Another One Bites The Dust

Shout, Shout, let it all out. These are things I can do without

Come on, I’m talking to you …. Come on

Shout, Shout, Let it all out

If the words sound familiar but you have not yet figured it out yet, then let me help you.  In 1984, Tears for Fears released their second album.  Shout was a song on the album, but it did not hit the Billboard Top 100 until August of 1985.  Today it remains one of their most recognizable songs.  It was rumored the song was about pain, but the truth is it was a call to action, a rebellion against the established norms of the times, a call to be different.   

Frisco has always prided itself on doing things better “than other cities” along with being different and being ground breakers.   Being different is “The Frisco Way!”  In Frisco our leaders believe we must build the best, develop the best, and offer the best services to our citizens as a standout community.  With development and construction in full gear over the last 10 years you can imagine things happened along the way that helped carve out better practices and procedures for the city. 

An example of that is back in February of 2018 when Francisco Palmas pant leg was caught in a trencher causing him to be dangled upside down at a local commercial construction site.  The result was it nearly severed his leg and you might think he died.  Frisco Firefighters reached the victim in just under five minutes, but they couldn’t free him which meant his leg would need to be amputated right there amid the dust, dirt and rocks.  (Photo from Frisco Lifestyle – The Edge of Chaos)

According to a Dallas Morning News article, Frisco Deputy Fire Chief, Scott Vetterick said that the department had already started putting a plan in place for this under then Fire Chief, Mark Piland.  Vetterick knew with all the development and construction, it was not about if something would happen but rather when it would happen and that made it a priority to have a plan in place.  On the way to the scene, Frisco FD reached out to Dr. Gamber, an emergency room doctor at Medical City Plano.  Gamber summoned trauma surgeon Al West who would arrive via a helicopter 41 minutes later with his small black medical kit and blood.      

While Dr. West performed the amputation just above the right knee, Frisco Firefighters had to hold Palma’s body so he would not fall and proceeded to give him blood replacement.  Along with the blood replacement they administered medications, fluids and monitored Palmas’ vital signs along with watching his airway.  At the same time other teams worked to disassemble the machine.  Palma survived because of the fast actions of the Frisco FD, Trauma Surgeon Al West and the replacement blood brought in that day.  At the time there was a 75% chance that with a prosthetic he would walk again one day.  Most importantly this man lived to see his kids grow up.  In a Frisco Lifestyle article, Vetterick shares, “We had a lot of people working backchannels in order to make it happen that day. I was calling Medical City Plano’s radio room, Assistant Chief Kramer was calling Dr. Gamber, the battalion chief was coordinating the actual rescue and the disassembly of the machine, and then our medics were immediately tending to the patient.” 

Deputy Chief Vetterick said at the time he believed  that the response protocol put in place is the perfect example of collaborative efforts that help save lives.   His hope was it would benefit more people and save more lives as Frisco continued to grow.

The official announcement of the blood replacement being carried on board with the Squad teams came in December of 2018 in a Frisco Fire Department press release.  Frisco Fire Chief Mark Piland  said, “Frisco Firefighters are committed to providing the highest level of care possible. This program is definitely a team effort, and I would like to thank Dr. Gamber and Medical City Plano for the hard work and assistance to get this program started.”   

Dr. Mark Gamber, Frisco Fire Departments Medical Director said, “Prior to today, patients who needed blood were completely dependent on how fast we could get them to a hospital.  Now, with early transfusion for severe blood loss, Frisco Fire will give critically ill patients a better chance of survival.”   

The news of the new program went far and wide across the state and it was believed that it showed innovation and how Frisco was to lead the way  with cutting edge services that help serve the citizens of Frisco.

What is Squad?  Generally, the Squad responds to all high acuity EMS calls, and it also responds to all structure fires in a city.  It is a 2-person group whose capabilities are like no other unit in the department.  If you have a need for the most advanced or technical medical procedures in the field they are the team you want at your front door.  For example, Squad assisted doctors with Palma’s amputation, they can give blood transfusions to trapped victims, and they perform out of the box lifesaving methods during emergency medical  situations.  It is the definition of the city’s motto Progress In Motion.

