Imagine it is your first day of work and you arrive at your new office excited to start the day. You have no idea in minutes life is going to change forever but then you hear it, it sounds like an explosion, like a bomb. You open your eyes to see a fireball just passing right beside you. You look around, realize you are trapped, and you stop and think, “I am going to die here today.” You remember praying, “God, I don’t believe you brought me here to die like this.” Then you hear it, the sound of a fire extinguisher and you realize first responders are making their way into the office building. You can’t breathe but know you have to get help, so you reach out through the smoke when you feel a hand on the other side of the smoke. It grabs you and pulls you through the smoke to safety. You quickly “that hand” rescued three people, but you were the only one to survive. This isn’t a story; it is the reality of Sheila Moody who lived through 9/11 at the Pentagon. She learned a plane traveling 530 mph carrying 7000 gallons of fuel crashed into her office and she was one of three to survive out of 46 people in her office.
Now imagine you are at work and just like the rest of America you are glued to the TV watching what is unfolding in New York and DC. The phone rings and you learn as the East Coast Task Force leader for the Federal Urban Search and Rescue System that you are being deployed to the Pentagon. You pack up and head north for a 3-hour drive to D.C. This is what happened to Former Frisco Fire Chief Mark Piland. Now ask yourself, where were you on September 11, 2001? Can you imagine what those first responders saw that day and the days to come? Would you have the guts and emotional stability to do that job? Truthfully I can’t for one moment put myself in the shoes of survivor Sheila Moody or first responders. Men and woman across the country answer the call every day, and in Frisco all they have asked for was more staff and a workers compensation plan with the maximum coverage to protect them. At the last debate, Piland asked a simple question, why would we not want them to have that?
The issue of staffing and workers’ compensation in Frisco goes back many years. At the Star Patriot debate, Piland said the city should support current Texas House Bill 471 which relates to the entitlement to and claims for benefits for certain first responders and other employees related to illness and injury. We thought it was an odd statement because why would the safest city in America, one of the #1 places to live, not have a full coverage workers compensation plan for first responders who answer the call in our city. Also discussed was the NFPA 1710 Safe Staffing Levels for a fire department. Piland said as a city we don’t meet the NFPA 1710 requirement which can potentially put our firefighters and residents in a dangerous position. We are not experts in this field so we had to do a little research to understand the history so we could try to explain it to you. We don’t have a horse in this race, we are not related to anyone who serves as a first responder in Frisco or anywhere else for that matter.
Before we can address the debate issues you need to understand some history. Let’s travel back in time like Marty McFly in our Delorean time machine. Frisco Firefighters have been fighting for years for a full coverage workers comp plan. It appears a written letter dated April 20, 2021, from the city to the state legislators opposed HB 2242 regarding workers compensation for first responders. Mayor Cheney claims the letter was sent by Ben Brezina IN ERROR on May 12 at 11:09 am (even though incorrectly dated earlier) opposing HB 2242 but then a retraction was sent the same day at 11:34 am. The letter had Mayor Jeff Cheney’s electronic signature, yet he claims he never actually saw the letter before it was sent.
That means a letter went to a state agency without first being seen and/or reviewed by several people including the mayor himself. Should we be concerned? Following the unbelievable, absolutely embarrassing so called error the response from the Frisco Fire Fighters Association (FFA) was a letter to Frisco Residents expressing their disappointment that Mayor Cheney, the city and council, attempted to kill house bill 2242 at the State Legislature which would protect first responders across the state. The letter states he did this with no regard for the thousands of police, firefighters and EMS personnel and the families it would protect. It went on to say the mayor has chosen to use his position to help elect a candidate (in reference to Angelia Pelham) that had voluntarily refused to submit a political questionnaire to the FFA. Based on who has endorsed her, and the view expressed toward the FFA they can only assume if elected she would have the same disregard not only for firefighter issues but all First Responders. We also found a letter to one of the fire fighters in the city that had exhausted all their protected leave due to a work-related medical issue. It notified the employees that if their request for accommodation was denied they would have 30-day days to apply for another position in the city or their employment would be terminated.
