Plans for combination library/movie theater scrapped

(From the City of Joplin)

During a Special City Council meeting last night, Interim City Manager Sam Anselm told the Council that plans for a joint project of the Public Library and a movie theatre has changed, and the two projects will be separated. The City will build the library, and the master developer, Wallace Bajjali, will continue its work on the theatre project.

Earlier this year, following a financial review of the proposed public debt structure for the theater portion of the project, Wallace Bajjali officials requested the division of the theater project from the library. City officials sought approval for the separation of the library and the theater from the Federal Economic Development Administration (EDA). In May 2013, EDA announced a $20 million grant to Joplin to assist with the City’s economic recovery following the 2011 disaster. The City and Wallace Bajjali had planned to utilize these funds for the combined library/movie theater project.

“Separating the two facilities allows for the projects to move forward while addressing the unique financial aspects of each development,” said Anselm. “The Library will be funded through the EDA grant and Tax Increment Financing (TIF) bonds. The theatre project will be privately funded and developed by Wallace Bajjali. As a combined project, it became apparent that the financing cost was too much to bear.”

Both City staff and Wallace Bajjali officials agreed the community will benefit from the two facilities being located in close proximity, with enough space to accommodate both projects. Plans for the theatre project include a retail development referred to as Joplin Towne Square.

“We appreciate the EDA’s support of our request,” Anselm said. “This is centrally located in the recovery area, and we know that the construction of an updated library will create a synergy and benefit our community’s redevelopment.”

City staff will begin work on a request for proposal for a Project Manager to develop specifications and estimates of the library project. The new library is anticipated to be 50,000 to 60,000 square feet with additional amenities for their patrons. Currently the library is limited to 35,000 square feet, does not meet ADA compliance, and is landlocked from any expansion at its current location in the 300 block of South Main Street.

“We are excited to get to work on this project,” said Anselm. “We will be working with the Library Board throughout this process and look forward to bringing the community an updated facility for all to enjoy. In addition, Wallace Bajjali has been given the green light to move forward on the theater project and the Joplin Towne Square development.”

Globe fails to run Burlingame's latest attack on council

Whether the editors at the Joplin Globe rejected his blast against the five City Council members or just had not published it yet and he became impatient is not clear, but Anson Burlingame's latest post debuted on his blog and not in the pages of the area's newspaper of record.

Burlingame addressed the issue at the beginning of his post:

Note: This blog was originally submitted for publication as a guest column in the Globe. Lacking such publication in the newspaper I now post it as a blog to reflect my continuing concerns about how Joplin city government is being grossly mismanaged by the Bloc of Five, council members Scearce, Rosenberg, Golden, Raney and Colbert-King.

The rest of the post features Burlingame's strongest commentary to date on the five City Council members who fired City Manager Mark Rohr:

This city is being mismanaged, grievously, by the City Council, meaning members Scearce, Rosenberg, Golden, Raney and Colbert-Kean. They are using their majority power to terminate a great leader and city employee, implication of gross misdeeds by one member of council and all sorts of other underhanded attempts to stall and even thwart the rebuilding effort ongoing in Joplin for almost now 3 years and previously approved by council.

Burlingame offers his remedy for the city's problems:

All five of those members need to be DISMISSED, run out of office, condemned by the public and all other legal forms expression of outrage for their actions. This is not democracy in action as Americans expect it. It is tyranny of the majority, a majority of good ole boys (and girls) that think they can just ride roughshod over a very angry city.

If the Joplin Globe truly vetoed Burlingame's guest column offering, it is a step in the right direction for a newspaper that has taken a hit with its coverage of city and Joplin R-8 issues.

The Globe also had to use considerable space today to counter a rumor that Burlingame helped promote that City Councilwoman Trisha Raney, one of Burlingame's Bloc of Five, is not a city resident. Though the Globe reporting totally put it to rest, I have a feeling the issue is not going to go away.

Burlingame appears to be easily swayed by those who project themselves as strong leaders. He has been wooed by master developer David Wallace (he has written about Wallace guiding him through the process) and he appears to have his views on local education spoon fed to him by C. J. Huff. 

While I would disagree with Burlingame's apparent stamp of approval of Wallace and Huff as strong leaders Rohr, from all appearances was a strong leader, particularly in the days immediately after the Joplin Tornado, but I still have a hard time believing that any group of "good ole boys" as Burlingame and others have characterized the five City Council members would have been naive enough to think that there would not be serious repercussions to firing a man widely viewed as a hero. Whatever was in the pages of the Loraine report that were not revealed to the public was enough in their view to merit his immediate dismissal. If the decision had been based on political considerations, Rohr would still be city manager because it was obvious that Rohr supporters were going to use the firing to attempt to keep council members Trisha Raney and Jack Golden from being re-elected.

