Tuesday, January 16, 2018

INTERIM GBIC CEO SIGNED OFF FOR HILTS ON COLOMBIAN GAL

By Juan Montoya
With the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation head hunting for a permanent CEO to manage the $5 million annual take from sits share of sales taxes ales taxes for economic development, the board declined to take any action on the evaluation of current interim director Gilbert Salinas.

There had already been a thinly-veiled attempt to pack the board with Brownsville Economic Development Council executive committee members Keith Uhles and Tony Capella. Uhles is an attorney with Royston Rayzor and Capella is a local businessman associated with Portage Plastics.

Those two members of the BEDC plus Mayor Tony Martinez are said to have been working behind the scenes trying to take control of the GBIC. But if one examines the abuses of former BEDC CEO Jason Hilts under their watch, it is no recommendation for them to slither in to take control of the annual $5 million the corporation gets.

When the BEDC was questioned about a report on their Colombian economic mission, it showed  that in the two and one-half years of operating an office there, they spent $197,590 in salaries for three Colombian nationals, office costs, and another $116,000 in travel for BEDC, city, port, state and private individuals.


And while the report does not show that one job has been created for a Brownsville resident so far, But BEDC CEO Jason Hilts asserts that their efforts so far at "developing relationships" has the "potential" of bringing at least 11 mid-size operations in different sectors with $25 million and 200 jobs and another $300 million from two major projects in food processing and retail which might create 450 jobs and another 300 indirect jobs here.

But now we know that at least one of those Colombian nationals had more than a professional relationship with Hilts. The woman is listed on BEDC travel from Medellin, Colombia, to Brownsville and also ontrips she took with Hilts and BEDC VP Gilbert Salinas to Washington D.C., Mexico City, Antofagasta, Chile, San Antonio, and alone with Hilts to Medellin.

Here's the breakdown on the Colombian operation funded to the tune of $314,438 from July 2013 to 2016.
Staff and salary: Director of Business Development and Recruitment: $50,436 yearly
Office Assistant: $6,600 yearly
Office Assistant: $800 monthly
Total multiplied by 2.5 years: $197,590

Hilts inked a contract with the lady, one Olga Lucia Ramos Sajona, for a monthly $1,500 plus $300 auto allowance. That's $21,000 right off the bat. Later, the board allowed Hilts to get a $5,000 "advance" that he later repaid in cash. The cash was forwarded to the woman's address, a report states.

All this was carried out under the noses of these two board members and no one raised the issue until Hilts' presence became too untenable, even for Martinez, Uhles, and Capella to bear.

The same goes for interim GBIC director Salinas (the bald guy on the left in the graphic above), who went along to get along while the tax dollars went into the Colombian black hole.

In fact, it was Salinas who signed the contract for the Colombian woman in Hilts' stead (bottom graphic at right).


When city commissioners were considering electing a member to replace Deborah Portillo on
the GBIC, Uhels threw his hat in the ring. Fortunately (or unfortunately as may be the case), Nurith Galonsky was chosen to replace Portillo.

There have been numerous reports that some of the 33-member BEDC board and the executive committee in particular may have profited professionally from their membership in the sense that they did business with some potential BEDC clients  by offering their services and cutting them off at the pass.

An analysis of the BEDC operations – which the GBIC paid to the tune of $5.3 million over three- year contract – showed that there was lax oversight of the operations and that it was being operated in a way that did not meld with the objectives of the GBIC. The report recommended that the GBIC either correct the two organizations' goals to coordinate economic development, or terminate their relationship.

The GBIC, with two city commissioners on the board, chose to go at it alone instead of continuing to fund a losing proposition. But Uhles vowed to continue the operations of the BEDC with contributions from their members and seeking grants.

Now, with Martinez, Uhles, and Capella, the strategy to take over the GBIC and kicking out the city commissioners continues unabated. Will they succeed and return to doing the BEDC business-as- usual approach to run the GBIC, too?

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Who cares!!!

Anonymous said...

Crazy decisions made in the interest of a few

Imagine what would happen if our elected officials thought of the greater good

Anonymous said...

millions of taxpayers dollars wasted by corrupt people who have no idea how to bring jobs to our poor town. hilts and salinas, a shoe salesman and a herald reporter? need say more? show me what they done to justify their 6 figure salary? nada

Anonymous said...

Tax payers do ASSHOLE!!!!!!!!!!
Your just ass dumb as the rest of the stupid people in Brownsville that don’t vote

Anonymous said...

Shoe salesman? Whaaaaat?!!

Are you serious?

Where? Inquiring minds want to know.

Anonymous said...

People in Brownsville are not well read, educated enough and just don't plain care what happens in municipal politics, much less state or national/global issues. Most people in Brownsville are just plain ignorant. They deserve what's happening to them because they are complacent. Public office holders are just as stupid except, they know how to steal. How sad.....

Anonymous said...

Agree, the city government is taking advantage of the public and the public is too ignorant, working to hard to make ends meet, happy with their welfare existence or just too stupid to give a shit about what is going on in the city. We have heard a lot lately about "Dreamers"....well the people in control of this city management are trying to make us "Dreamers" by giving us hopes of progress (that don't seem to be real) while raiding the public coffers to make themselves rich. Based on "Performance", this city's government officials get an "F". That's why this city is swirling down the toilet while most cities in the RGV progress. Pathetic...Tony Martinez.

Anonymous said...

Gilbert is part of the problem, not the solution. He is just as guilty as Jason hilts.

Anonymous said...

Don't give them an F arrest them and sent them to jail. These are the real welfare recipients.

chuy said...

Al Bundy or what?

Anonymous said...

Earlier we received reports that “Also, Gilbert Salinas took his family on a European vacation in 2017, paid by accumulated mileage credits the airline awarded to BEDC and the city of Brownsville for so much traveling to Colombia and elsewhere. Those accumulated miles should have been used to pay for Brownsville justified staff travel and save taxpayers, not on personal vacations to Europe. Those miles belonged to Brownsville, not Gilbert Salinas. GBIC and COB should watch out for Gilbert Salinas and any traveling he attempts to do.”

This was in November 2017. After seeing the RRUN RRUN’s evidence travel schedule in this article, this confirms just how much partying Gilbert Salinas was doing. He is all over this travel schedule, even more than Hilts it seems.

I consider this theft of public funds and ask others of similar thinking to post their thoughts if they agree.

Anonymous said...

GILBERT SALINAS IS NOT QUALIFIED TO LEAD GBIC.

THAT IS BROWNSVILLE'S PROBLEM. PEOPLE ARE IN POSITIONS THAT THEY TRULY DON'T QUALIFY FOR.

POR ESO ESTAMOS COMO ESTAMOS.

Anonymous said...

I agree

Anonymous said...

This is theft of funds by a public servant; very similar to the charges against Carlos Elizondo. Now, Gilbert Salinas took the value of the miles and bought personal travel with it. Theft of this kind is awful and should be investigated.

rita