Question, why would the city ever oppose or stay neutral on a bill for first responders regarding workers compensation? How is a letter sent in error regarding a legislative bill with the mayor’s signature and he does not review that beforehand? Why would we terminate a firefighter for medical leave related to an on-the-job injury/illness, but Ben Brezina can send a letter by ACCIDENT to the State of Texas Legislature and not be fired? Lastly, why was a letter even written in opposition if they never had any intention of taking a position on the bill? The whole think stinks of some Shady Shit and we can understand why Piland took a stance and said the city should endorse the current bill before the State of Texas Legislature it at the debate.
Piland also pointed out that the Frisco Fire Department does not meet the national staffing requirements. He gave an example of mid/high rise building which would national high rise staffing requirement is 43 firefighters, yet Frisco’s response is 25 fire fighters. He also pointed based on a 2000 sq ft home the response should be 17 firefighters and he then asked how many homes in Frisco do you think are under that square footage? Lastly he said most cities have 4-person truck staffing and Frisco only has 3 per truck and typical response times should be 8 min and in some areas of the city we are at 9 minutes.
Cheney said it is the council’s job to hire the city manager and it is the city manager’s job to hire and make sure we are meeting expectations for our departments. Is he saying the reason we are not at full staff is the fault of George Purefoy and Wes Pierson then? He went on to say the city council is aware of what’s going on and that the current interim Chief Glover has done an amazing job. They are in the process of hiring a new fire department chief, but Glover has already raised morale, regained trust and started changing operations. He said it was evident that Glover, Purefoy and Pierson have different philosophies than that of Piland which was evident during his tenure as Fire Chief. Lastly Cheney said the national standards are not specific to any one community. We have had 6 high rise structure fires and the standard calls for 62 firefighters, and we have 75 on for every shift. Lastly Cheney firmly stated “We have what we need.”
In part two we will see, if we have what we need so stay tuned….
If someone were to ask you what happened on June 28, 1997, would you know the answer? Truthfully no, the date would not stick out in most people’s minds. Now what if someone said do you remember that bizarre moment in boxing history when Mike Tyson bit off a portion of Evander Holyfield’s ear? My guess, is you remember that, and it happened on June 28, 1997. At the time, the fight was one of the highest grossing Pay Per View events with 1.99 million buys. It was the first time to break $100 million in revenue. It was round 3 of their much-anticipated rematch when one of the most iconic and grotesque scenes in sports history took place and became the most replayed slow-motion event in sports history. I remember sitting there on the couch with my wife and two boys, our mouths wide open in disbelief, that Iron Mike had just bit a portion of Holyfield’s ear. After a few seconds my wife stands up and says “Well, he must have been hungry. His mamma should have to feed him before the fight!” She gathers the bowls on the coffee table and heads to the kitchen, the night was over.
At the Star Patriots Debate on April 3 both candidates took their gloves off but at least no one lost an ear. The debate was filled with a few jabs, a few uppercuts, and a few hooks. The consensus on who won depends on who you ask. Cheney’s supporters feel he did a strong job and Piland supporters will tell you that he gave Cheney the good ole’ one-two punch and took the title. My wife and I went, and we agreed that I would take notes on Cheney’s comments, and she would take notes on Pilands comments and discuss the next morning over coffee. After a good night’s sleep, the sun rose, and I could smell the coffee brewing and we both took our place at the table with our notes. A quick review in order of some of the comments that stuck out at us.
Growth: Cheney said, it’s a misperception by many people that government controls our growth patterns. He noted that the city cannot tell a developer when they can or cannot develop their land which is in fact true.
FACT: The city can control some of the growth by not selling off all the land it owns “right here, right now.” The City of Frisco owned the 91 acres of land where the Frisco Star now sits, the 2.5 acres behind the Star where Blue Star built a 300,000 square feet office building, and how about the land sold for $37.9 million for Blue Stars Industrial Park? What a lot of residents don’t know or maybe don’t understand is that back in the day the city bought a lot of land betting like a gambler in a high-stake poker match that Frisco would grow and they could sell it down the road. The city also “strip annexed” a narrow strip of land that effectively cordoned off a large area, protecting it from other hungry nearby suburbs. In 1999, the State Legislature would prohibit “strip annexation” from happening in the future.
Workers Compensation For First Responders: was discussed by both candidates but we will review in our next blog.