When the content of those missing pages is finally revealed, we should find out more about why Tom Loraine's bill went over the $45,000 limit by so much. This has been the part of the story that has bothered me the most. An educated guess would be that once the Rohr information comes to light, whether we agree with it or not, we will have a better understanding of why the report cost so much.

Thoughts on Mark Rohr and corruption on the Joplin City Council

Mark Rohr has been one busy ex-Joplin city manager.

Let's review. In the month since the Joplin City Council fired him by a 5-4 vote he has done the following things:

-He promised to expose corruption on the City Council.

-He called the five council members who fired him liars and damned them all to hell. (He's the one who said they would get their judgment in the next life.)

-He came close to tears (that seems to be a requirement for the people the media have described as heroes of the Joplin Tornado) and shamelessly brought his children into his speech (another thing that those same heroes of the Joplin Tornado seem to like to do).

-He was hired as the new city manager of League City, Texas.

Since Mark Rohr's firing, I have watched the coverage, both online and in print and it has been, for the most part, unabashedly pro-Rohr. In its editorial pages, the Joplin Globe has done everything but tell voters that the two council members who were with the majority and fired Rohr should be voted out of office (and I am sure that editorial is coming).

In their now-independent blogs, former Globe bloggers Anson Burlingame and Geoff Caldwell have referred to the five council members as "The Feral Five," and "The Bloc of Five" with Burlingame insisting that the pages of the Loraine investigation that we have not seen have people describing Rohr as a bully. How he knows this, I have no idea, but that accusation is probably in those pages. Though it does not appear their blogs receive a great deal of traffic, both men are staples on the Globe's editorial page and Burlingame, in particular, has made it clear he intends to influence the outcome of the April elections.

The Globe has painted the five council members as the ones who are responsible for not releasing the entire report, even though the last time I looked there are nine council members, all of whom know what was included in the report...and Mark Rohr knows what is in the report, as well.

The Joplin Tri-State Business Journal also included several pages in its most recent edition that appeared slanted solidly on Rohr's side.

And those media have made Rohr's characterization of the five who fired him as being a part of a good old boy network that is intent on stopping progress from coming to Joplin, sound like a fact, instead of what is, a talking point planted by Rohr to influence coverage from people who were already inclined to be on his side.

Some questions we should consider:

-Where is the corruption that Mark Rohr promised to reveal? It was a great sound bite, but he has not produced any evidence that there is widespread corruption on the Joplin City Council. An allegedly stolen sticky note is not corruption, its elementary school name calling. Unless, of course, Rohr's corruption allegations are centered around his (successful) attempts to woo Globe Editor Carol Stark into fighting his battles with Councilman Bill Scearce.

-Why are the five council members being described as part of a good-old-boy network, when the most secretive group involved in the April city election, the Joplin Progress Committee, has received contributions from many of the major power players in the city- and none of their contributions are going to anyone who voted to fire Mark Rohr. Apparently, they don't make good old boys the way they used to.

-Why is the media acting like Wallace-Bajjali has disproven the accusations in the Loraine report? The last time I looked, all they did was provide their own version of the facts and did not disprove anything.

-Why is the media ignoring the bankruptcies, fraud accusations, and securities violations, as well as numerous lawsuits involving Wallace-Bajjali. As far as I can recall, it has never been brought up in any of the local media except for a paragraph in the Globe, which quoted Mark Rohr as saying none of it amounted to anything.

Some final thoughts

If the Joplin Globe is successful in its legal efforts to force the city to release the complete report, this is what I expect will occur:

-The report is not going to be what the Globe, Anson Burlingame, or any of the other Rohr supporters would expect. The council members who voted to fire Mark Rohr were not taken by surprise by the reaction. Rohr's influence over the Joplin Globe is well known. Two council members, Trisha Raney and Jack Golden, voted to fire Rohr, knowing full well that it could cost them their council seats. That is not the way good old boys usually operate.

-Bullying may have been a factor in Rohr's dismissal, but it was not the deciding factor. I would say there were things that occurred that the five council members saw as Rohr abusing his office. We probably will wonder why the other four did not join them in their vote. The allegations could have prevented Rohr from landing the League City position and could have landed the city in a lawsuit. When Rohr left Piqua, Ohio, he successfully sued someone who accused him of wrongdoing. I reported the following in the June 3, 2007, Turner Report:

The Family Abuse Shelter of Miami County, Ohio, is $3,000 richer, thanks to a settlement of a libel suit brought by Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr against a Piqua, Ohio, businessman who Rohr says defamed him while Rohr was Piqua's city manager.

