Broward Politics

Compromise looms in long-running battle over Gypsy church

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:40:33 -0500

A four-year battle by Broward County commissioners to force a church to close so they could build new treatment centers for recovering addicts and victims of sexual assault is nearing an end. The county wants to sell part of the southwest Fort Lauderdale property back to the Christian Romany Church. One of the two treatment centers would still be located on the site, but the county would find a new site for the other one so the church could remain. The compromise comes after city officials and neighborhood activists continued to object to the county’s plans. The county had gone to court to seize the property from the church, but likely faced problems winning city approvals. “I feel very confident that this will be resolved and that the neighborhood will be fine,” said Cliff Iacino, president of the Edgewood Civic Association. Commissioners on Tuesday agreed to allow the congregation of Gypsies or Roma to remain until March 31 while details of the deal are worked out. The county wants to explore putting one of the treatment centers at the old Women in Distress building at South Andrews Avenue and Davie Boulevard as well as other locations. One potential hang-up is that the School District is weighing in against the county using part of the church property for an addiction recovery center. District administrators are concerned about the proximity to the Seagull School, an alternative school that caters to teen parents. The fight over the property off Southwest 27th Street began in 2004 when the county chose the then-vacant church as the home for an enlarged addiction recovery center. While the county was trying to condemn the land for public purposes, the Christian Romany Church bought it. In 2007, a judge ruled that the treatment centers were a public purpose and that the church would have to sell to the county for $1.6 million. The county has $30 million set aside for construction, but work has been held up as neighborhood residents complained the twin facilities would overburden their area with social services. “We need to move on because we’ve spent a lot of money and still don’t have the facilities,” said Commissioner John Rodstrom, a longtime critic of the plans and the person who negotiated the outline of the compromise with the city. “The county is committed to working out a solution.”

Fort Lauderdale plumbing inspector suspended for alleged race remark

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:15:37 -0500

Fort Lauderdale's chief plumbing inspector Joe DeMaio will be suspended one day, accused of saying that a black co-worker would be safe from layoffs because of his race. DeMaio originally was suspended three days, but appealed it and settled on one day. Click here to read the settlement agreement. Click here to read four statements. Three co-workers wrote statements to the city saying they heard DeMaio say that Gehazel Sloane Jr., or "JJ,'' a plumbing inspector, wouldn't have to worry about layoffs because he's black. Reached Tuesday, DeMaio said he didn't make the comment or comments he's accused of, and that a former co-worker supported him, as did Sloane. "You've got to look at motives. Are they jealous? What's the deal?'' he said of his accusers. "I've got two young kids. I'm a single dad. What am I going to do, get fired over this? I've just got to suck it up and do my job. ... Do I disagree with it? Absolutely. ''

Air Lauderdale show signs on new president

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:51:33 -0500

The ever-popular annual air show is returning, as you know, on April 24-25, 2010. The city used to host an Air and Sea Show. A new Air Lauderdale extravaganza is coming in 2010, with participation from the U.S. military. Air show organizer Stan Smith is now announcing a new partner in Air Lauderdale: Dr. Arnold Tillman, who joined as president. Here's what Smith said about Tillman's background:

Tillman is a retired medical doctor as well as an FAA Senior Aviation Medical Examiner and has been an avid aviator for over 30 years, holding FAA certification as an Airline Transport Pilot and Flight Instructor. He is also the Founding Chairman of Broward Bank of Commerce (www.BrowardBankofCommerce.com), Fort Lauderdale’s newest bank, serving as Chairman of the Board for its holding company Broward Financial Holdings,Inc.

Read more about this on the jump page. Bookmark www.airlauderdale.com to keep tabs on the new show.

Riveted by Rothstein: Photographic retrospective

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:00:23 -0500

Kim and Scott Rothstein's bodyguard, Joe Alu, is a former Plantation police officer whose ex-wife is Sunrise City Commissioner Sheila Alu. Joe Alu said Scott's like a brother to him, and he'd work there even if he didn't get paid. He does get paid, of course. Scott "pays me enough,'' he said in answer to my question.

Louiz Silva, on staff for the Rothstein household, does odd jobs at the house, including picking up the mail from the mailman. The mailman said the house has no mailbox, so he just waits for Louiz to come out and get it.

