Granite Park operator blasts Fresno DA investigation as baseless, politically motivated
Granite Park’s operator blasted Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp Thursday morning, saying in a statement her investigation into the Fresno City Council is politically motivated and “without one shred of evidence.”
Smittcamp on Wednesday sent a letter to the Fresno city attorney requesting all votes related to Granite Park be postponed.
She said her office received more than one complaint alleging that the Fresno City Council violated the Brown Act regarding the park agreement, and her office was investigating.
Central Valley Community Sports Foundation responded Thursday morning in a news release and said the agreement on a special meeting agenda was negotiated for months and would have provided for continued operations of the park, facility improvements and expanded recreational opportunities.
However, the Fresno City Council removed the Granite Park items from Thursday’s agenda.
The city pays the foundation to operate and maintain the park, but the agreement and the foundation’s accounting have been subject of high scrutiny over the years.
The foundation called Smittcamp’s request and investigation “rich.”
“Unfortunately yesterday, in a purely political move, Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp jammed the spokes of the consideration of this agreement with an out-of-the-blue announcement — and without one shred of evidence,” the foundation news release said. “As the county’s top prosecutor, it is past time for Ms. Smittcamp to stop using her elected position to pursue baseless ‘allegations’ that defame the officials and community members who are actively working to improve our city.”
The foundation pointed out that when Smittcamp’s office said it was investigating the principles of the foundation — developer Terance Frazier and former Democratic Congressman TJ Cox — the investigation “never reached a conclusion.”
“The reasons for her silence should be clear — because she would have to state there was no offense or misconduct,” the news release said.
Later Thursday, Smittcamp said that investigation is ongoing and flatly denied the investigation was politically motivated. She also lambasted the conditions of the park.
Councilmember Garry Bredefeld, a longtime critic of the Granite Park agreement and Frazier, on Thursday from the council dais thanked Smittcamp for her investigation.
“No other developer operator has had any kind of similar deal,” he said. “I’ve never seen such an egregious betrayal of the taxpayer than this deal.
“The stench is disgusting,” he added.
Smittcamp hits back
Smittcamp called the statements by Frazier in the foundation’s news release “misinformation” in a written statement of her own.
She pointed out that her office does not seek out allegations, but rather investigates allegations brought to the office.
She said it is her office’s duty to investigation such claims. She also said she has no power to stop a City Council vote and that her letter was simply a request. Her office honored its duty to inform city officials of the investigation, she said.
“The suggestion that there are any political motives to this, or any investigation conducted by the District Attorney’s Office, is preposterous and offensive and is a clear attempt at distracting from the nature of the allegations themselves,” she wrote in a statement.
“As the district attorney of the County of Fresno, I do not have the time, nor energy, nor desire to use my elected position to pursue baseless allegations for any reason.”
She also countered the foundation’s claim that her office defamed anyone, noting her letter and announcement did not name anyone.
Granite Park conditions
The foundation touted 500,000 visitors annually to the park, which it described as having first-class baseball, softball and soccer facilities.
Smittcamp said she’s attended baseball tournaments at Granite Park in her personal time. “The facility I have seen is a disaster,” she wrote.
She described a visit in May where the conditions were so bad she took photos. She saw exposed wires, hazardous building materials, trash and dead trees, she said.
“As it was in May 2021, the park is an embarrassment to our city,” she said. “I am in favor of taking proactive legal steps to clean it up and make it the gem it was intended to be, however, the mechanisms in which it is funded have to follow the law. If there have been no violations, then that will also be discovered in the investigation and I will be hopeful that Granite Park, CVCSF and the City of Fresno can move forward to improve the facility so it is a safe and fun environment for adults and children alike.”
Previous city audit
The controversy over Granite Park began in 2019, when an unfinished city audit found a number of problems with the accounting of park finances under one of Frazier’s nonprofits.
At the time, his business partner was Cox. Frazier is currently engaged to Councilmember Esmeralda Soria, who recuses herself from any discussion regarding the issue.
Since then, Fresno City Attorney Doug Sloan made public statements saying Frazier didn’t violate an agreement with the city, and former Mayor Lee Brand even defended a proposal to give Frazier more money to operate the park.
Meanwhile, Frazier said the city wasn’t paying him enough money to properly maintain the park. He also filed a claim for damages and eventually a lawsuit claiming the city discriminated against him. He’s Black, and city officials have not treated white developers the same way, he alleged. The case remains ongoing.
Bredefeld said Thursday during the City Council meeting the council negotiated an agreement to pay Frazier over $4 million “so a frivolous lawsuit will go away.”
It’s unclear if that was the settlement agreement the council negotiated for Frazier’s discrimination suit.
Now, Frazier said he is ready to speak at length about the issue, saying he plans to do in-depth media interviews.
This story was originally published June 24, 2021 at 11:58 AM with the headline "Granite Park operator blasts Fresno DA investigation as baseless, politically motivated."