According to an article in the March 29 Dayton Daily News, Rohr had initially won his lawsuit against Gustin, but the jury voted not to award him any money. A retrial was ordered, but will not be held thanks to the settlement.

Rohr sued Charles "Mo" Gustin after Gustin claimed police cruisers had been to Rohr's house three or four times to check out domestic abuse complaints;

Rohr said his lawyer, Grant Kerber of Troy, suggested the donation. Rohr liked the idea.

"My sole objective was to send a message that you can't go around saying untrue things about someone without repercussions." Rohr said.

Rohr said he thinks he made his point.

Lawsuit accusation: Wallace-Bajjali cheated local investors in Waco project

An adversary lawsuit filed in U. S. Bankruptcy Court in November 2011 alleges that David Wallace and his firm Wallace-Bajjali, the master developers for the city of Joplin's tornado-stricken area, cheated local investors in a Waco, Texas, development out of close to a quarter of a million dollars.

The lawsuit alleges that Wallace made sure that he got his money, did not give any to local investors, and then claimed there was no money left because of "legitimate partnership expenses."

The plaintiff in the lawsuit, NJSS Limited Partnership, claimed that could not have been the case because Wallace and Wallace-Bajjali hadn't done anything.

The lawsuit claims that Wallace and a partner named Michael Wray "descended upon Waco hoping to profit from the community's desire to revitalize downtown," and began pursuing local investors.

At some point, Wallace bought out Wray, according to the petition. The development was split into two phases with the small amount of property that was being developed included in Phase I. The project was almost immediately besieged by a "deluge of mechanics' liens and materialman liens" and inevitably, a bankruptcy, according to the lawsuit.

The petition claims that Wallace and a co-defendant Community Bank and Trust of Waco, Texas, refinanced loans, but not on the phase that included the local investors.

Wallace-Bajjali made $299,000 out of the deal, according tot the petition, which claims that $239,287.67 should have gone to NJJS Limited Partnership.

The Wallace-Bajjali engineered bankruptcy went through and court records indicate that the local investors were unsuccessful in getting their money back.

The bankruptcy, as noted in the February 15 Turner Report, was one of at least three filed by Wallace-Bajjali subsidiaries during a 27-month period.

Audio- Costa Bajjali tells how Crossland Construction brought Wallace-Bajjali to Joplin

Before and after the Wallace-Bajjali firm became the master developer for the tornado-stricken area of Joplin, we have heard from company partner David Wallace. In this audio, recorded one year after the tornado, Wallace's partner Costa Bajjali tells how the firm came into Joplin almost from the moment the tornado hit.

Video- KOAM investigates Wallace-Bajjali, Joplin development

KOAM's Jordan Aubey does something the Joplin Globe has not done- he takes a look at Wallace-Bajjali and the development or lack thereof of the tornado-stricken area of Joplin. KOAM TV 7

Complete video: Wallace-Bajjali presentation to Joplin City Council

What the Joplin Globe hasn't told you about Wallace-Bajjali, Part Two

Judging from what has been written about the city of Joplin's master developer, Wallace-Bajjali, in the Joplin Globe, it would appear that the newspaper's primary source of information was fired City Manager Mark Rohr. The following was originally printed in the November 28, 2013, Turner Report, based on a post I had written earlier in 2013.

With the millions of dollars that Joplin taxpayers will end up investing in the firm of master developer Wallace-Bajjali, you might think the area's newspaper of record, the Joplin Globe, would have conducted an investigation into the background of the Texas company. Except for about one paragraph ( a quote from City Manager Mark Rohr saying any problems weren't really problems), the Globe has continued to play cheerleader instead of looking after the public interest.

In part one, I wrote about two bankruptcies and an SEC investigation involving Wallace-Bajjali. The problems noted by the SEC are the same ones that brought a lawsuit against Wallace-Bajjali earlier this year accusing partners David Wallace and Costa Bajjali of conducting a $3 million Ponzi scheme.

I wrote about this August 15 in Inside Joplin and the Turner Report.

Investors in two funds connected to Joplin’s master developer Wallace-Bajjali claim in a lawsuit filed this week in Harris County, Texas, District Court that firm owners David Wallace and Costa Bajjali were involved in a $3 million Ponzi scheme.

Wallace told the Amarillo Globe-News , We consider the lawsuit very frivolous. We consider it to be without merit and we are going to defend it vigorously.” 

The scheme  resulted in an SEC investigation, which ended with Wallace and Bajalli agreeing to pay $60,000 fines. Each man made his last payment three days before the city of Joplin hired the firm to conduct the $800 million development of Joplin’s tornado-stricken area.

