said.  ‘Save them I did. I just didn't take time to save myself.'"

Miller and Elkin then tussled in the press.

"Saying the whole situation ‘smells like fish,' Northern District Commissioner Skip Elkin has asked for an investigation.  Miller said Elkin was simply playing politics and grandstanding for reporters just before today's election, in which he's running against Steve Hobbs.  "I just think it gets his name in the paper and it makes it seem like he's protecting the little guy," she said.

Then Tribune publisher Hank Waters weighed in.

"The worst outcome is the sacrifice of Roberts, who, as he says, is a maintenance guy, not an interpreter of the law. He has a point. What kind of governmental system relies on an on-the-spot judgment of a maintenance guy to ensure compliance with purchasing rules?   What should have happened, and what current county government organization does not ensure, is a solid process to follow.  Whatever his motivation, Skip Elkin acted properly to disclose the error."

Ironically, Hank also had this to say: "Republicans gleefully accused Elkin of pre-election grandstanding."

Republicans?  The GOP, it would seem, is the least of County Hall's worries.

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