Golden Goose: Cheney said 30 years ago with the development of the Frisco EDC and CDC that residents of Frisco made the choice about how they wanted to develop our community and he along with every city manager and city official has done what was promised to the residents. He also said that is how Frisco was built and that is the golden goose of Frisco.
FACT: What residents agreed to 30 years ago (there is no formal agreement by the way) versus what residents want along the way can change. Residents have been saying for the last 5 to 7 years to slow down, focus on the infrastructure first which has fallen on deaf ears. The only one who cares about the Golden Goose is the mayor and his friends who benefit from them.
Universal: Piland mentioned the last-minute bait and switch of items in the SUP, the promises from the developer to the Cobb Hill residents should have been codified in the SUP and how this should be a case study in zoning and what city officials should not do. Cheney said what was posted on his Facebook page about the project is exactly what was sent to them but as they got through the discussion’s things change.
Question: When things started to change in the discussions why didn’t you tell residents that on social media as you had everything else at that point? Our guess he knew residents were not going to like the changes in hours, building height, ride height and more.
Cheney said if they had not solved the wall issue with Cobb Hill it wouldn’t have past but then he also said it would be illegal for the city to enter into an agreement between two parties for something like a wall and we cannot interfere with private property rights.
Question: Wait A Hot Minute Mayor!! You voted for it that night instead of postponing it so the residents of Cobb Hill could formalize a private contract with Universal to make sure the “wall issue” is resolved.
Cheney then mentioned that this project had more discussions because they knew how long it took them as a council to “wrap their head around it” so they knew they would need to do this differently and research and have community discussions. NO, NO and NO!
FACT: What happened was they went live on Facebook announced it and planned to vote that night, but they didn’t expect that post to blow up and go viral. It was over a thousand comments in a few hours and based on a review was one of the highest posts in citizens response/comments on the city page in years. Once they saw the instant outcry knowing it was an election year, they had to postpone the vote that night. Cheney wants us to believe they did it for us the residents – that is simply not true!
Citizens Input: Piland pointed out Cheney has publicly said and posted on social media they could not respond to citizen’s input (we found several posts that match Pilands claims). Then he pointed out at the January 17 council meeting, 3 separate citizens spoke regarding Universal and Cheney responded to each one for 3 to 4 minutes. Piland even remarked, Cheney did it under the guise of I really need to help you get your facts straight. Cheney’s response was per the city charter the mayor runs the council meetings and they can respond to citizen’s input.
FACTS: Section 3.13 Rules of Procedure, “The city council shall determine its own rules of order and business. The city council shall provide that the citizens of the city shall have a reasonable opportunity to clearly hear and be heard at public hearings with regard to specific matters under consideration.” At first it appears Cheney could be right but Section 2.125 in reference to meetings states “All meetings and deliberations of the board shall be called, convened, held, and conducted, and notice shall be given to the public, in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, as it currently exists or may be amended.” That means the answer is in the Texas Open Meetings Act which states, limited verbal interchanges between citizens and council members are appropriate, discussions should not be permitted to drag on. When a member of the public makes an inquiry about a subject for which notice has not been given, a council member may respond with a statement of factual information or recite existing policy. Piland is correct that Cheney violated the Texas Open Meetings Act that night and many other nights too speaking during citizen’s input.
Code of Conduct: Piland also referenced the December 18(actually Dec 4) council meeting regarding the PGA where Cheney had to recuse himself due to his relationship with one of the principal members of the project. Before he did he took Mayors Privilege and spoke for nearly 8 minutes regarding the project then stepped off the stage. Piland pointed out the mayor violated Section 3.11 Conflict of Interest in the City Code of Conduct. Cheney’s said his conflict of interest technically had cured at that point because the council felt that his boss Robert Elliott was not the right partner for the project (does Elliott know this) and they needed a bigger partner which is when Omni stepped in and the ownership interest changed and it removed the conflict. Cheney also said he followed the code of conduct, and he takes the code of conduct very seriously at the City of Frisco and so that’s why he makes sure not to involve any of his personal business in things. “As a real estate broker, I’ve never represented the city of Frisco in a transaction, I’ve never represented a party who did business with the City of Frisco and I’ve never had an interest in any project in the city of Frisco.” Lastly he said that he has declined every request for help from clients to get through the zoning process even though it would have been very lucrative for his firm. He closed by saying he is very transparent with everything he does and he is proud of that.”