In its complaint, which was filed May 20, 2011, the SEC alleged that between November 2006 and December 2008, Wallace and Bajjali “offered and sold securities in two real estate funds they controlled in Houston, Texas, called the Wallace Bajjali Investment Fund II, L. P. and the Laffer Frishberg Wallace Economic Opportunity Fund, L. P.

In written disclosures relating to the securities offerings, Wallace and Bajjali told investors they would limit the Funds’ investment in any one business or project to certain percentages of the money the Funds raised- no more than 33 percent for the Wallace-Bajjali Fund and no more than 20 percent for the Opportunity Fund.

“Contrary to their written representation, Wallace and Bajjali far exceeded these limits by heavily investing the Funds’ money in Business Radio Networks, L.P, doing business as BizRadio, a struggling media company. As a result, they subjected the Funds’ investors to substantially greater investment risk than the Funds’ written materials disclosed.”

The statement of facts filed by SEC says that by May 2007 the Wallace-Bajjali Fund had received more than $16 million and had invested more than $6.5 million in BizRadio. The ratio was even higher with the Opportunity Fund, where $7 million was raised and $4 million went to BizRadio, far more than the 20 percent limit. Court documents indicate Wallace and Bajjali entered into an agreement with a company called Investment Adviser in Houston to handle the securities funds. It would appear that the two are casting the blame on that company for violating SEC regulations.

What the Joplin Globe hasn't told you about Wallace-Bajjali, Part One

With the emergence this week of the city of Joplin's master developer, the Sugar Land, Texas, firm Wallace-Bajjali as a key player in the ethics problems surrounding Joplin City Councilman Mike Woolston and former City Manager Mark Rohr, I thought it was an opportune time to look back at some of what the Joplin Globe not only neglected to tell its readers, but most likely never ever bothered to investigate.

More and more, it is looking like the Joplin Globe has relied entirely on Mark Rohr for its information on Wallace-Bajjali.

The Turner Report has been looking into Wallace-Bajjali for the past couple of years and on July 9, 2013, I posted the following:

(Note: This is a slightly reworked version of a Turner Report post from November 26, 2012.)

The next three paragraphs are the extent of the Joplin Globe's investigation into the background of a company that eventually will most likely spend more than $1 billion in its large-scale plan to develop the tornado-damaged portion of Joplin.

Wallace Bajjali has been involved in two projects that hit difficulty. Rohr said the firm disclosed details of those problems in its Joplin proposal, and that inquiries by city officials verified the firm’s admissions. Those incidents involve a bankruptcy taken by some its partners in the Amarillo project, and fines paid to the Securities and Exchange Commission for investment fraud committed by two partners in a radio acquisition deal. - March 27, 2012, Joplin Globe

Two previous Wallace Bajjali projects hit snags because of problems involving partners. In one, work was delayed when a partner went bankrupt. In the other, a partner was found to have violated Securities and Exchange Commission rules in a business radio investment, which resulted in Wallace Bajjali paying a fine.

City Manager Mark Rohr previously said the firm’s principals voluntarily disclosed those issues, and a background investigation substantiated the firm’s disclosure. Rohr said he was satisfied that there was no wrongdoing on the part of Wallace Bajjali in those cases.July 2, 2012, Joplin Globe

That's it. The extent of the Joplin Globe's examination of the background of the Wallace Bajjali firm that has been entrusted to handle $794 million in development of the area struck by the May 22, 2011, is printed above.



And though everything that is written in those paragraphs may well be accurate, it certainly would be an excellent idea for the area's newspaper of record to examine Wallace Bajjali's problems with its developments in Waco and Amarillo, Texas.

It did not take me long to come up with this for the March 31, 2012, Turner Report.

As of Friday, David Wallace is free and clear as far as the Securities and Exchange Commission is concerned.

That was the day Wallace, CEO of Wallace Bajjali, the company expected to be hired as master developer for the city of Joplin's tornado recovery efforts Monday by the City Council, made his last payment covering his fine for fraud.

It was Wallace's fourth payment of $15,006.72, covering his $60,000 fine plus interest. His partner, Costa Bajjali, also made his final payment for that amount Friday, according to U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas documents.

Both men entered into agreements May 24, 2011, to pay the fines, though neither admitted to any wrongdoing.

Joplin city officials say they are fully aware of the SEC fines and have corroborated Wallace's claim that others were at fault.