An armed guard from Master Security watches the house. The private company was hired after Fort Lauderdale's police department yanked officers from working off-duty details at the house. The officers also were forbidden from working at Rothstein's restaurant or law firm, starting Monday, Nov. 2. That's the day allegations publicly surfaced that Scott Rothstein was running an investor Ponzi scheme from his law office, which also was guarded by uniformed city officers. By then, Rothstein had left for Morocco.

The view of Rothstein's canal, from the bridge to Isla Bahia in Fort Lauderdale's Harbor Beach neighborhood.

The Rothstein 87-foot Warren and 33-foot Riva, docked behind his home. Together their worth is estimated to be about as much as the house, more than $6 million.

The yacht is named "Princess Kimberly,'' and the smaller boat is the "D-Flawless.''

The Rothstein residence.

When Rothstein returned from Morocco on Nov. 3, police were advised he might be headed back to his law firm with two armed guards, the police chief said. So the Street Crimes Unit was sent over.

More than 10 officers surrounded the Bank of America tower where Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler has its offices on the 16th floor.

Police spokesman Sgt. Frank Sousa, who has worked the off-duty detail at Rothstein's private home, advised the media that officers were keeping the peace.

On Nov. 9, a crew brought in by the feds took Rothstein's yacht away.

Bodyguard Joe Alu took personal items out of the Bentley before the feds had it towed away as part of the seizure.

A boat crew also seized the handmade wooden Riva, for the feds.

Federal agents from the FBI and IRS seized two rifles and two pistols.

Feds put the guns in the trunk of a car, then re-entered with giant rolls of bubble wrap to continue the inventory.

Representatives of RRA, including attorney Grant Smith, appeared in court. The firm's attorney asked that the firm be dissolved and a receiver appointed.

At Rothstein's place of worship, the rabbi had no comment. He was one of two people who reportedly talked Rothstein out of suicide on Saturday, Oct. 31, when he was in Morocco.

The law firm Rothstein, Rosenfeldt & Adler will be a thing of history, soon. Stuart Rosenfeldt said he hopes to create a new firm.

The case now plays out in court.

Scott Rothstein case: The fall of RRA

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:20:23 -0500

I'm working on a photographic recap of the events that have unfolded to date in the Scott Rothstein saga. For now, here are two photos. Only two words are really necessary to go with them: Before and After. Before AFTER

Broward County not ready for Facebook!

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:43:42 -0500

Broward County is not ready to join the social media generation with Twitter alerts, YouTube videos and Facebook pages. Governments across the nation are using the social media sites to tout upcoming local events, new initiatives and emergency alerts. Coral Springs does it. Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties do it. The White House does it. County commissioners balked Tuesday. A majority said they want a workshop for administrators to explain how they would use the new media outlets. “I’m really in the dark ages and am not ready to support this today even though that doesn’t mean I won’t support it in the future,” Commissioner Lois Wexler said. County staff said they could use Twitter to send alerts about power outages, evacuations or boil-water alerts during a hurricane. Agencies like cultural affairs and parks could set up Facebook pages to detail programs coming up. “We are not the first and there has been a lot of ground broken on this,” said Judy Sarver of the county’s public communications department. Commissioners raised concerns about staff having to manage the sites. They questioned if people could post inflammatory comments, how the county would control advertising and what the sites would mean in terms of state laws on public records. “If you think we have problems now deciding who our advertisers are going to be, wait until we have to decide who our Facebook friends are,” Commissioner John Rodstrom said. Most of the commissioners are individually on Facebook. Commissioner Ken Keechl has 1,129 friends on Facebook, and Commissioner Suzanne Gunzburger has 505. Commissioner Kristin Jacobs urged her colleagues to look into social media further and eventually allow county divisions to set up accounts. She said it would allow government to reach more people. “Consider another generation out there accessing information in a manner way different than we do,” Jacobs said.