FACT: Section 3.11 Conflict of Interest it states, “Should any person on the city council have a conflict of interest, pursuant to any state laws and/or city ordinances regulating conflicts of interest of municipal officers, with an agenda item then before the city council, they shall openly declare before discussion proceeds, and he is thereby prohibited from discussing the item or voting on the question, and is not considered as present and voting for the purposes of the tally.” As for Cheney’s claim he cured his conflict of interest Omni’s own press release from December 4, 2018 notes it is a joint venture and the new company was Omni Stillwater Woods. Nowhere does it say Robert Elliott is removed from the project and it was SWC Clay Roby who spoke on behalf of the project at every P&Z and council meeting, not a representative from TRT Holdings which is Omni. Cheney can argue he cured his conflict of interest but that is a logical fallacy which is an error in reasoning that makes your arguments less effective and convincing.
FACT: Cheney’s claim he declined every request for help regarding zoning is also not correct. Cheney may not have helped a client but he did help a campaign donor. In a Dallas Morning News article written by Sharon Grigby (March 2019), he stated “Cheney told me he met Carter sometime after he became mayor in May 2017. The mayor said the developer visited Cheney’s City Hall office about a sign-ordinance provision that caused difficulties for his Preston Road multi-tenant commercial property. “Like most developers, they reach out to the mayor and say, ‘This is unreasonable. Can you help me?’” Cheney told me Tuesday. Although Cheney said he helped resolve the issue, he maintains that the 2018 campaign donations ($15,000) were not tied to that case. There was never a this for that.” Cheney is correct it is lucrative but not to his firm it was his campaign fund!
Campaign Donations: Piland referenced the City of Plano’s campaign finance rule that any person who donates over $1000 that comes before the council, would require the person on the council to recuse themselves. Piland noted you can take as much money as you want but you will have to recuse yourself from all discussion and votes. Cheney responded and said Plano’s ordinance was put in place two years ago after all their developments were done or largely done, and he did speak to one of their elected officials about their policy. He said the Plano official (no name) told him the ordinance is not even enforceable, there is no teeth to it and it was put in place because of a political ideology in their community was having a tough time getting traction for the candidates that they wanted to support and now they have a situation where PACs and Super PACs along with other special interest groups lead the outcomes in elections.
Question: Did that communication happen via email and if so would you release the communication so we can see the Plano elected officials’ response?
Purefoy: Cheney commented that developers made a commitment to our city to develop and invest here (sometimes almost a billion dollars) and it scares developers that the commitment made is not going to be honored after his opponent is elected. Cheney said it probably scares somebody that wants to invest a lot of money in this community, and it could make them think otherwise. He said developers are scared by the rhetoric and comments they are hearing in this mayoral cycle because the outcome could change the entire direction of the City of Frisco. Lastly he said it would tarnish the “legacy” of George Purefoy and it would break the promise made to him to continue his work.
Fact: Mark Piland has said he is pro-development and would just like to see more community engagement and discussion around some of those projects. Piland never said he would not follow through on a contract or commitment made to a developer from the city or previous administration and he also never said he was against Public/Private Partnerships. How is hearing from residents a negative thing? From the two debates we heard we have not seen Mr. Piland be anything other than pro-responsible development. So why would developers be scared? Lastly, Purefoy did amazing things for this city in the last 35 years and to say change would tarnish his legacy and the promise made to him is ludacris. Companies and cities pivot all the time, and they are doing just fine! Our concern should not be about a promise made to Purefoy it should be about the promises made to residents in this city every day. Cheney used this a cheap ploy scare tactic in our opinion.
Closings: Cheney said his most valuable experience for this community is being the leader of this community for the last six years. He said mayors elected in this city are not people who have had careers in bureaucratic government. He said the City of Frisco elects entrepreneurs, visionaries, risk-takers, and people who don’t want to do things the same way. That is what Frisco is all about. He then said his superpower is building extraordinary teams and making people believe that they can do more than they ever thought they were capable of. That is his greatest gift and what he will continue to do here in his last term. Mostly he wants his last term to be about testing the absolute limits of what a city is capable of and in the City of Frisco will stress the boundaries of what is possible here over the next 3 years.
