When Dr. Grant, who shortly retired, moved Mr. Erwin into his job as head of buildings and facilities
Here's the Pile-on of Doug Irwin by Blackwell, Director Planning and Construction, Hamilton, Deputy Superintendent, Rampello, Director of Federal Finances. This is the push to make Erwin look whack-a-do so that his unearthing and publishing the rip-offs going on under these three's noses are merely figments of Erwin's imagination.
Blackwell:
SCHOOL DISTRICT OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
TRANSCRIPT
DRAFT
28 August, 2001
SUBJECT: Grounds
INTERVIEW/Present: JOEL T. from) BLACKWELL, Director, Planning &
Construction
Wayne C. Dasinger, Internal Invest. Manager, Prof. Standards
Mike Saia, Senior Professional Standards Investigator
DATE: 27 August, 2001
LOCATION: Velasco Student Services Center Building
SATA: Mr. Blackwell, you’re aware the tape’s on and we’re being recorded?
BLACKWELL: Yes, I am.
SAIA: Also present in this interview is going to be Wayne Dasinger.
DASINGER: Mr. Blackwell, I appreciate you coming down on such short notice. As I told you before we turned the tape on, we’ve been tasked with looking into a wide variety of issues in the District in regard to purchasing, contracts...a wide variety of things. In the course of that, there’s been some statements or some situations, I guess, that were attributed to you, and franidy, these came from Mr. Doug Erwin, and I will tell you what he said, and this is all in writing here, which I have copies of, and then I will give you a chance to respond. Also, just a couple of genenl questions, as a director of new construction, what is your primary job responsibility with the District?
BLACKWELL: To oversee the employ...efforts of architects and contractors who we employ to construct schools and renovate existing schools.
DAS1NGER: In the course of those duties, are you involved in the bid processes at all? In regard to selection of vendors or contractors, or things of that nature?
BLACKWELL: It’s tough to answer because of the way the question’s asked. The bid process, really no. The only bid processes . ..well, on major projects, that refers to selection of
—1—subcontractors, I presume, we do have some sMaller projects that my staff did. I have not participated in those in quite some time. But, my staff does.
DASINGER: In regard to things such as selection of architect firms, selection of contractors, what is the District procedure for those things to happen?
BLACKWELL: The process is prescribed in state law, something called a “Consultant’s Competitive Negotiations Act,” and we follow those procedures explicitly. That means that we run an advertisement in the newspaper and we conduct interviews, and that the selection is by a committee, arid I participate sometimes as a voting member, more often than not just as a facilitator.
DASINGER: Who are the current members of that committee?
BLACKWELL: It varies. It’s not consistent.
DASINGER: I mean, where do we draw...what pooi of talent do we draw from in that area?
BLACICWELL: Well, there’s usually approximately a half dozen people on the committee. Sometimes it’s five, sometimes it’s seven. Usually of...there’s often one of the area directors on the committee. ..one of my staff, either an architect or an engineer on the committee. Mr. Davis typically on there. Sometimes the MBE manager is on there. Those sorts of follcs.
DASINGER: What’s an MBE manager?
BLACKWELL: Pardon?
DASINGER: What is an MBE manager?
BLACKWELL: Well, as is now, Mr. Henry Ballard, who is the school district’s MBE manager.
DASINGER.: That’s minority business...?
BLACKWELL: Minority Business Enterprise, yes.
DASINGER: In regard to land purchases, what procedure do we have for that? Are you involved in that at all, or what department handles that?
BLACKWELL: Um....I wouldn’t say I’m not involved at all; I have no meaningful role in it.
DASINGER: Who’s in charge of that process for the District?
BLACKWELL: There’s a site acquisition manager...I don’t know it that’s their real title, Ms. Jill Lemons. She’s located in the same area of the SAC building as I am, but she doesn’t report to
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me. She reports directly to my boss, Mr. Davis.
DASINGER: Okay. So she would handle those processes, whatever they may be?
BLACKWELL: Yes.
DASINGER: And you’re not really directly involved in land purchases?
BLACKWEELL: Only when she asb for assistance, such as a survey or a recommendation on traffic or some such advice, but not in the purchase itself in any way.
DASINGER: The...and I’m going to quote from some of this written communication we have here..
BLACKWELL: All right. I
DASINGEIt .. .and this is originated by Mr. Erwin. He states, quote, “I discovered that many of our schools are built on trash dumps, some in high, areas of high concentration of phosphate, and we have to monitor the gases that are released. I, in fact, the plan was made to have the land evaluated during the driest time so that we could use it.” He’s referring to some wetlands somewhere. Are you familiar with any plan or any land purchase that we made that was evaluated so that it couldn’t, wouldn’t be designated as a wetland, I guess, is my question. I thinlc that was the inference here, that the place was a wetland. We evaluated in the dry season so we could purchase it, or something to that effect.
BLACKWELL: Not as described, no.
DASINGER: Any other description...?
BLACKWELL: Well...
DASINGER . ..in a similar vein?
BLACKWELL: Usually land such as this describes requires fill before it can be made useful, and you usually have to obtain permission from the environmental regulators before you can fill and their permission is more easily obtained in the dry season, let’s say.. .at least it appears to be more easily obtained in the dry season and that’s the extent to which I think there’s any truth in that statement. It has nothing to do with site acquisition.
DAS]NGER: Okay, is there any truth to that statement, that you’re aware of, that we build schools on trash dumps? I mean, we could have; I don’t know, and I’m not saying that’s wrong, I’m just saying that’s a statement that was made. —
BLACKWELL: That has occasionally happened and there’s quite a precedent, probably going
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