In its complaint, which was filed May 20, 2011, the SEC alleged that between November 2006 and December 2008, Wallace and Bajjali "offered and sold securities in two real estate funds they controlled in Houston, Texas, called the Wallace Bajjali Investment Fund II, L. P. and the Laffer Frishberg Wallace Economic Opportunity Fund, L. P. In written disclosures relating to the securities offerings, Wallace and Bajjali represented to investors that they would limit the Funds' investment in any one business or project to certain percentages of the money the Funds raised- no more than 33 percent for the Wallace-Bajjali Fund and no more than 20 percent for the Opportunity Fund. Contrary to their written representation, Wallace and Bajjali far exceeded these limits by heavily investing the Funds' money in Business Radio Networks, L.P, doing business as BizRadio, a struggling media company. As a result, they subjected the Funds' investors to substantially greater investment risk than the Funds' written materials disclosed."

The statement of facts filed by SEC says that by May 2007 the Wallace-Bajjali Fund had received more than $16 million and had invested more than $6.5 million in BizRadio. The ratio was even higher with the Opportunity Fund, where $7 million was raised and $4 million went to BizRadio, far more than the 20 percent limit.

Court documents indicate Wallace and Bajjali entered into an agreement with a company called Investment Adviser in Houston to handle the securities funds. It would appear that the two are casting the blame on that company for violating SEC regulations.

Later that day, I followed up with information from the Amarillo Globe-News:

Earlier today, the Turner Report noted that David Wallace, CEO of Wallace Bajjali, the Texas firm recommended by the city of Joplin's Citizens Advisory Recovery Team to become the city's master developer in its tornado recovery, had made his final payment of a $60,000 fine for an SEC fraud violation.

Wallace and his partner, Costa Bazzali, neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing, but their deal also includes paying back approximately $1.2 million to investors.

From the Amarillo Globe-News:

The settlement approved Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Nancy F. Atlas ends claims that receiver Thomas L. Taylor asserted against Wallace Bajjali Development Partners entities in relation to an SEC investigation of Albert Fase Kaleta, Kaleta Capital Management, Daniel Frishberg Financial Services and BusinessRadio Network, Taylor said.

The settlement sets Dec. 31 as the final deadline for three Wallace Bajjali real estate investment limited partnerships to repay $879,176 in loans they got from Kaleta Capital Management, plus interest.

Under the agreement, Wallace Bajjali Development Partners also said it will pay an additional $350,000 to $400,000, with interest, from the firm’s private earnings from an Amarillo downtown revitalization project.

The SEC sued Kaleta, Frishberg and their businesses in 2009. The SEC appointed Taylor to trace money investors sank into Kaleta and Frishberg’s network of affiliated companies that allegedly commingled and misappropriated investors’ money, according to court documents in the ongoing SEC case and a related bankruptcy case.

Much of the investment capital allegedly misdirected by Kaleta and Frishberg went into the radio network, dubbed BizRadio, which “broadcast programming designed to attract clients” to a Frishberg financial services company and a Frishberg and Kaleta investment advisory business, according to a Feb. 11 status report in the bankruptcy case.

The SEC investigation extended to David Wallace and partner Costa Bajjali, who in May agreed to each pay about $60,000 in fines for exposing investors in struggling BizRadio to excessive risk, a situation Wallace blamed on the media company.

It should be noted that the Waco bankruptcy mentioned in my July 6 post was not mentioned in the earlier Joplin Globe coverage.

Video- Council members Scearce, Rosenberg on Rohr firing, Wallace-Bajjali

From KSN

Wallace-Bajjali CEO: I am not a crook

(From Wallace-Bajjali)

Since August, 2012, Wallace Bajjali has been working with the City of Joplin and the Joplin Redevelopment Corporation (JRC) to help the community and its citizens recover and rebuild from the devastating tornado that struck on May 22, 2011.   Significant progress has been made in working with a wide variety of stakeholders, the city council, the mayor, and other community leaders.  We are proud of our ongoing role in helping Joplin get back on its feet.

While we aren’t aware of all of the issues that led to the investigations of two city council members, Wallace Bajjali stands by its work and the significant progress we’ve made.  Since we are mentioned in the investigative report issued by Mr. Loraine, we will be thoroughly reviewing it and responding in detail at a later time, as appropriate.  What is apparent based on our initial and brief review is that there are several inaccuracies with misinformation regarding Wallace Bajjali.  It’s clear, for example, that Mr. Loraine, does not have an understanding or isn’t aware of the nature of the agreements that Wallace Bajjali has with the City and the JRC, which are standard for these types of redevelopment. 
 

When the City issued its Request for Proposals to find a master developer, multiple parties responded, and we were one of them.  After a very public, thorough, and transparent process, we were honored and excited to be chosen as the master developer.  Since being chosen, we’ve been committed to doing everything we can to move this community forward by redeveloping the parts of the city impacted by the tragedy of 2011.  That has not changed and it will not change.  Our top priority remains to see the redevelopment through and help make Joplin and even more attractive and successful city for its citizens.