Feds seize guns, yacht, and more at Rothstein mansion

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:29:00 -0500

Rabbi at Scott Rothstein Chabad reassures members

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 11:03:46 -0500

Rabbi Schneur Kaplan, the spiritual adviser of attorney Scott Rothstein, sent out an e-mail Friday about the whole twisted matter. One thing was conspicuously missing: the words "Scott Rothstein." His name is affixed to the Chabad off Las Olas downtown. Here's what Rabbi Kaplan said about the Rothstein matter, without ever uttering the name of the man who is accused now of scamming investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars:

"During the past week we have received numerous, supportive and encouraging phone calls, e-mails and letters, from friends and members of the community. Devorah and I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and everyone of you for your sincere and heartfelt endorsements for the continued growth of the Downtown Jewish Center Chabad. All DJCC programs, activities and services will continue to go on with increased momentum, vigor and fosterage."

At the chabad last week, the rabbi said it would be inappropriate to comment about what's going on with Rothstein. Kaplan is one of two people who talked Rothstein out of committing suicide Saturday, according to Stuart Rosenfeldt, law firm co-founder. I asked Kaplan about his suicide talk with Rothstein but he wouldn't comment about that, either. The email included some teachings, with this summary:

As the commentaries explain, there are two possible reactions a person can have toward a fellow who has wronged him, or whom he sees behaving in a morally deficient manner: 1) he can despise him in his heart, regarding him as a "sinner," and perhaps even persecute him for his "sins"; 2) he can rebuke him in the effort to convince him of the folly of his ways and seek to influence him to change them. The path of love, says the Torah, is not to to "hate your brother in your heart" but to "repeatedly rebuke" him and seek to better him. ..........

Click here to view my colleagues' coverage today, including a database that allows you to enter the high-dollar world of Scott Rothstein.

Mayor Scott Brook's community healing event opens wound on Commission

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:06:38 -0500

Staff writer Lisa J. Huriash reports: CORAL SPRINGS There was a slight hint of an ethics violation, but in the end, city officials will be involved in a forum on teen violence after all. “I’m glad I was able to convince them,” said Mayor Scott Brook on Friday. “I’m ecstatic. It’s the right thing at the right time.” Police said William Gorzynski, 15, stabbed his brother Matthew, 14, in the chest during an argument Oct. 26 about a noisy home computer at their Coral Springs home. The younger Gorzynski died as his brother called police for help. On Oct. 27 at a meeting at City Hall, Brook called for a town hall meeting on youth violence to address the Gorzynski tragedy. But he found no support for his idea from his fellow commissioners who said the city shouldn’t be offering a forum unless they had something significant to say.

Former BSO insider to negotiate Pompano Beach cop deal

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:19:30 -0500

The City of Pompano Beach chose someone with intimate knowledge of the Broward Sheriff’s police operations to negotiate a new contract with the agency: Charles Whitelock, who was BSO’s general counsel from 1992 to 1998. Staff Writer Linda Trischitta reports: Sometimes Whitelock is the only one on Pompano’s side of the table when he faces five or so lawyers and administrators from BSO’s team. Whitelock will earn $150 an hour in the arrangement that began last month. He’s tasked to get a contract from BSO for the city commission’s approval. City officials hope to get a clear picture of what costs and services from BSO would be, versus what consultant Willdan’s feasibility study said it would cost to return to a municipal police force. The city hired BSO a decade ago and this year’s contract payment is $38 million. Pompano is BSO’s largest city out of 14 municipalities patrolled by sheriff’s deputies. Points of contention include who will pay for nine school resource officers. Among the interested parties in the negotiations is the Broward County Police Benevolent Association. The PBA sent a two-page public records request to city hall Tuesday, asking for: --All financial data that city staffers used to estimate future police services costs during an Oct. 29 workshop; --Whitelock’s contract and an explanation of the scope of his services. --All emails, voicemails; text messages and correspondence from Jan. 1, 2009 to date that mentions BSO or a city police force. The PBA’s lawyer Claudia Estrada and President Pat Hanrahan did not return calls for comment about the inquiry.

Joe Alu resurfaces as Scott and Kim Rothstein's bodyguard

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:40:48 -0500

Some of you might remember Joe Alu, the Plantation police officer who was severely injured in a domestic call in 1995. He's still a reserve officer for the department, who is packing heat. His ex-wife is Sheila Alu, Sunrise city commissioner, prosecutor in the state attorney's office, and lately, FBI informant on Broward political corruption. Now Joe Alu is the bodyguard for the Rothsteins. In my interview with him this morning outside the house, he defended Rothstein, saying "it's all bullshit." "Nobody's charged him with anything,'' he said. " ... Scott is the nicest, kindest person you'll ever meet. And that's just his personality and the way he is. He apologizes for stuff he doesn't do. I don't think he's done anything wrong.''