Safety, education, and training were a big push by Piland who lead the department at the time.  It probably came from his experience serving with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a Task Force Leader with Virginia Task Force 2 a FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Team whose job was to provide search and rescue for victims of disaster.  Shortly after Piland became Chief in 2013 he implemented the Safety Officer Program that focused on the health and wellness of the fire fighters.  The Captain of Safety oversaw all fire fighter injuries, the safety on scene at calls, structural concerns during fires, identified concerns such as pools that could affect how they fight a fire and more.  In 2016, a request was made for two Fire Safety Incident Officers in the city’s annual budget.  The goal was to implement two full-time shift personnel to staff the positions around the clock. The program made overall safety a top priority.

Fast forward to today, Frisco is a city of 225,000+ people and we have a New Fire Chief, Lee Glover.  Programs like those mentioned above have major implications in saving lives.   On October 27, 2023, the Frisco Fire Department released a video about the history of the program in a series called Frisco Fire Facts which was also share to the city Facebook page yesterday.  It starts with Deputy Fire Chief Jake Owen of the Frisco Fire Department talking about how the program got started in 2018.  It discusses the highlights of the Squad Program and the onboarding of blood replacement.

Ready for the WHOPPER of TEA?  It was confirmed to us last week in an off-the-record conversation with a city employee at city hall, that FIRE CHIEF GROGGY LEE GLOVER announced the END OF THE SQUAD PROGRAM!  Wait…What?  It was also announced that the Safety Program was ending.  People are being reassigned to drive Battalion Chiefs! Firefighters will be reassigned most likely depending on staff levels.  What will be the result of losing the Squad Program, it will create the loss of two functioning paramedics for high priority EMS calls and a loss of two tactical level firefighters on structure fires. As for the Safety Program what does that mean for the safety of our firefighters? Should we be surprised, I mean the decision to name Groggy Glover the new Fire Chief was not supported by the ranks within the department.

Glover was not kidding when he said in June of 2023, “We’re going to continue to do what we’ve been doing since the day I WALKED INTO THIS FIRE DEPARTMENT.”  He DISMANTLED a CRITICAL LIFE SAVING program that was highly regarded, and we are curious why?   Is it because that is how modern-day fire departments operate which he probably does not understand since it doesn’t fit the antiquated days of his upbringing in the department.  Did he not like the programs simply because they were instituted under the previous Fire Chief, Mark Piland?  

According to yesforfrisco.org in the recent MAY 2023 BOND ELECTION – Proposition A, the city asked citizens to approve the following equipment & apparatus items: Vehicles to replace with proposed bond package: 2 Squads, 4 Engines, 8 Medics, 1 Truck, and 1 Hazmat.  WHY DID THE CITY ASK CITIZENS TO PAY FOR 2 SQUAD REPLACEMENTS?   With all the development of the PGA which will bring golf celebrities from around the world and a new theme park for kids would you end lifesaving programs that protect citizens, visitors, and firefighters?   What about citizens of Frisco Lakes?  Did the council who rely on their votes to get elected ask Frisco Lakes residents how they feel about getting rid of a blood replacement program that could save their lives?  With the traffic getting worse and horrific car accidents happening more often, did anyone think about how the blood replacement program could save the lives of those in the accidents.  I mean those are citizens or visitors who spend tax dollars in our city?  No – they just want to build and build and claim to be about exceptional service.

On the front page, of the Frisco Fire Department the Mission Statement reads: Committed to your Health and Safety through Exceptional Service.    Right under that it reads, “Public safety is among the highest priorities for city leaders, past and present.”  Yeah we have heard that repeated over from city leaders.  Now act like it!

