Panel Draft Report Said to Be Critical of Cunliffe

Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley’s special committee investigating allegations of mismanagement and favoritism in the Department of General Services has drafted a critical report of the agency’s embattled chief, Sylvia Cunliffe. But the three-member panel has left it to the mayor to determine if any disciplinary action should be taken against her, according to sources close to the probe.

The committee, which has been reviewing allegations against Cunliffe and other department employees, has completed a 44-page draft version of its findings, accompanied by a seven-page draft cover letter, the sources said.

In it are mentioned possible criminal and civil violations by Cunliffe, the sources said. However, “at this point, there are no actual recommendations in the draft,” one source told The Times, but added, “It is clear some action should be taken by the mayor.”

On Forced Leave

The 54-year-old Cunliffe, who has headed the city’s fourth largest department since it was formed in 1979, is currently on forced administrative leave from her $90,243-a-year job. She is accused of disclosing confidential personnel information about an employee in her department who was critical of her. She also is accused of favoring friends and relatives in the leasing of city-owned property.

Cunliffe has denied any wrongdoing and told The Times Tuesday, “I was not interviewed by the (mayor’s) committee and I put no credence in their report.”

A number of possible violations are outlined in the panel’s draft report, including questions about the rental of a city-owned house in Pacific Palisades at below-market rates to an employee of the Street Scene Festival, which Cunliffe runs.

In its draft report, the panel questioned whether the rental arrangement, which is also the subject of a separate criminal investigation by the district attorney’s office, constituted a gift of public funds.

The report criticized Cunliffe for failing to collect $197,973 that the City Administrative Officer determined was owed to the city by the Los Angeles Street Scene Committee, a nonprofit corporation. That money was never collected, according to city records.

The street scene committee was supposed to pay for city services provided during the 1985 downtown festival, but the draft report said that “there is nothing to indicate that Mrs. Cunliffe in her role as chairperson of the festival made an aggressive effort to secure the nearly $198,000 owed the city by the Street Scene Committee.”

At another point in the report, the panel also raised questions about “the possibility of unauthorized destruction or removal of public records” involving Cunliffe and her department. And the draft report said that she used “poor judgment” in the handling of certain lease arrangements involving a company owned by Cunliffe’s security aide, Carl Kundert.

None of the committee members would comment on the report, which sources stressed could undergo extensive revisions when the panel meets again Friday.

The chairman of the committee, Robert Dodson, a managing partner in the Los Angeles office of Touche Ross & Co., an accounting firm, was out of town, but he issued a statement through his office.

“We did not complete our work. We have reviewed a draft report and are making changes. We will meet Aug. 14 to review a final draft. The report will probably be issued the following week,” the statement said.

Committee member Frank Kroeger, general manager of the city’s Building and Safety Department, was on vacation Tuesday, but an aide said he would return for Friday’s meeting. The third member of the panel, Lily V. Lee, a businesswoman who owns a real estate and property management firm, promised a forthright report.

“This will not be any whitewash,” Lee said. “It will be a strong report, an accurate report to the mayor.”

Bradley’s press deputy, Ali Webb, said that the mayor has not spoken with committee members about their preliminary findings nor has he received any report.

Asked if Bradley would release the committee’s report, Webb said the mayor would make that decision after receiving the document. “We have been told by the city attorney’s office that in all probability the entire report will be regarded as a personnel matter and will not be released,” she added.

In addition to the mayor’s committee, other investigations into Cunliffe’s activities are still in progress.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Richard Healey said his investigation into possible criminal violations is expected to wind up soon.

“We are nearing the end of our fact-gathering process. I hope to have that done by the end of this week,” Healey said.

He said thereafter, “we have to assess the significance of these facts and decide whether we” should file a criminal case.

The district attorney’s office is looking into possible conflict of interest as well as possible illegalities in releasing a police “rap sheet” of the employee she sought to discredit, as well as possible government code violations.

Despite reports of a separate FBI investigation into the Cunliffe matter, agency spokesman Fred Reagan said an initial inquiry may have been made but added: “So far as I know, there is no current investigation regarding (L.A.) city employees or past city employees.”