Frizzell denies conflict in Old Town Hall $$$

Selectmen Chairman Robert Frizzell. Below, an image showing part of the state statue on Conflict of Interest and an itemized payout sheet on the Old Town Hall project.

LEBANON - Selectmen Chairman Robert Frizzell is defending himself against violating the state’s Conflict of Interest laws regarding his company’s involvement as a subcontractor in the rehabilitation project at the Old Town Hall, saying he didn’t plan on working on the project at the time he endorsed it before voters last spring.

He made the comments during a taped conversation with The Lebanon Voice and the town’s Board of Selectmen last month on May 28. No one else was present at the time.

Townspeople last June approved the $70,000 referendum question. Frizzell is shown as recommending its passage on the June ballot.

Part of the chapter dealing with Conflict of Interest says a municipal official cannot be held accountable of any conflict issue if he abstains from voting and makes full disclosure of that interest prior to a vote, which Frizzell did do when the Board of Selectmen voted to hire Geddes Building Movers of Bow, N.H., on Sept. 11. Frizzell told colleagues at that meeting he would abstain from voting, "in the event that either company use local contractors in said work."

However, when it was noted that last May Frizzell urged voters at the 2012 public hearing to approve the $70,000 to make the repairs and recommended the article on last year’s town warrant but had made no such disclosure, he claimed at the time he had no intention of doing any work on the project.

Chapter 30A-2605 Paragraph 4 says, “When an official is deemed to have a direct or indirect pecuniary interest, the vote on the question or the contract is not voidable and actionable if the official makes full disclosure of interest before any action is taken and if the official abstains from voting, from the negotiation or award of the contract and from otherwise attempting to influence a decision in which that official has an interest. The official's disclosure and a notice of abstention from taking part in a decision in which the official has an interest shall be recorded with the clerk or secretary of the municipal or county government or the quasi-municipal corporation.”

Frizzell’s company, Bob Frizzell General Contractors Inc., is located in Milton. Its principal focus is concrete foundation work and the building of residential homes, according to findthecompany.com. The website estimated his company’s income in 2011 as $1.4 million. Frizzell said his company received $17,000 for its work on the Town Hall project.

The town advertised the bid for the Old Town Hall work on Aug. 18 in Foster’s Daily Democrat, drawing just two bids, one from Chase Building Movers from Wells and the one from Geddes, which was $66,770, about $1,400 less than the bid from Chasse.

The bid was awarded to Geddes at the September Selectmen’s Workshop, with Selectman Jason Cole making the motion to hire Geddes and Selectwoman Karen Gerrish seconding the motion. Frizzell abstained.

Frizzell said he had no intention of bidding on the concrete work necessary for the building rehab, but said Geddes called him two weeks after the Bow company got the bid.

When Frizzell was pressed on how he happened to get the contract, Gerrish interjected, “When the board met with him (Geddes) we told Mr. Geddes he was welcome to hire anyone he wants for a contractor, and when we ended that meeting, I mean, it was what it was.”

Geddes Building Movers, owned by Rick Geddes, according to www.manta.com, is located at 85 River Road in Bow, the same address as Finepoint Contracting LLC, which also is shown as working on the Town Hall project. According to dandb.com, Finepoint has two employees.

Town records show Geddes received $19,000 from the town for jacking up the Old Town Hall and Finepoint received $52,247, which nearly all was spent under a line item “contracting.” It appears that it was from this line item that Frizzell was paid his $17,000. It is not clear by the records given The Lebanon Voice by the town of Lebanon where most of the other $34,000 or so went.

Geddes Building Movers and Finepoint LLC are private companies and not required to disclose payments of any type.

Interestingly, the final expenditure by the town for the work that was bid on ended up being $68,195.68, more than $1,400 over the bid by Geddes Building Movers, while if Chase had gotten the contract and spent the same amount of money, he would’ve been over by only about 70 bucks. If he spent what he bid, he would've been cheaper than Geddes.

Several messages left with Geddes Building Movers this past week were not returned.

There is no telephone listing for Finepoint Contracting LLC.

Frizzell said on Tuesday that if the second phase of the Old Town Hall renovation passes on Election Day next Tuesday, he will do no work on it.

The taped conversation can be heard online at http://dw4.convertfiles.com/files/0473713001370703516/voice_043.wav