We just keep asking why, why would Glover think these are good decisions?  Based on the 2011/12 Climate Survey it said in order for the issues in the department to be resolved some SIGNIFICANT changes must occur.  The culture of the department needs to change from a negative, hostile, retaliatory environment to one that is positive.  Guess what, it was trending in the right direction but now Groggy Glover is dismantling the department bit by bit and they hope no one is paying attention.   Well, maybe it is just his way of being retaliatory to those speaking out against him as that is how it has worked since he walked into the department all those years ago.   

Slowly but surely our Fire Department turns back time and honestly it should scare the hell of citizens!  We have heard it scares the hell out of those who put on the FD uniform on the front line every day.  It leads us to our last question, the most important question, who is the “King Ding A Ling” of bad decisions?  Well, that might be a tie between Groggy Lee Glover and City Manager, Pungent Wes Pierson.

Humpty Dumpty

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men,
Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

We were curious why in 2023 the City of Frisco was trying to go back to a broken system in place back in 2011/12 after several years of positive change.  Maybe because that is “The Frisco Way.”  Many times, we have heard council members and city leadership refer to “The Frisco Way” and we have always been curious what is it?  Well, it is a mindset that only Frisco leaders and city management know what is best for the city and the citizens living in it.  It is a mindset that the City of Frisco is the only city who could possibly do things the right way and every other city is second fiddle.  It is the mindset that we do things the way we have always done it and someone  should not question that.  It is also the institution of the good ole boy network, scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.   

Let’s pretend it is 2011 and that Humpty Dumpty is Mack Borchardt, Chief of the Frisco Fire Department, sitting lofty up on that wall.  Next to him perched high up is his team which includes his buddy Lee Glover, Assistant Fire Chief and Paul Siebert, Assistant Fire Chief, 3 Battalion Chiefs Shannon Britton, Shawn Eft and Paul Farrow and Division Chief Cameron Kraemer.

Then the wind blows and causes a great fall which refers to the 2011 Employee Climate Survey.  What we found interesting was it basically said the culture that management created was horrific.  Our first responders went to work every day risking their lives in an environment with terrible morale and worried about their job security.  At the time 76.3% said they would leave the department if they could and the report noted the city can only correct it by making DRASTIC CHANGES. What would the city do?

All the king’s horses and king’s men refer to the King of Frisco, Geroge Purefoy, the City Manager and his “people” who had to find a solution since it was clear the Fire Chief could no longer be Chief.  Chief Borchardt wrote a letter to Purefoy dated 2/23/2012 stating in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Retirement Severance Agreement and Release he was submitting his resignation for retirement effective February 2015.  All the King’s Men, aka The Good Ole Boy Network or The Frisco Way” had to figure out how to put Borchardt together, just in a different way.

One would think after the negative survey results regarding his leadership that Borchardt would be terminated or forced into retirement.  Hail Ye, Hail Ye, King George to the rescue!  After Borchardt retires, he is REASSIGNED to a newly created position as the Fire Programs Consultant which reports solely to King George himself until he is set to retire in 2015.  Why would you reassign someone that you are forcing to retire? A city insider that works at city hall told us that when the decision was made to remove Borchardt as Fire Chief, King George threatened to quit and submitted his written resignation which is why the city “reassigned” Borchardt to King Purefoy.

So why the loyalty between King George Purefoy and Mack Borchardt? Well, what many don’t know is that back in day Mack Borchardt was the city administrator and he is the one that hired King George Purefoy as the first city manager. Then George Purefoy acting as the new city manager hired Mack Borchardt as the cities first paid Fire Chief. Funny thing is Mack Borchardt is still with the city in 2023, in the same consultant position making big bucks and assigned a city vehicle.  A PIR was placed for Mack Borchardts employee records which we are still waiting on.