David Wallace, CEO 

Report: City should stop all business with Wallace-Bajjali

In his statements to the media shortly after he was voted out of office, former Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr attempted to characterize his dismissal as the result of a power struggle and accused city council members of having the motion to fire him drawn up beforehand.

Rohr also attempts to minimize the findings of that report, claiming it was poorly done and was under the guidance of City Attorney Brian Head, who supposedly always had it in for him.

The report by Osage Beach lawyer Tom Loraine paints a totally different picture, reached after interviews of 51 witnesses- one of an attempt to cash in on the tornado that hit the city of Joplin on May 22, 2011.

Among the findings:

-City Councilwoman Mike Woolston bought property from landowners in the tornado-stricken area and also attempted to get others to sell- on land that was going to be developed by Wallace-Bajjali.

-Woolston arranged the purchase of properties through Four States Homes, which were later sold to the Joplin Redevelopment Corporation with Wallace-Bajjali receiving more than $50,000 in finders fees.

-The property purchase system was "largely negotiated" between Mark Rohr and Wallace-Bajjali.

-Some witnesses felt Woolston was "controlling the prices" of property in that area.

-All communication between the city and Wallace-Bajjali went through the city manager's office.

The report indicates that Woolston "entered a working relationship with Charles Kuehn of Four States Properties "within a couple of months" after the tornado. Kuehn refused to answer Loraine's questions.

The methods used by Woolston were described in the report:

Local residents Dana and William Parker deposed regarding Councilman Woolston's actions during the period just prior to a neighborhood meeting held in October 2012, stating, "Most of the people lived- well, where they lived is where the movie theater is going and all that, the library, and they were concerned because Mike Woolston kept knocking on everybody's door wanting to sell their property, even if they'd already rebuilt, sell it so we can tear it down.

According to the Parkers, Mr. Woolston informed them they were "stupid for rebuilding" and when he was asked by the Parkers why a grocery store was not planned for Sunset Ridge, "he told us at that time that those people were too important; we couldn't do that to them.

The Parkers were further informed by Mr. Woolston that a park which had been deeded to the city "needs to come out."

In short, Councilman Woolston appears to have conducted himself as a one man Redevelopment Corporation and one without a clue as to the statutory requirements of a 353 corporation. The Parkers futher deposed that Councilman Woolston spoke to them about acquiring various lots for a party whose name he at first would not reveal, but eventually told them the party was Four State Homes, which he highly endorsed as follows, "You know they build good stuff."

Thus, according to the Parkers, Mr. Woolston was acting an agent for Mr. Kuehn, who was acting as an agent for Wallace-Bajjali, who was billing the city big fees for finding property to develop. The actions of Mr. Woolston, Mr. Kuehn, and Wallace-Bajjali led the Parkers to conclude conflicts of interest, if not outright fraud, were involved.

The Parkers were not the only residents reporting problems:

Residents Alisha and Dustin Brigance deposed that Mr. Woolston sent them a letter in July of 2012 stating that someone was interested in purchasing their property. In referring to Mr. Woolston, they stated, "He was working for Four State Homes to purchase an extremely large amount of property in our area.

The Brigances further deposed that there were at the time rumors of a movie theatre/library complex being planned for that area "at 20th and Connecticut." Mr. Woolston deposed that he had received a commission on the sale of 1825 Connecticut.

The Brigances further stated in their deposition that the only person they had contacted regarding the sale of their property was their realtor. However, at a neighborhood meeting they were approached by Gary Box, a representative of Wallace-Bajjali. Mr. Box was shocked when they told him they were not selling because apparently Mr. Woolston had informed him otherwise. The Brigances stated they wound up selling their property because Four State Homes had purchased all the surrounding property.

They also suggested that Mr. Woolston had not been honest with them because he had prior knowledge of the city's plans for the theatre/library eomplex. They went so far to say that Mr. Woolston was "controlling the prices."

It is interesting to note that their property was purchased by Charlie Kuehn in Fdbruary 2013. As of December 31, 2013, Mr, Kuehn has not sold this property to the 353 Corporation. This property is located at 1812 Delaware.:

The sales contract for the property lists Charlie Kuehn as buyer and Mike Woolston, as the broker for Pro 100.

Loraine noted that Woolston had abstained from numerous City Council votes on real estate matters.

This need for abstentions should place the public on notice that Mr. Woolston is involved in the matter personally and that the city cannot expect his best efforts because of his potential or real conflict of interest.

