Santa Clara Focus – OPINION: 49ers Have Some Tough Questions to Answer
By Robert Haugh
I watched the Ad Hoc Stadium Audit Committee meeting online on Monday evening (Nov. 21). It was quite interesting and left me with several unanswered questions. Luckily there’s a City Council meeting tonight (Tuesday, Nov. 22) that might answer some of these unanswered questions.
Here’s what I would ask if I were on the council about the documents that the 49ers are suppose to have given the city by now:
1. Why did the city staff visit 49ers headquarters to check out documents last week? Doesn’t it point to the fact that they haven’t requested or received these documents over the last three years?
2. Why hasn’t the City manager who is also the stadium authority director seen any of these documents, or approved any of them?
3. Mayor Gillmor says that these documents have to be given to the city? True? If not could the city attorney tells us why not?
4. The 49ers say some of these documents are confidential? Is that what the lease says?
5. Why wasn’t Councilman Pat Kolstad at the committee meeting? He said he would get documents at the last meeting.
6. How come the 49ers gave the auditors only two days to come to the headquarters to view the documents?
7. If the City doesn’t have the documents, how do they know that they haven’t been doctored?
8. Will the 49ers bring their staff back to the council chambers again? Will they attack the Mayor again? Do they know that she’s regarded as one of the most popular Mayors in Santa Clara history?
9. If the city sends a warning letter, what will the 49ers do? Do they have any choice but coughing up the documents?
10. Will Santa Clara Weekly publisher Miles Barber – who keeps writing that the City has to follow the stadium contracts finally write that the 49ers have to follow the contracts?
I’ll watch the meeting this evening and hope to get some of these questions answered for Thursday’s column.
Robert Haugh’s column appears on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
There appears to be a complete lack of process. Manco is required to provide clearly specified planning and financial documents to the Stadium Authority. Some documents require the approval of the SA Director (our City Manager). There is no paper trail to verify if the documents, during each fiscal year, were provided to the SA (most were not) and if the Director/City Manager signed for them. There is no option for Manco to withhold “confidential” documents from the SA or just “show” such documents. Manco have clearly breached its stadium management contract with the SA.
While your asking questions, how about asking them why they are charging outrageous prices for the worst 49er team in decades?