BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
The transfer of assets by the former Bradford Fair Association Board in private to a related nonprofit while Bradford County was settling the association’s debt and acquiring the fairgrounds property has led to disappointment and anger.
One citizen, Vyunda Strong, said the fair board had been playing in commissioners’ faces. But Sheriff Gordon Smith went much further, saying it could amount to a scheme to defraud the county commission.
Smith said he is pursuing a criminal investigation. With the county commission’s blessing, he will also be pursuing civil action if necessary against former fair board members involved in the “scheme.”
On top of the 8 acres of land south of the fairgrounds and the equipment transferred to the Friends of the Bradford Agricultural Fair and Youth Shows during the fair board’s last meeting in early April, the board may have transferred thousands of dollars from the fair association’s bank account to the nonprofit.
Smith said he heard about the money from someone at the fair board meeting, but now that the county has access to the bank accounts, they should soon know more about any alleged transfers.
“It pisses me off,” he told county commissioners Tuesday morning, saying in the flood of questions coming to him, he has been on a fact-finding mission and speaking with authorities that include the Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson.
“At the end of this, I hope they find it in their heart to do the right thing and return what wasn’t theirs. I truly do, but if not, I want to support this commission to seek every legal avenue possible, whether it be civil, criminal or both,” the sheriff said.
Looking at both state law and the fair association’s charter, Smith claims he discovered multiple examples where the former fair board members didn’t follow the rules. Among them was the failure to operate in public in compliance with the Sunshine Law. According to Smith, fair board meetings should have been noticed and the public allowed to attend. Had that been the case, recent revelations wouldn’t have been a surprise — or allowed to occur at all.
Further, Smith said the fair association charter states there should be a minimum of 20 board members. He said that means the board didn’t have a quorum to hold a meeting, let alone vote on business. The charter also caps the association’s liability at $100,000, far below the $1.5 million borrowed to complete the arena and emergency operations shelter — the debt commissioners paid to secure the future of the fairgrounds and save it from foreclosure.
Even though the 8 acres across the street is not a part of the fairgrounds, it was fair association property and like all its property, was used to secure the loan with the bank as well as the private investor who previously stepped up to prevent the bank foreclosure.
While the county still hasn’t seen minutes from the fair board’s April 7 meeting, Smith said the board supposedly transferred that land, a tractor, a Scag mower and money from the fair association to the Friends of the Fair nonprofit, which shared many of the same board members. That was just days before signing an agreement with the county over the fairground’s ownership and future governance.
“I don’t call that being friends,” Smith said. “They set out to pull a fast one on y’all. They didn’t tell us in negotiations they were planning on cutting out eight acres of property and taking equipment and possibly cash.”
Smith said they are still collecting records, including financial information.
“I’m asking for your support going forward on the civil side,” he told commissioners. “I’m gladly going forward with everything I can do if there’s anything criminal. But even if there’s not, what they did was not right.”
Smith called it an “act of vengeance,” retaliation for public criticism of fair management from Clerk of Courts Denny Thompson. He also said commissioners would certainly have objected to these property transfers had they known of the fair board’s plans.
But the property deed transferring the 8 acres to the Friends nonprofit was signed a week after the existing fair board was dissolved through its agreement with the county, calling the legitimacy of the deed into question.
“This board and I, we all entered into an agreement with the expectation of integrity,” Commissioner Carolyn Spooner said. “We did it for the love of our community and so that we will have something to share with the community that we are accustomed to having. So, I am very disappointed at the actions that were taken, and I think it’s important that we proceed with all Godspeed to remedy the situation and correct what was done and to return all properties to the appropriate ownership for this community.”
“I think that all of us are shocked,” Commissioner Diane Andrews said. “I think we’re sad because we did this with goodness in our hearts to save the fair for the county and for our families. … To take money that was generated at the fair, it just doesn’t make sense, and so I think we’re all deeply hurt by it.”
Andrews, echoing Spooner, said they now have a responsibility they cannot shun.
The sheriff agreed.
“Take the gloves off and let’s got at if full force,” he said.
Attorney Rob Bradley agreed with Andrews, saying the situation was sad, but “there is a light at the end of the tunnel.” The fair board will be reconstituted, and the county commission will name a majority of the board members.
Bradley also said of the actions and alleged actions taken by former board members, those members should begin undoing it “immediately.”
Fair board applications will be reviewed early next week, and the commissioners will be voting on their selections at the May 15 meeting.
Bob Milner, who served as president of the fair board, made the following statement after the commission meeting:
“I can’t respond to the many spurious, ludicrous and unsupported inferences and allegations made by the sheriff or any other speaker. Suffice it to say all of our bank statements are open for inspection as are the minutes of every meeting we’ve ever had. Ironically, the county commission, nor any of their representatives, have ever requested either, or they would’ve received them.
“The Fair Association has had year-end financial reviews every single year by an outside CPA firm. Also, every grant received through the Florida Department of Agriculture is also audited by the state. In my five years on the board, we have never received a negative finding of any kind.
“Other than that, I must leave all responses to our legal counsel who will be responding at the appropriate time and in the appropriate manner.”