The report notes that both Woolston and Gary Box "had significant participation in performing the due diligence in the initial hiring of the Wallace-Bajjali firm. Now Gary Box is the project manager for the Joplin office of the Wallace-Bajjali firm."

The report says it is a safe bet that laws were broken, based on the testimony of Woolston, Joplin city residents, and City Attorney Brian Head.

The actions of Mr. Woolston, Mr. Kuehn, and Wallace-Bajjali are unethical since they must be looked at as conspiratorial under the totality of facts. Further investigations should be engaged with complete fee disclosure to the City Council. All business should be stopped under the contracts between Wallace-Bajjali and the City of Joplin.

The troubling relationship between Mark Rohr and Wallace-Bajjali

When the Joplin City Council made its first aborted attempt to fire City Manager Mark Rohr, the people of Joplin- at least those who sent their comments to the Joplin Globe and other local media- seemed to be of almost one mind.

They wanted the council members who dared oppose Rohr to be strung up and they were not too happy with that Texas firm, Wallace-Bajjali, that the council brought in to be the master developer for the tornado-stricken area of the city.

Bringing in Wallace-Bajjali or any other master developer was the furthest thing from the City Council's mind in the days following the May 22, 2011, Joplin Tornado. The idea came from Rohr, who was fired this morning by the Joplin City Council following a marathon closed session. and the Citizens Advisory Recovery Team (CART).

When David Wallace of Wallace-Bajjali first came to Joplin is a matter that has not exactly been pinned down with some saying he was here even before the tornado. One thing is for certain- Wallace was in the city right after the tornado and was already working with Rohr and those involved with CART.

A profile by the investigative online magazine STRY noted the following:

There’s no clear answer as to when Wallace Bajjali formally came into the picture. Rohr says David Wallace was looking at construction projects in Joplin in the days before the storm. (CART Chairman Jane) Cage remembers Wallace showing up at meetings in the weeks after the tornado.

What is certain is that Wallace started talking about a formal partnership long before Joplin was ready to take action.

It was David Wallace, a developer, who pushed the idea that the city of Joplin should hire a developer and he had a ready partner in Rohr, who not only vouched for the Texas businessman, but also steered the City Council past Wallace-Bajjali's troubled history,which includes, as the Turner Report was the first area media outlet to note, involvement in two bankruptcies and a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation that led to Wallace and his partner, Costa Bajjali, both agreeing to pay $60,000 fines, though they insisted that other people were at fault.

The STRY article noted how Rohr steered the Joplin City Council past any concerns members might have had about Wallace-Bajjali:

But some things from Wallace Bajjali’s background nearly derailed a deal. In February (2012), the comapny agreed to a deal with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to pay back $1.2 million to investors. The SEC says the company was involved in a fraudulent scheme involving a media entity called BizRadio. The investors were less kind, saying Wallace Bajjali knowingly backed a Ponzi scheme.

In Amarillo, Texas, where Wallace Bajjali is working on a $113 million development project, one of their partners was forced into bankruptcy.

Rohr says he personally investigated the matters. He says he’s spoken to multiple officials in Amarillo about Wallace. When asked by council members about the SEC fines, Rohr says: “I described David as being a very trusting person. And in some of his business dealings, he got involved with people that, in retrospect, didn’t warrant that trust.”

The article also notes that though six companies submitted proposals for developing the tornado-stricken area of Joplin, Rohr provided far more favorable information about Wallace-Bajjali than the rest of the developers combined:

In April, city councilman Benjamin Rosenberg publicly criticized Rohr for not disclosing more information about the five other applicants. At that meeting, according to a Joplin Globe report, Rohr told council members that he would stake his reputation on Wallace’s company.

Investigation centers on City Manager, vote to fire Rohr expected

It appears that City Manager Mark Rohr may be the first victim of a City Council-ordered investigation into possible wrongdoing in city government.

The council, which has already voted on whether to maintain Rohr a few months back, a vote the city manager barely survived, is reportedly voting on whether to fire him.

Though details aren't clear at the moment, it appears that Rohr's performance was at least one of the reasons why the City Council went into a marathon closed session at 5:45 p.m. this evening.

The connection between Rohr and the city's master developer, the Sugar Land, Texas, Wallace-Bajjali firm appears to be part of the problem. It was Rohr who first introduced the council to Wallace-Bajjalli and the master developers were part of Osage Beach investigator Tom Loraine's charge in November.

Loraine was asked to look into real estate dealings involving Councilman Mike Woolston, who bought property in the part of the city damaged by the May 22, 2011, tornado, and then resold it to Wallace-Bajjali, reportedly for a tidy profit.