After reading Mack Borchardt Agreement & Release we had many questions.  Under the “Release By Borchardt” it says that Mack releases, acquits and discharges Frisco from any and all past or present claims relating to #3. All Allegations ever made or that might have been made by Borchardt against Frisco regarding his employment – well that sounds interesting.  In another section it says Borchardt does not admit to any unlawful or discriminatory conduct or any other wrongdoing – well that sounds interesting too.  Then the agreement appears to turn into an employment contract for his new position and lists some very specific reasons that he maybe be terminated for such as a conviction for any felony involving moral turpitude, drunkenness, or excessive use of alcoholic beverages, being under the influence on city property or city sponsored activities and fabrication or falsification of city records.  The whole thing reminds me of the questions we asked in our Survey Says blog.

The city began its search for a new fire chief and in March of 2013 after a 3-month search the city announced the hiring of Mark Piland. Todd Renshaw, the city’s director of public safety, told a local newspaper Frisco Enterprise, “Chief Piland a very affable, very personable individual. He’s highly educated and has a great deal of experience, which are obviously big pluses,” he said. “He has a strong sense of command and will be a tremendous asset for the Frisco Fire Department going forward.”  

According to insiders in the FD, Piland came up with some good ideas to change the department the first being to listen to the organization.  Piland implemented In Service Training  programs 2x a year for the Officers and Companies.  Fire fighters also tell us he had an academy for those FF hoping to move up the ladder over their career.   Piland also focused on The Squad Program which responds to almost all calls so they could have enhanced ongoing training to meet state and national standards. Piland also moved the FD away from the quint model based on the FF feedback.   Their department centered more on the single engine / pumper truck with a goal to add a 4th ladder truck.  He said with 70% of the calls being EMS, the Quints which are rather large and bulky, were slower and more difficult to turn and get down Frisco’s narrow streets.  Piland quickly met resistance from King George himself.  Imagine going to work in a new city where the City Manager who is your direct boss, is sitting next to his 25+ year buddy (the former Fire Chief that you replaced) at city hall.

In fact, today as the fire fighters fight for collective bargaining so they can have a seat at the table, the city said they oppose it because they already have a seat at the table because more than 200 seats are filled by Fire Department employees on 16 different committees/groups.  Examples of these committees/groups are  Engine / Truck / Rescue Focus Groups, Promotional Process Review Group, Peer Support Group, Peer Fitness Trainer, Health & Safety Focus Group, and the Driver / Operator Focus Group.  What we find interesting is that these groups were created during Piland’s time as Fire Chief based on feedback from the organization.  Insiders say over the years tension grew as he was challenged and questioned by city leaders about every change he tried to make because it didn’t fit “The Frisco Way!”  Mark Piland retired shortly after applying for the City Managers position (as did many other candidates) and after several differences of opinion with city management on how the department should be run.  The question we have, did the city really want change in the department, or where they happy and want to go back to the old “The Frisco Way?”

With the search on for a new Fire Chief,  Assistant Fire Chief Lee Glover was named Interim Fire Chief.  City Manager Wes Pierson said in a statement. “Public safety is a top priority for me and our City Council.  I intend to be deliberate in the search for Frisco’s next fire chief to make sure we find the right person to lead our department to the next level of service, building upon the city’s reputation for excellence.”   The city hired a firm to do a national search but one of the requirements was they had to have Texas Certification. Why did we waste time, taxpayer dollars, and resources doing a national search when most likely someone in another state would not have Texas Certification?   Five Texas finalists were announced, and Interim FC Lee Glover made the list.  It was surprising because he was Borchardt’s #2 and was listed as a part of the problem in the 2011/12 Employee Climate Survey.   The association immediately responded by doing a survey in which 220 out of 233 firefighters responded.   It was not a surprise that 92.5% of the association did not want Glover as the next Fire Chief.  The survey also said 91.4% do not believe Glover has improved morale or regained any trust during his time as Interim Chief.   The association made city management and city councils aware of the survey results.  It is clear the department does not trust, nor did they want to go back to Borchardt /Glover regime.

