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Longmont Times-Call: Real Story is Writer Greg Burt, Not Benker’s Possible Corruption

by | 10:31 pm, July 31, 2009 | 1 Comment

Former Musgrave staffer turned investigative journalist Greg Burt writes a story detailing a possible conflict of interest on the part of Longmont city councilwoman Karen Benker, and what does Benker’s hometown fishwrap do?

The Times-Call spins the story around into a faux-outrage story about Burt’s actions in bringing the details of Benker’s alleged actions to the attention of the Boulder District Attorney’s Office. 

For those unfamiliar with the particulars, here are the essentials from the Face the State article:

Longmont city council member Karen Benker worked to influence the awarding of a $10,000 contract to a non-profit of which she was board member, despite concerns over the organization’s safety record. The Boulder District Attorney’s office is researching whether Benker’s actions might be in violation of state law prohibiting elected officials from trying to influence a public decision involving a personal interest.

Benker served from May 2007 to September 2008 as a founding member of the board of directors of Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement, a non-profit that provides outreach services to Longmont’s homeless population. The non-profit began pursuing city funds in 2007, competing against Boulder County Shelter for the Homeless, who held a city contract for homeless services…

Though she did not attend the prior meeting on the contract, Benker did attend a LHHSAB meeting on January 10, 2008, where the contract was again on the board’s agenda. Meeting minutes list two city council members in attendance: Sean McCoy, a city council member and a voting member of the LHHSAB, and Benker, who was introduced as a guest.

While Lake had made the group’s initial pitch, this time Benker was HOPE’s sole advocate in attendance.

Benker’s advocacy for the proposed grant unsettled Leslie Irwin, then chair of the LHHSAB, who says she was unclear whether Benker appeared before the board on behalf of the council or the non-profit. She agrees the housing board had safety concerns at the time and also said there was some concern about the non-profit not “playing nice” with other human services agencies in town.

“I won’t say [Benker] totally distinguished whether she was there as a council person or a board member of HOPE. She didn’t really state,” said Irwin. “But it appeared that she was more there as an advocate for HOPE, but I was not very clear.”

While Karen Benker recused herself from a subsequent council vote to renew HOPE’s contract, the ethical issue appears to revolve around whether she made it clear during the LHHSAB that she had a personal interest in the awarding of the contract (being a board member of one of the entities competing for the homeless services contract), and whether her actions may have constituted an inappropriate attempt to influence other officials into awarding that contract to HOPE.

Unfortunately, the Times-Call is attempting to make the story about Burt’s own (novice) mistake of having failed to fully disclose his journalistic interest in investigating the story, rather than the more serious allegations of corruption against Benker.  Burt’s mistake doesn’t in itself invalidate the allegations, however much the Times-Call would apparently prefer otherwise.

Is it any wonder that newspapers are losing circulation? Or that the new media — including citizen journalists — are taking on a greater importance?

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Comments

  1.   Bubba
      July 31st, 2009 @ 10:39 pm

    This is what happens when you scoop the old ink-stained has-beens. They shoot the messenger in order to try and save their fading credibility.

    They don’t like to be scooped, dammit.

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