Councilwoman’s ethics complaint dismissed for lack of ‘reasonable credibility’

The city of Bainbridge Island’s Ethics Board has dismissed an ethics complaint filed by Councilwoman Rasham Nassar because the complaint “lacks reasonable credibility.”

Nassar filed an ethics complaint on July 24 against a local architect who volunteered to serve on the city’s Affordable Housing Task Force.

In the complaint, Nassar alleged that volunteer Jonathon Davis would financially benefit from a contract approved by the city for Olympic Property Group. OPG, a subsidiary of Poulsbo-based Pope Resources, was hired by the city earlier this year to help develop affordable housing on the city-owned Suzuki property.

“My concern is that Jonathon Davis, member of the Affordable Housing Task Force, is named as a beneficiary on the Professional Services Agreement between [the city of Bainbridge Island] and OPG for the development of the Suzuki property,” Nassar said in her complaint.

Nassar noted that Davis’ firm, Davis Architects, is a subcontractor for OPG, and the $796,000 contract approved by the Bainbridge council on June 12 noted that Davis Architects will earn $190,000 as part of the agreement between the city and the developer.

Nassar’s complaint included a portion of an email sent to her by Althea Paulson, who was chairwoman of the Affordable Housing Task Force, after the June 12 council meeting where Nassar also publicly claimed Davis had a conflict of interest.

Paulson told Nassar that the task force made two recommendations on the Suzuki project, one in November 2017 and the last in January 2018.

Paulson also noted Davis did not join the task force until Feb. 27, 2018.

The Ethics Board, in its determination on the complaint, repeated Paulson’s comments that Davis was not on the task force when it made its recommendations on the Suzuki project.

Scott Wilder, chairman of the Ethics Board, wrote in the determination that Nassar’s complaint was effectively rebutted by Paulson’s email that stressed Davis had joined the task force later, after its recommendations n Suzuki had been tendered to the city council.

“Accordingly, the Ethics Board has determined that the complaint lacks reasonable credibility,” Wilder wrote.

Nassar said in an email to the Review that she was happy to have her complaint reviewed.

“I’m grateful to the Ethics Board for their work and efforts, and in general I am very happy that there is a process in place that council members and members of the public can utilize to formally channel complaints,” Nassar said.

“I’m satisfied with the Ethic’s Board determination with regard to my specific complaint,” she added.

Nassar herself is the subject of an ethics complaint currently before the Ethics Board.

Frank Gremse, the former chairman of the Environmental Technical Advisory Committee, filed a complaint against the first-term councilwoman in early September, and said he was unfairly removed as committee chairman after he raised concerns about a candidate who had applied to serve on the committee.

Gremse alleged that Nassar, who is the council liaison to the committee, asked for his removal.

Gremse said he did not object to the vote that removed him from the ETAC, but claimed that the process used to dismiss him was unethical and “violated the principles of truthfulness, beneficence and justice.”

Gremse said he was not told of the impending council vote to remove him, and said that Nassar did not talk to him about anything he did that was objectionable, despite her contending she did.

He also said he was not given any opportunity to respond to the allegations that were passed along to the council.

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