No one was shocked in June of 2023 when Wes Pierson, City Manager announced he is promoting Lee Glover to Frisco Fire Chief.  Since September of last year, Chief Glover has served as Interim Fire Chief.  “Lee’s combination of experience, knowledge, and leadership was the best fit for the department,” said Wes Pierson, City Manager.  “I believe Lee is deeply committed to the success of Team Frisco and will work hard to serve our community and members of FFD.”   Pierson probably never read the Employee Climate Survey which says, “ There is considerable animosity regarding the Chief.”  It also says most believe things won’t change in this department unless the Chief and the entire Senior Staff are replaced.  Glover was #2 on that Senior Staff for years.

When the announcement was made I thought to myself about what J.K.  Rowling wrote in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, “Honestly, if you were any slower, you’d be going backward.”   Wes Pierson is slow or just stupid and that is evident in his backward ridiculous decision which is the reason the Fire Department is now fighting for Civil Service and Collective Bargaining.  Now many will say Lee Glover has changed and does not have that “mentality” anymore but he does and the proof is in the survey and an article in the Frisco Enterprise where he announced his first 100-day priorities.  Glover said the department will continue to build on what the city has today and went on to say, “We’re going to continue to do what we’ve been doing since the day I walked in this fire department.” Wait, did he just admit that he wants to do what he has always done, well that makes sense because it is “The Frisco Way” which is why they hired them.

The question citizens should be asking, why hire someone that clearly the fire firefighters did not support back in 2011/2012 and still do not today?

Read Borchardts Retirement Severance Agreement and Release click here

Read the Entire FD Employee Climate Report from 2011/2012 click here

Reach The FD Climate Survey Action plan click here

Read the ICMA Frisco Fire Final Report click here

Read the ICMA Supplemental Fire Report click here

Read the Contract for Independent Contractor/Processional Services click here

Survey Says….

As a young adult, I loved watching game shows. The mid-1950s were a period of rapid growth in popularity for quiz shows. I remember watching Jack Barry, on-air host from 1947-1958 and 1960 – 1980 who produced and appeared on “High Low Quiz,” “Juvenile Jury,” and “Tic Tac Dough.” Then, there was Dennis James who is credited with hosting television’s first network game show in 1946 called “Cash and Carry.” One of the most popular of all times was, “The Dating Game” with Jim Lange. Rodney Alcala, a contestant on the show in 1978 is often referred to as “The Dating Game Serial Killer” because when he applied to be a contestant he had already committed at least four murders and decades later authorities discovered he was a prolific serial killer, but, I digress.

The best game show in my opinion is “Family Feud,” which started in 1976 and was hosted by Richard Dawson. He was the host known as the Kissing Casanova for his signature kiss on the cheek and lips to all his female contestants. The show would be hosted over the years by Ray Combs, Louie Anderson, Richard Karn (Home Improvement), John O’Hurley (Seinfeld), and Steve Harvey. My wife and I tune in every day to hear Steve Harvey say, “We asked a 100 people” and “The survey says!” Game shows give the audience the chance to live out our fantasies thinking, “Well, if someone must win, it could be me!”

Who uses surveys? And, what is the survey’s purpose? A better question might be “Who doesn’t use surveys?” It is common for companies to do employee surveys to measure staff engagement or companies may reach out to customers after a purchase to measure satisfaction. The overall purpose of a survey is to get feedback and ideas to understand areas of improvement. We were a little surprised and intrigued when we heard rumors in the last few weeks that the Local 3732 Executive Board of the FFA had done a survey of the firefighters in response to a new chief and in regard to some of the Mayor’s recent statements.

Let’s look at the questions in regard to the Mayor’s Statement Survey:

Question: Do you want Interim Fire Chief Glover to be the next Fire Chief of the Frisco Fire Department? The survey says 92.5% said NO, they do not want Interim Chief Glover to be the new Fire Chief, which is alarming considering he is currently running the Department. Have the firefighter’s lost confidence in Glover?

