Councilman Gomez pressed city staff and the mayor during the Oct. 28 Pendergrass City Council meeting to explain payments the council record shows to a vendor called Timber and Tools and whether those payments created a conflict under the city charter.

Gomez said he reviewed treasury reports and vendor lists and told the council that Timber and Tools was listed as owned by Renee Martinez, who the speaker identified as a city manager/city clerk. "When I sent Jennifer an email ... she said that Timber and Tools was owned by Renee Martinez," Gomez said during his inquiry. He also said earlier payments were made to an individual, Ricardo Martinez, for renovation work at the police department and that later payments were recorded to the Timber and Tools vendor name.

Gomez cited the charter's provisions allowing the council to investigate city affairs and read portions of the charter's conflict-of-interest language, saying elected and appointed officers "shall disclose such interest to the city council" and that concealment could be malfeasance. He asked why the vendor name changed to a DBA and whether that change had been disclosed to the council.

The mayor responded that he was aware of the work and said the payments reflected continuing or emergency work on police department facilities, including cutting holes in walls to install secure storage and completing construction the original contractor had started. The mayor and other speakers said the police chief has authority to hire subcontractors for department work and that multiple steps exist for invoice processing and check approval.

Finance staff were asked whether Ricardo Martinez remained on the city's vendor list; Councilman Gomez said finance staff (identified in the meeting as Jennifer) had told him Ricardo was not listed in the new accounting system and that the Timber and Tools listing showed Renee Martinez as owner. Council members and the mayor debated whether the record-keeping and procurement process had been sufficiently transparent.

Gomez asked for clarity on whether any payments were improper and said the council must consider the charter's conflict-of-interest rules while the council works on a formal purchasing policy. The mayor and others said the council is drafting a purchasing policy and other internal controls and that changes would be considered at upcoming work sessions and the budget meeting scheduled for Nov. 18.

No formal disciplinary action or contract rescission was taken at the meeting; the issue was raised as an inquiry and will be discussed at the council's upcoming policy and budget work sessions.

Ending

Councilman Gomez told the council he would present documents and continue pursuing the inquiry in the work session on Nov. 11 and again at the Nov. 18 meeting, when the council expects to adopt budget decisions and consider purchasing-policy changes. The council did not vote on procurement changes at the Oct. 28 meeting.