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Housing Probe Centers On 3 People

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By MIKE SALINERO

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 28, 2008

Updated: 05/28/2008 12:24 am

TAMPA - Federal investigators are looking into allegations that several current and former employees of the county's affordable housing office formed a corporation that could compete for grants administered by the office and tried to steer business to a real estate company owned by a spouse of one of the employees.

The allegations were revealed in Hillsborough County internal investigation conclusions turned over to federal investigators last week and obtained by The Tampa Tribune on Tuesday.

Among the allegations:

•Mike Rowicki, an executive planner with the affordable housing office, and former affordable housing employee Maggie Tagliarini formed a company to compete for housing projects overseen by the agency.

•Rowicki, Tagliarini and former employee Frank Turano "harassed" a nonprofit organization that had acquired a mortgage company. The report said the harassment presumably was because the company was a direct competitor for mortgages that Tagliarini was directing to her husband's real estate company, Realty Services of Tampa Bay Inc.

•Rowicki, Tagliarini and Turano arbitrarily limited participation of nonprofit agencies in the housing program, disregarding established rating policies.

The allegations were corroborated in interviews performed by investigators with the county's Consumer Protection and Professional Responsibility Agency, the report says. The investigators concluded that the three had made "attempts to undermine affordable housing."

The findings relied heavily on statements by Sylvia Alvarez, an executive with a nonprofit housing organization who said Rowicki, Tagliarini and Turano damaged her business.

"Alvarez made allegations of misconduct and conflict of interest against" Rowicki, the report stated. "Alvarez described Rowicki's efforts to inappropriately damage" her nonprofit.

County Administrator Pat Bean outlined the findings in the report to the U.S. attorney's office, which she says agreed to open an investigation. Also involved in the investigation are the FBI and the U.S. Housing and Urban Development's inspector general.

Rowicki, who earns $83,200 a year, is on administrative leave with pay. He did not respond to messages left at his home, and his attorney did not respond to calls for comment.

In an interview with county investigators last October, Rowicki denied wrongdoing.

Tagliarini retired last year while being investigated by the county for conflict of interest, according to the report. She told the Tribune that the investigation, by the clerk of the circuit court, found her innocent of any violations.

'They Found Absolutely Nothing'

"There is no proof of any of that," Tagliarini said. "It was looked at by the clerk's office. They found absolutely nothing."

Tagliarini, who has been a relentless critic of current Affordable Housing officer Howie Carroll, said the internal probe is an attempt by Bean to muzzle her.

"I've uncovered some things in that office that they are not pleased with," she said.

Bean did not respond to phone messages Tuesday.

The Affordable Housing Office has 21 employees and helps low- to moderate-income residents get safe, low-cost housing. The office received $16 million in housing grants last year, most of which came from the federal government.

The money is used to rehabilitate substandard housing, provide down-payment assistance for first-time homebuyers, prevent housing foreclosures and finance affordable housing projects.

The office has been under fire since February, when county commissioners learned the county had to forfeit more than $2 million in federal money that had not been committed to housing projects in time to meet federal timelines.

Earlier this month, a majority of the county commission said they had lost confidence in Carroll's ability to lead the department. Bean agreed to transfer Carroll to another, yet-to-be-determined position, but she continued to defend him, saying some of his employees had tried to subvert his efforts to reform the office.

The report does not accuse Carroll of any wrongdoing.

The 15-page investigative report, which was obtained by the Tribune under Florida's open records law, found that Rowicki violated civil service rules by forming a company and not reporting it to the county as a possible conflict of interest.

The accusation refers to GRT Housing Consultants, a partnership of Rowicki, Tagliarini and Jose Garcia, executive director of the nonprofit housing organization Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay.

Rowicki told investigators that though his name was on incorporation papers filed with the state, he made no investment in the company and received no money from it. He said he had his name removed several days later.

Garcia told the Tribune the trio had talked about forming the company to work with developers and create more affordable housing. But they dissolved the partnership days later.

"I told Tagliarini there was no reason for us to have a corporation," Garcia said. "There was nothing there for anybody."

Tagliarini says the idea to form the company came to her when she learned Rowicki was thinking of quitting his job at the county. He was being interviewed by a group of developers for a consulting position.

When that job fell through, she said, the three agreed to dissolve the company.

Tagliarini said she never planned for the company to do business with the county Affordable Housing Office.

"We're not that stupid," she said.

Alvarez Provided Information

County investigators learned about GRT's existence from Alvarez, head of the nonprofit housing organization Housing and Education Alliance. Alvarez leveled numerous other complaints, including that Tagliarini, Rowicki and Turano played favorites when approving nonprofit companies for work with the Affordable Housing Office.

Turano, who resigned last year, denies the charges, saying the nonprofits were chosen by a committee made up of employees from different county departments.

"My job was simple: to make sure we had enough money for the projects," Turano said. "I didn't approve the projects; I wasn't on any committee that reviewed applications."

Alvarez could not be reached for comment.

Alvarez told investigators she suffered "harassment" from the three employees after her nonprofit acquired a mortgage company.

The ill treatment she received, she said, was because her company was a competitor for mortgages with a company formed by Tagliarini and her husband.

Tagliarini says that allegation could not be true because she and her husband waited to start the mortgage company until after she left the county in September 2006.

The investigation concluded Rowicki had committed three civil service violations: not telling the county about the consulting company, not telling the county about a part-time job he had with Disney, and "actions or conduct prejudicial to the good order, or detrimental to the interest of Hillsborough County."

County officials would not comment on the report.

Reporter Mike Salinero can be reached at msalinero@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-8303.

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