Question: Do you believe Interim Fire Chief Glover has improved/rebuilt morale and regained trust of the Department? The survey says 91.4% of the Association said, NO Glover has not improved morale or rebuilt trust.  Interestingly, this directly contradicts what Mayor Cheney said at the Star Patriot Debate where he adamantly said Glover has increased morale and is starting to regain trust. When the Mayor answered with such confidence, did he knowingly lie? Was it an attempt to mislead the public to win the election? Just listen to him in his own words…

Now, let’s look at the Fire Chief Questionnaire in regard to the future hiring process of the fire chief position.

Question: Do you believe the organization has any qualified candidates to assume the task set forth by the City Manager’s office?  The survey says 89.4% said NO that the organization does not have any qualified candidates as of now to assume the task. That is pretty telling that Frisco firefighters don’t agree with the Mayor’s view.

Question: Would you like the next chief to be an external hire or internal hire?  The survey says, YES, 93.8% would like an external hire which is mind-blowing because it shows they have no confidence in current interim Chief Glover.

Question: Do you believe the finalist list should be composed of National Candidates? The survey says 91.7% responded, YES it should have national candidates. So, if it were a “national” search, why did they need to be Texas Certified? Oh no, nothing to see here.

Question: Do you believe the finalists should have experience as a chief in a department of equal or larger size and city population density?  The survey says, 86.1% said YES they should have the current experience equal to Frisco’s department.

Question: Do you believe the department is appropriately preparing for the future or heading back to the past practices?  The survey said 91.5%, YES, that they are heading back to the past practices. Are they referring to Mack Borchardt, the previous Fire Chief, who works now in the City Manager’s office as a special assistant?

Question: Do you believe the Department is appropriately staffed?  The survey says 95.2% responded NO it is not adequately staffed. As a resident, that scares the shady shit right out of me that its own department feels that way.

Question: Do you believe there should be a stakeholders’ group of FF consisting of all ranks involved in the hiring process?  The survey said 96.6% responded YES, they want to have a say in picking their next leader.

After seeing the survey, we too had some questions and decided to do some research.

Frisco’s Fire Chief was Mack Borchardt who started as a volunteer firefighter in 1973. Then, in 1982, he became the Administrator and Chief of Volunteers until 1987 when he became the City’s very first Fire Chief. Oddly, in September of 2011, the City announced he would retire and then assume new duties as a Fire Programs Consultant and Special Assistant to then City Manager George Purefoy.

Why would a fire chief take a new role out of the blue? Multiple off the record sources tell us that Borchardt was caught in some compromising situations which could have been a factor, or it could have been his staff and the association just didn’t like him either. 

In the fall of 2011, a Climate Survey was done in the Frisco FD to identify growing concerns of firefighters and officers. It notes, “…there is a lack of trust, respect, and dignity between officers and firefighters. The culture… is very negative and one of intimidation, retaliation, and fear.” The examiner notes that in the conversations with the Chief and Officers they lead her to believe there is some truth to the claims. The report also notes there is considerable animosity regarding Chief Borchardt and that many in the department felt the entire senior staff along with the Chief needed to be replaced because they were all trained in Borchardt’s style. The most telling part of the report was that many firefighters believe the then Chief Borchardt was trying to run the growing department like it only had 20 employees, and instead of hiring those best suited for the job, he hired his friends.

Lastly, it notes the department is understaffed for the growing population (ding, ding, ding). At the time 76.3% of the respondents indicated they would leave the department if they could.

While we have no concrete evidence, multiple sources said Borchardt was pushed out. George Purefoy stood up for him and said, if he goes then I go, so instead Borchardt was moved into a new job at city hall working for George himself. After reading the report, it begs the question was Chief Borchardt removed “not retired” because of his personal behavior and management style that had torn apart the Department?

