When authorizing "public private partnerships," taxpayers should beware. Because in some cases, the partnership's private half overrules or ignores the public half's responsibility to be transparent.
That's the lesson of a fascinating series running this week in Fargo's The Forum -- like the Herald, a Forum Communications newspaper. The series looks at the Urban Plains Center, a $25 million hockey arena that'll open Oct. 30 in Fargo.
The conclusions are a cautionary tale for Grand Forks.
The private Metro Sports Foundation is building the center, Forum editor Matt Von Pinnon wrote Sunday. Officials there released very few documents at first. That's true even though the arena's board includes four members who were appointed by Fargo's park and school districts because they also hold elected or appointed office in those districts.
It took a decision by Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem to force those officials to share their documents.
ADVERTISEMENT
"Over the past several months, The Forum has examined documents sent between, to and from these four public officials," Von Pinnon wrote.
"What we found was a blatant and concerted attempt to keep details from the public.
"What we didn't find concerns us, too. Key records of votes and financial details are missing from what the park and school district officials turned over to us. Both groups say we got everything they had. We're skeptical."
The stories take it from there. For example, when the time came for one of the officials to turn over his documents, "his reply through an attorney was that his computer failed and all data was lost," the Forum's story Sunday reported.
Another finding: The officials "made a conscious and concerted effort to direct MSF-related electronic documents to their home computers to keep them out of the public eye."
Meanwhile, the officials also "spent public time and resources conducting MSF meetings in School District meeting rooms," yet "did not share much when it comes to specific financial terms for the operation and construction of the arena."
All in all, the series is a revealing look at a shadowy area of North Dakota governance. Taxpayers and lawmakers should pay attention, and make sure officials know that their public responsibilities follow them when they're assigned to "public private" boards.
-- Tom Dennis for the Herald
