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WE THE PEOPLE
Meriden, Connecticut March 14,2011
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Joseph GaIotti Chairman, Board of Ethics City of Meriden 142 East Main Street Meriden, CT 06450
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Dear Chairman Gallotti: As the Chairman and spokesperson for the local We The People (WTP) Town Committee, I wish to file this formal complaint with the Meriden Board of Ethics concerning City Councilor George McGoldrick and his private, professional business relationship with Engineering Consulting Firm Fletcher Thompson. As pUblicized in the Meriden Record Journal (RJ) newspaper article this past Sunday, March th 13 , Councilor McGoldrick is now in the process of fmalizing a consulting contract with Fletcher Thompson. From the information presented in the RJ article, Fletcher Thompson is apparently contracting with Councilor McGoldrick for professional architectural services to the company as they relate to the renovations proposed for Maloney High School. WTP contends that Councilor McGoldrick's private business relationship and employment contract with Fletcher Thompson are a direct result of his int1uential public positions as: an elected Meriden City Councilor; Chairman of the City Council's Finance Committee; and, a lead member of the High School Study Committee. WTP believes this is definitely a conflict-of-interest and violation of the City's Code of Ethics that needs to be fully investigated. The timing of Councilor McGoldrick's impending employment with Fletcher Thompson, right after the firm's selection as the Architect for renovating Maloney High School, suggests a quid pro quo reward for a sitting Meriden politician from a private company just awarded a lucrative contract through a supposedly open, competitive bid process. And why wasn't the lowest bidder selected for either High School? We_trust that the Ethics Board will consider, but not be limited to reviewing: • all the pertinent Finance and High School Study Committee meeting minutes
pertaining to the selection of Fletcher Thompson;
• all e-mail and telephone communication records between Councilor McGoldrick and Fletcher Thompson; • all e-mail communications between Councilor McGoldrick and other City Councilors and City officials related to the selection of Fletcher Thompson, particularly to City employees in the Finance Department; and,