FACT: I know this will be hard for some to believe but people have skills they don’t have superpowers! He said Frisco is all about entrepreneurs, visionaries, and risk takers – really, since when is that what Frisco was all about? The scariest thing he said is that he wants to test the absolute limits of what a city is capable of, so it’s not about you, me, or the residents, this is solely about his personal legacy and how he will be remembered. People are telling you to slow down not stress the limits, so you can’t say you represent and listen to the people when you are doing the exact opposite of what people are asking for.
The night lasted longer than anticipated and when it was over it was clear the candidates were tired, the audience was tired, and the campaigning was about to kick into high gear. As we pulled into the driveway of our house my wife said to me, Honey what is your superpower? I looked at her and said I am a bull shit meter! I can sense, smell, fly through and see the bull shit from anyone where around me. She simply said okay I will get that on a t-shirt for you for Christmas. Then she said it felt like one was me, me, me and the other was about team, team team. That pretty much sums up how I felt too!
Ah! Spring! Spring is the most popular of the four seasons for obvious reasons. It means warmer weather, more hours in the day, and more sunshine. The buds are starting to show, early flowers are beginning to bloom, and the birds are singing a new tune. Spring is a sign of new beginnings, it symbolizes life and how good always triumphs over evil, light over darkness, and life over death. Hibernation has ended! It seems that many people in Frisco are starting to open their eyes, and many are expressing their concerns for the first time over what appears to be some questionable negotiations, developments, and deals throughout the years. The spring awakening always seems to be heightened when an election is on the horizon.
One of the most important aspects of Spring is baseball otherwise referred to as America’s National Pastime. Dr. Gerald Early, a Washington University Professor once said, “There are three things that America will be known for 2000 years from now: the Constitution, jazz music, and baseball. They’re the three most beautifully designed things this culture ever produced.” From an immigrant’s perspective, he is right on point. I remember the first game I went to after moving to America. The sound from the crack of the bat, watching a player slide into home, eating a famous hotdog and relish, and trying to catch the foul balls that came our way. Back in the day if you caught one of those balls you could turn them in for a ten-cent snow cone.
In 1958, Damn Yankees hit the widescreen and it is one of the best musical sport romantic comedy films of its time. It was about a frustrated fan of the hopeless Washington Senators who made a pack with the Devil to help the baseball team win the league pennant. One of the most famous quotes from the movie was “One long ball hitter, that’s what we need! Honest to God, I’d sell my soul for one long ball hitter!” Mmh? Something about this story is hitting close to home. Has someone in Frisco soul their soul to the devil?
Frisco has gone through many changes over the years and with each one a little bit of Frisco’s history seems to be erased. The most obvious was in 2020 when the council considered renaming Rockhill Parkway. Established in 1854, Rock Hill was one of the oldest communities in Collin County and earned its name from the white rock escarpment on which it was built. By 1898, it had a thriving community featuring two schools, four churches a grist mill, a cotton gin, a blacksmith, a drugstore and a grocery store. In 1902, St. Louis and San Francisco railroad bypassed the town and within months most of the businesses, townspeople and churches had relocated. By the mid-1930s, only one African American Baptist church remained. In the 1960s the black school closed and in 1973 the general store was razed leaving Rock Hill and its rich history a distant memory to many. One of the last connections to its history was the street named Rockhill Parkway.
On June 23, 2020, a letter was sent to residents informing them of the road name change and they could respond with any input by July 14, 2020. Renaming Rockhill Parkway to PGA Parkway hit a nerve with many locals who felt like the council was erasing what little history was left of the old town. While doing research we came across an article in the Frisco Enterprise that reported in July 2020 that Assistant City Manager Ben Brezina acknowledged the name change had been a topic of conversation for at least 8 to 10 months. John Lettellier of Development Services for Frisco said moving forward with the proposal happened in just the last 6 to 8 weeks. The article also noted The Heritage Association of Frisco learned about the proposed change by way of a community member who received the notice and, they had never been approached by the city for its historical background. Lastly the most interesting thing in the article was a statement posted on the Facebook page by then councilman Tim Nelson that the item was proposed by a member of the council and consensus was to move forward. Hmmm… I wonder who proposed the name change?
