Another side of the story

Keith Bohr

Over the past couple of weeks, a case has been made against me in the

local media alleging wrongdoing. The allegations resulted in the

council member who appointed me asking for my resignation.

Please allow me to apply the appropriate background and context

that has not been included in the articles to date.

I did not want to resign my position on the Huntington Beach

Planning Commission. Unfortunately, as an appointee, the decision was

not mine to make.

I strongly reject the claims that have been made against me.

Professionally, I work in the real estate field, providing

brokerage and consulting services.

A few days after the Nov. 6 election, I was approached by three

former clients asking for my consulting help in processing

conditional-use permits through the Huntington Beach Planning

Department.

Soon thereafter, Gil Coerper, a newly elected council member, made

it known he was considering me for his appointment to the Planning

Commission. I immediately informed all three clients that I was being

considered for appointment to the Planning Commission, and if that

happened, after initiating the applications I would transfer the

processing over to a business associate.

I did pull and complete the application forms. I did not compile

and file the applications or serve as the applicant through the

remainder of the process. I did not give the public hearing

presentations, and in fact, did not even attend the public hearings.

I also did not contact the zoning administrator or fellow planning

commissioners regarding these projects.

On a few occasions, when my former clients could not reach my

colleague who took over the processing, they called me with questions

regarding the status of their applications. I contacted staff persons

asking about project status (e.g., who’s the project planner, what’s

the next step, is there a tentative hearing date, etc.). I did not

ask any staff member to expedite, recommend approval, or for any

favors and did not receive any favors. I was simply making

informational inquiries just like any other citizen is allowed to do.

I’m confident that a fair and objective evaluation of the facts

will show I did not attempt to use my official position to influence

any decision(s) related to the subject projects, and I most certainly

did not violate the public trust.

Finally, I’m saddened this story has become part of the purported

recent history of conflict-of-interest controversies in Huntington

Beach. In 20 years of working for and with local governments in many

capacities, I’ve found the elected and appointed officials and the

city employees of Huntington Beach to be a dedicated group of public

servants with the utmost integrity.

I thank all those who have already contacted me to express their

support.

* KEITH BOHR is a Huntington Beach resident. To contribute to

“Sounding Off” e-mail us at [email protected] or fax us at (714)

965-7174.