Did then City Manager George Purefoy save his friend with a cushy job right next to him at city hall? It is important to note that the current Interim Chief and candidate Lee Glover steadily advanced through the ranks of management in the fire department under the leadership of Mack Borchardt; so, based on the report, it might be plausible to assume Glover still has Borchardt’s management style and that is why the new survey shows no confidence in him. Either way, Borchardt and Glover are what some would call “thick as thieves.”

In 2013, the city hired Mark Piland as the new Chief of Frisco Fire Department. According to many of the sources we talked to, YES, change did start to happen, but it didn’t help that Piland was met by resistance from then Manager George Purefoy who conveniently had Mack Borchardt, the previous fire chief, in his ear. Think about it, if you are an old fire chief of 20+ years, would you want to see what you built in the Department change right in front of your eyes?

Tension began early on from what sources tell us, making it very difficult for Piland to make significant changes. Borchardt worked the ear of his longtime friend and boss George Purefoy for years, straining the relationship from the onset with Piland and Purefoy. We are guessing Piland realized early on he was facing a losing battle going up against the old fire chief in the City Manager’s ear day-after-day during his entire tenure. One has to wonder, is this why Piland thought he might better serve the City as Manager? One also wonders if the new City Manager Wes Pierson was really chosen because he would fall right in line?

As a side note, I had some of these suspicions months ago when I filed a PIR asking for Borchardt’s recent contract renewal by Purefoy that was signed just before retiring, which, NO, we still have not received.

Now, it’s 2023 and Glover, who has been the Interim Chief, is a candidate for Chief of the fire department.  You can bet he wants that position badly, and his mentor and friend in the city manager’s office, Mack Borchardt would not mind seeing him in the position either.  If that wasn’t enough, we asked around, and multiple officers told us shocking things regarding Glover that left us flabbergasted. YES, flabbergasted!

Obviously, out of fear of losing their jobs, I can understand why they would not want to go on the record. With that said, multiple firefighters spoke off the record. They have witnessed the Interim Frisco Fire Chief belligerently drunk multiple times in public and threatened them if they ever spoke up about it. The same firefighters confirmed he was recently seen in the street at a FD Conference, again belligerently drunk, peeing on a tree in the median during the middle of the day. Witnesses also say he drank heavily at lunchtime during some of these conferences. So now, the current survey makes total sense. All of these factors, history, and more, contribute to the survey results. We were told he has a known history of maliciously undermining all ranks of FD leadership for his own personal gain.

Based on what we were told, someone at city hall might want to ask the following interview questions of Interim Chief Lee Glover:

Is it true you have a history of being belligerently drunk at FD training conferences and FD apparatus purchasing meetings?

Do you have a DUI on your record from August of 1985? Were you sentenced to 2 years’ probation? Is the city aware of this?

Did you urinate on a tree in the middle of the street at an FDIC conference in Indianapolis? And is it true, you threatened FD staff if they spoke of the incidents and suggest they would “regret it?”

Is it true you have a history of using your rank to cause people in your department to fear losing their job should they go against you?

If we told you there was a tape of you making racially inappropriate statements how would you respond? Do you have a history of making racially inappropriate statements?

If the City had the guts to sit down with the staff today face to face for an honest conversation, would your current staff say all these incidents were true?

Lastly, does the Public Lewdness charge from 1992 and the indecent exposure charge in 2000 belong to you or your father?

From the City’s recent meet and greet, we now know the candidate shortlist is Rob Bergersen, Richard Davis, Lee Glover, Kenneth Johnson, and Marc Pate. None of them have held the position of Chief. But, we learned of a few names that were removed, and we are interested in asking, why since they seem to have much more experience? Take Paul Henley, who is the Fire Chief in Flower Mound and President of the Texas Fire Chiefs Association–why was he taken off the list? Chief Lasky in Lewisville, a 40-year veteran and has served as a Fire Chief for the last 12 years–why was he taken off the list? Hello?  With the stellar background of on some of these candidates, one should wonder why they were removed from the list.  “Survey Says…