Fair Board Intensifies Calls for Investigation
By NORBERTO SANTANA JR. | Voice Of OC
Just as auditors for the state’s fairgrounds financing agency warn there’s not enough documentation to give the California Fairs Financing Authority a clean bill of health, Orange County Fair Board members are intensifying their calls for District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and Gov. Jerry Brown to investigate the shadowy joint powers authority that’s apparently morphed into a slush fund for construction projects across the state’s 78 fairgrounds.
Fair Board forwards sale information to D.A.
The Orange County Fair Board announced Thursday that it has submitted a packet of information to prosecutors requesting an investigation into the failed effort to sell the fairgrounds.
A letter sent Wednesday to the Orange County District Attorney’s office urges investigators to “conduct all necessary forensic audits” into the 2010 attempt to sell the state-owned fairgrounds to private investors.
Some directors and members of a review committee asked to review documents related to the sale effort have accused various involved parties of conflicts of interest, failing to adhere to best practices and money laundering.
The Fair Sale Review Committee, formed at the board’s request, presented a 17-page report in January criticizing the proposed sale of the 150-acre publicly owned property.
Board directors decided to submit the report to the D.A., who they noted could subpoena documents the volunteer committee could not obtain.
Board and committee representatives met with the D.A.’s special prosecutions unit, which will decide what to do with the report and stacks of supporting documents.
“The first step would be reviewing the information to determine how to proceed,” said Farrah Emami, a D.A. spokeswoman.
By Jeremiah Dobruck DAILY PILOT
The D.A.’s office previously exonerated the Fair Board of any wrongdoing after examining the sale in October 2010.
The board voted unanimously in February to forward its report as a means to move on from the sale.
Fair Board Calls on DA to Re-Examine Privatization Bid
By NORBERTO SANTANA JR. | Voice Of OC
The Orange County Fair Board is calling on District Attorney Tony Rackauckas to take a harder look at the failed effort three years ago to privatize the iconic fairground property in Costa Mesa.
Board members are also reiterating previous calls for the California attorney general to resume representing the fairground. In 2010, former attorney general and now Gov. Jerry Brown dismissed the Fair Board as a client because of conflict-of-interest issues that arose when fair board appointees tried to purchase the property through a hastily formed nonprofit. (more…)
Fair Board to Ponder Action on Failed Privatization Bid
By NORBERTO SANTANA JR. | Voice Of OC
The Orange County Fair board Thursday will finalize its review of the failed effort three years ago by a group of Republican members to privatize the iconic property in Costa Mesa.
The attempted sale was an ugly affair, triggering a series of bids, protests, petitions, hearings and lawsuits with the fight lasting into the waning hours of the Schwarzenegger administration.
The Fair Sale Review Committee (FSRC)
The Fair Sale Review Committee (FSRC) was formed on April 26, 2012 by the Orange County Fair Board in order to investigate and issue a public report regarding the proposed 2009 sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds.The committee reviewed all available information related to the proposed sale, which included interviewing various stakeholders and interested parties. On January 17, 2013 their findings, conclusions and recommendations were presented to the OC Fair Board. (more…)
Report criticizes OC Fair sale players, asks for audit
By MIKE REICHER / ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
COSTA MESA A committee formed to review the sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds, which never happened, found that some consulting contracts were hidden from public scrutiny, including one that went to former state Senator Dick Ackerman.
Some fair directors called for a forensic audit at a meeting Thursday after the board reviewed the committee’s final report.