Pompano residents standing up for change

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:33:20 -0500

By Linda Trischitta No one can say Pompano residents are not concerned about their city’s future. About 80 folks attended a city manager candidate reception Monday night. Close to 50 people watched the candidate’s presentations Tuesday morning. They came again Wednesday, many with opinions about what they want to see in the person who will be tasked to bring change. “I want the new city manager to put out a monthly report on his phone calls and who he’s hearing from, the number of lawsuits and what he’s working on,” said resident Stanley Turon. Bill Oakley, president of the Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association, wants to see the quality of the city’s golf course improved. But he also said his priorities are: “Change the beach. Do beautification. Fill the empty businesses that line Federal [Highway]…He has a few things to do.” Also attending candidate presentations were a half-dozen ministers who form an ecumenical council called “The Concerned Clergy of Pompano Beach.” “I want a city manager who is more inclusive but practical enough to move our agenda forward and work with the County and other organizations so we may be successful in our plight,” said Rev. Wylie Howard of the St. James Missionary Baptist Church. “I think it needs to be about the total community. It’s not about black people or white people.” Howard added, “There are two candidates we can embrace, but it’s time out about dividing the community. It’s time to unify, and not just the northwest corridor or East CRA or West CRA. This is a time for change. They have to pick the right person.” Howard wants to see civic and church groups come together in the way he said happened when Pompano beat 30 contenders to win the All American City award. “I look at that spirit to be rekindled,” said Howard, who said his group was working with about 21 other religious leaders. “With the right civic organizations committed to the city’s growth and people, I think we’ll be just fine. I believe in leading from the bottom up. We are non-denominational. It’s about all of the people working together in their spirit, working together. We have a wonderful city.”

Will politicians suffer repercussions over Rothstein-related money?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:24:26 -0500

Fort Lauderdale lawyer Scott Rothstein, his associates, his family, and his companies have given at least $1.85 million to political candidates and parties in recent years.

Will there be any lasting political fallout for the recipients of his largesse?(polls)

With their scramble to divest campaign contributions from Scott Rothstein, Florida politicians are hewing to the political script. When there’s bad news involving a donor the drill is return the money or give it to charity, express shock or dismay at the bad news – and rest assured that it ultimately won’t make a bit of difference to the voters come Election Day. The politicians don’t like the negative publicity – and certainly don’t like to part with anything from their campaign treasuries – but they know it’s a cost of doing political business. “Think of this as taking the H1N1 vaccination. It may result in a sore arm. It may result in getting a little bit sick. But it inoculates you from getting really, really sick later on. In a sense that’s what they’re doing now,” said Charles Zelden, a professor of history and legal studies who specializes in politics and voting at Nova Southeastern University. News about Rothstein hit when people opened their newspapers Monday morning. By Monday afternoon, a trickle of candidates started declaring their intentions to return the money. By Tuesday, it was a torrent. Speed is key, said Sean Foreman, a political scientist at Barry University. “If you return the money quickly, there isn’t an issue, and you avoid being tainted by the scandal,” Foreman said. “The issue is if a candidate is slow to acknowledge the wrongdoing and slow to return the money.”

Scott Rothstein's law firm raided by FBI, IRS last night

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 06:58:38 -0500

Lawyer and Fort Lauderdale Harbor Beach resident Scott Rothstein, whose home is shown above, is in town. Here's our story today about the FBI/IRS raid on his law firm last night. On the jump page: the back of his house, with a yacht, and a shot of the nearby mansion of Doug Von Allmen, who says he's one of the investor victims and lives up the road from Rothstein.

Roger Stone distances self from Scott Rothstein

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:46:11 -0500

Political attack dog Roger Stone wrote a blog post today distancing himself from Scott Rothstein. An excerpt:

I asked Rothstein to dissolve RRA Consulting LLC a year ago and his sponsorship of the STONEzone ended July 29th of this year. I am not an investor in any of his schemes and can't believe anyone in their right-mind would entrust him with investor money.

I'll post the entire column on the jump page.