Ordaz wants outside investigation on financial adviser controversy

City Representative Claudia Ordaz will call for an independent investigation into the city’s process to fire its financial adviser, saying she doesn’t trust the city to investigate itself.

“It was the administration’s doing of moving forward the bidding process without the public’s knowledge, without council’s knowledge and then we want the same administration to handle an investigation and I don’t think that’s appropriate,” Ordaz said Wednesday in an interview.

Mayor Oscar Leeser on Tuesday announced he would be “requesting that the City Manager prepare a full report and chronology of events concerning the solicitation for a new financial adviser.” In the statement, Leeser also said he wanted to know who was responsible, saying the information would help Council hold individuals accountable.

“I certainly think there’s a lack of trust from the public. I certainly wouldn’t feel comfortable moving forward with an investigation if it was an internal investigation,” Ordaz said.

The issue stems from the City’s contract with its financial adviser, First Southwest. In April, City Rep. Larry Romero, who leads the City’s Financial Oversight Committee, suggested the City fire First Southwest, blaming the company for the ballpark’s unfavorable financing plan.

Interpreting Romero’s suggestion as a directive, the City’s Chief Financial Officer, Mark Sutter, said he drafted a new request for proposals to search for a new financial adviser.

What Romero allegedly didn’t disclose is that his former business partner, Noe Hinojosa, would be competing for that contract and that Romero had touted Hinojosa’s company before, allegedly to former City Manager Joyce Wilson soon after he was elected.

Romero has refused an interview all week.

The process to fire First Southwest was abruptly halted in October by City Manager Tommy Gonzalez.

Gonzalez told ABC-7 he stopped the process because he discovered an email from former City Manager Joyce Wilson in which she acknowledged the city purposely delayed the sale of the ballpark bonds until after the May 11, 2013 election between Steve Ortega and Leeser, proving the delay and thus the unfavorable financing was not the result of First Southwest’s advice.

On Tuesday, the Council will be discussing the report and also consider releasing a 2013 report outlining the ballpark financing which ABC-7 requested but the City has been withholding citing attorney-client privilege.