Wildwood Board Of Ethics To Meet Tonight

Tonight, Wildwood board of ethics members will review questions from resident Marc Perez about conflict of interest allegations toward Ed Marshall, Ward 2 council member, and Jim Kranz, Ward 7 council member.

Perez, in materials he filed with the city, indicated that these two council members violated Missouri statutes that govern conflicts of interest related to voting by elected officials. The materials point out that both Marshall and Kranz are board members of the Wildwood Area Lions Club, an organization that hosts a booth at a privately organized held annually in Wildwood and co-hosted by Wildwood. Proceeds from the Lions Club booth are raised specifically to donate to area charity groups. Marshall and Kranz are volunteers with the non-profit.

Perez maintains that Marshall and Kranz at least should have abstained from voting when Wildwood city council entertained the matter of allocating city funds to support the bash.

A major point from Perez is that Kranz moved for Wildwood to allocate $25,000 for the Bash, an event from which Lions Club members intend to raise funds and from which the city will recoup little, if any, expenditures.

Wildwood's board of adjustment members are city residents: Rob Wilkerson, Lezli Jones and Raymond Manto. Board alternates are Marc Perez and Patricia Boman.

Board members at this evening's meeting will review the request from Perez.

Wildwood resident John Gragnani filed the same complaint about Kranz and Marshall to the Missouri Ethics Commission. Commission executive director Julie Allen on May 31 issued a letter indicating that Gragnani had not provided "any basis of law for a violation," therefore the complaint was not assigned to a commission investigator.