Image Credit: City of Brentwood, Tennessee Government / Facebook
Submitted by David Rivera –
Brentwood has a reputation as a place where politics is practiced but rarely discussed. As far back as anyone can remember, local elections have been sleepy, nonpartisan affairs where only a few hundred people turn out to vote. But this year’s contest to elect three City Commissioners has been roiled by accusations of unethical behavior by multiple candidates.
At stake is whether the city will move forward with its controversial plan to build and operate a multi-million-dollar racquet sports facility, paid from Brentwood’s rainy-day fund, which would be the largest non-essential expenditure in the history of the city.
A seven-member City Commission governs Brentwood, a city of 45,000, and appoints the mayor from within its ranks. Mayor Mark Gorman is widely acknowledged to be the ringleader of the so-called Gang of Four, commissioners who operate and vote in lockstep.
Two members of the Gang of Four, Gorman and Allison Spears, are up for re-election. If both hold their seats, they will retain their majority on the City Commission and will have the votes to move forward with their plan to build the racquet center without public input.
Two years ago, Williamson County approached the City of Brentwood and offered to split the construction costs on a new indoor tennis and pickleball center. The county also offered to run the facility in perpetuity. This would have been a very good deal for the city: the county has a much larger tax base and has experience running multiple athletic facilities, something Brentwood has never done.
The Brentwood City Commission was set to vote on whether to allow the city and county to discuss the viability of the partnership. But in a surprise move, the Gang of Four voted to table discussions with the county indefinitely. Instead, they decided to create an ad-hoc committee, chaired by Commissioner Spears and made up of tennis and pickleball enthusiasts, to draw up a proposal for a city-built, city-run racquet center.
It should have surprised no one that the ad-hoc committee came up with a plan to build a state of the art, city-owned facility. The commission, in a 4-3 vote, endorsed the plan and budgeted $997,500 – an astounding sum – to design the facility. The final cost of construction? That depends on who you ask.
Proponents say it will run $13 million; Other commissioners say the more realistic figure is $20 million. Either figure excludes the ongoing cost of managing the facility. The city will hire four new employees – who would be among the highest-paid public employees in Brentwood — to run tennis and pickleball. But day-to-day operations of the massive structure would be handled by a third party.
Several companies have applied for the multi-year, multi-million-dollar contract to run the racquet center; one of them, Kemper Sports, has close ties to Mayor Gorman. Kemper’s chief counsel, Russ Morgan, hosted a campaign fundraiser for Gorman on April 8. Morgan has also represented the controversial Remnant Fellowship in numerous legal disputes.
Gorman and Kemper’s strained relationship with the Governor’s Club neighborhood and private golf course in Brentwood has prompted an ethics inquiry into Gorman’s conduct. In 2022, the neighborhood Property Owners Association hired AtoZ Subdivision Management to manage their gated community. AtoZ is owned by Gorman’s wife but managed by Mark Gorman himself. Gorman pitched AtoZ as the best solution to the Governor’s Club’s longstanding issues with Kemper, which manages the golf course.
Two and a half years later, AtoZ was fired, and attorneys representing the Governor’s Club filed an ethics inquiry against Gorman. The Governor’s Club argues that Gorman had a conflict of interest in managing an HOA while also serving as a Commissioner and Mayor. They also say he failed to disclose his close ties to Kemper. The Governors Club asked that Gorman recuse himself from any votes relating to the neighborhood. And they revealed that in at least one instance, Gorman paid a Governor’s Club expense with funds from his personal checking account.
The more people in Brentwood heard about the proposed racquet facility, the more questions they had. City Commission meetings have been dominated by residents testifying that they were opposed to the plan and asking the Commissioners to let people decide for themselves by putting a referendum on the ballot this year. The Gang of Four refused, calling a referendum a “dangerous precedent” despite the fact that many, much smaller projects had been put to public vote in the past.
The latest twist came on March 31, when a Brentwood resident filed an ethics complaint against City Commissioner Rhea Little, who is running for re-election as part of a slate of candidates opposed to Gorman and Spears. The ethics complaint was brought by Rebecca Martinez, who is the co-chair of the Brentwood Racquet Facility Ad Hoc Committee.
Martinez argued that Little violated Tennessee sunshine laws when he mistakenly hit reply all while replying to a constituent laying out reasons why he was opposed to the racquet center, inadvertently sending the email to all six of his fellow City Commissioners.
How did Martinez get a copy of an email which was not addressed to her? And why did she wait six months after the email was sent, until the eve of the election, to file her complaint?
Both of these are valid questions, which Martinez could have addressed if she had attended the City Commission meeting where the matter was discussed. But she did not. The Gang of Four voted to pay outside counsel to investigate the matter. They have not taken any similar action regarding the Governor’s Club’s ethics inquiry against Mayor Gorman.
As I drive through Brentwood, I see red, white and blue yard signs dotting the manicured acre lots. Some homes have two signs, for Gorman and Spears; others have three, for their challengers: Rhea Little, Kim Smithson Gawrys and Janet Donahue.
The battle lines in Brentwood have been drawn. The polls are now open. It’s likely the future of the city will be decided by only a handful of votes. Which way will Brentwood go?
About the Author: David Rivera is a documentary director and producer who lives in Brentwood, Tennessee.
One Response
What’s in this article is true and an excellent summary.
I used to support Gorman and Spears (donations, signs, etc.) but now I don’t trust them and oppose them. I want honest government and not deception and backroom stuff.
This is the most important election in Brentwood’s history.
If you’re in Brentwood, please vote for the other 3 – Little, Gawrys and Donahue. They are honest.
If you want more info, check NextDoor – there are lots of posts there. Early voting is today thru Thursday May 1 at the Library from 8 to 6 and Election Day is Tuesday May 6 from 7 to 7. Vote at the Library.