Wallace-Bajjali, of course, was fully aware that it was dealing with a city official.

Reportedly, Woolston has been told to divest himself of his real estate holdings, or resign his council seat.

(More to come)

Joplin City Council to public: You can't handle the truth

Joplin City Council members probably will not appreciate the irony, but they have been behind closed doors for nearly four and a half hours as this is being written- reviewing a report that was ordered to bring the truth about two city councilmen into the open.

Investigator Tom Loraine's report, commissioned by the City Council in November, was designed to uncover the truth about Mayor Pro Tem Bill Scearce's connection with a convicted gambler who was a tenant of his at one point, and whether City Councilman and former Mayor Mike Woolston, a real estate broker, bought land in the tornado-damaged area of the city knowing he could resell it to Wallace-Bajjali, the city's master developers, and make a tidy profit.

What reason was used to justify the closed session I do not know- the agenda for the meeting is not posted at the city website- but it can't be personnel. Elected officials do not fall under that category.

The council authorized paying Loraine, an Osage Beach lawyer, $45,000 for the investigation.

Now the first thing that has been done is to take the investigation behind closed doors and make us wonder just what, if anything, could be a good enough reason to keep Joplin residents from knowing whether they have two crooks, or one, or maybe none, sitting on the City Council.

Taking this investigation out of sight of the public, even for one minute, was not a wise decision on the part of the city council no matter what information was included in the report.

If the council members legally went behind closed doors, and it is most likely either they did or the city attorney told them they did, it was an unwise move. They should always remember that the Sunshine Law never states that you have to meet behind closed doors in certain situations. It says you "may."

In this post-tornado era, in which we have seen millions of dollars coming into the city of Joplin, it is more important than ever that our leaders conduct city business in full view of the public.

Our elected officials should take the lead.

They certainly blew it tonight.

Is there corruption in Joplin?

Joplin City Council is meeting in closed session at this moment going over a report filed by Tom Loraine, the Osage Beach attorney who was hired November 11 to head the investigation into 
activities of council members Bill Scearce and Mike Woolston. Loraine, who at one time worked in the U. S. Attorney’s office, has considerable experience in this type of investigation.

The cost of the probe was put at $45,000, Any further expenses would have to come before the council for approval.

2013 in Review: Lawsuit alleges Joplin master developer involved in Ponzi scheme

(From August 2013)

(The following post originally ran in the August 15 Inside Joplin)

Investors in two funds connected to Joplin’s master developer Wallace-Bajjali claim in a lawsuit filed this week in Harris County, Texas, District Court that firm owners David Wallace and Costa Bajjali were involved in a $3 million Ponzi scheme.

Wallace told the Amarillo Globe-News , We consider the lawsuit very frivolous. We consider it to be without merit and we are going to defend it vigorously.”

The scheme is the same one described in an articlepublished Saturday in Inside Joplin.

2013 in Review: What the Joplin Globe hasn't told you about Wallace-Bajjali

(From July 9, 2013)

(Note: This is a slightly reworked version of a Turner Report post from November 26, 2012.)

The next three paragraphs are the extent of the Joplin Globe's investigation into the background of a company that eventually will most likely spend more than $1 billion in its large-scale plan to develop the tornado-damaged portion of Joplin.

Wallace Bajjali has been involved in two projects that hit difficulty. Rohr said the firm disclosed details of those problems in its Joplin proposal, and that inquiries by city officials verified the firm’s admissions. Those incidents involve a bankruptcy taken by some its partners in the Amarillo project, and fines paid to the Securities and Exchange Commission for investment fraud committed by two partners in a radio acquisition deal. - March 27, 2012, Joplin Globe

Two previous Wallace Bajjali projects hit snags because of problems involving partners. In one, work was delayed when a partner went bankrupt. In the other, a partner was found to have violated Securities and Exchange Commission rules in a business radio investment, which resulted in Wallace Bajjali paying a fine.

City Manager Mark Rohr previously said the firm’s principals voluntarily disclosed those issues, and a background investigation substantiated the firm’s disclosure. Rohr said he was satisfied that there was no wrongdoing on the part of Wallace Bajjali in those cases.July 2, 2012, Joplin Globe

That's it. The extent of the Joplin Globe's examination of the background of the Wallace Bajjali firm that has been entrusted to handle $794 million in development of the area struck by the May 22, 2011, is printed above.

2013 in Review- City of Joplin's master developer involved in bankruptcy, millions of dollars in debt

(From July 6)
The master developers chosen by the city of Joplin to handle an $800 million project involving the area of the city hit by the May 22, 2011, tornado, filed for bankruptcy January 1 and are more than six million dollars in debt, according to court documents.