Here is where it gets interesting, in our research we found that many who supported the name change were big businesses with big money and investments in Frisco:
Kyle Wilks – President of Wilks Development (who is behind Firefly Park in Frisco)
Edmund Garahan – CEO of Carbon Companies (building Luxury hotel near PGA)
Triad Frisco Partners (developer of 1310 urban living units, 8 retail buildings, 1 convenience store with gas pumps, 5 parking garages on the southwest corner of Dallas Parkway and Rockhill Parkway)
David Fogel – Manager of Rockhill Legacy (Development at Rockhill & Legacy)
Blake Nelson – Managing Partner (7-Eleven located Rockhill Parkway & Preston)
Darrell Crall – COO of PGA (letter specifically notes they feel strongly there is a long-term value to the PGA branded and the roadway would showcase to millions the PGA Frisco partnership and evolution of Frisco)
Michael Smith – TRT Holdings, Inc. (Part of Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort)
Fehmi Karahan – Fields Development (July 17, 2020 letter writes that the city has made an extraordinary financial commitment to the new PGA project and should use all available means to support the success of that project. We strongly urge you and the city council to support the full renaming of Rockhill from Teel to Coit)
Clay Roby – PGA Frisco / Stillwater Capital / The Link (the renaming will further establish Frisco as Sports City USA and appropriately showcase the HQ of the PGA of America)
On Aug 4, 2020, citizens made their way to the podium for Citizens Input to against the change. If you watch the meeting, the mayor remarked that the city of Frisco has always made it a commitment to preserving our history and they even invested 3 to 5 million into the Heritage Museum. He was on city council in 2009 when the road was changed to Rockhill Parkway but he doesn’t remember it and until a few months ago he does not believe many people even knew the story of why it was named Rockhill. He believes Prosper ISD naming the their new high school in Frisco city limits Rock Hill Highschool is a great way to remember the community of Rock Hill. Sadly, he seems to criticize the volunteers at the Heritage Museum for not being accurate on the history and calling the exhibits dated and we need to do better there telling our story. He noted that the PGA and Fields wants to write their own story and they have been good partners to the community. Councilman Woodard suggests renaming Northeast Park to Rock Hill Park he is willing to help get that done.
Today the only reminder that Rock Hill once existed is a historical marker located on the northeast corner of PGA Parkway and Preston Street. The name change passed to PGA Parkway but the question is did it ever have a chance to be kept Rock Hill Parkway? Almost every developer who wrote in support of the name change donated to the campaigns of several sitting on our council. When Fehmi Karahan the King of Fields writes that the city should use all available means to support the success of that project and that he urges the city council to support the full renaming of Rockhill from Teel to Coit the city is going to do just that. Cheney accepted over $30k in January 2020 from the big names on these letterheads and he needs that money to pay back his $99,000 personal loan that he took out for campaigning because as he said at the recent debate he is not an independently wealthy man. Has Bill Woodard followed through on working on the renaming of Northeast Park? Not from what we can see. When Universal was recently in front of the council we heard each of them say that they listen to the residents and this is just another example where big money, big investments, and big companies take priority over residents. Words can come from one’s mouth but actions are what matter. That night a man said the citizens of Frisco are being exploited for money and by its actions that is the way it looks. It’s time to bring change to Frisco in this upcoming election and the others in the future. Maybe those sitting on the lofty hill have become too comfortable. I ask you, has someone perhaps sold his soul? I am reminded of the song “Whatever Lola Wants.” I would have to change the words up a bit and sing,
Verse 1
Whatever Fehmi wants, Fehmi get
Whatever the PGA Frisco wants, the PGA Frisco gets
(Bridge)
I always get what I aim for
And your heart and soul is what I came for
Verse 2
Whatever Cheney wants, Cheney gets
Whatever the developers who come here want, the developers gets
Aristotle was an Ancient Greek philosopher who made pioneering contributions to all fields of philosophy and science. In his ethical masterpiece The Nicomachean Ethics he said there are three kinds of friendship: friendships of pleasure, utility, and of virtue. Friendship of utility is based on what two people can do for each other and it ends rapidly when the need is gone for the other person. The second is the friendship of pleasure, and it is based on the enjoyment of shared activities and is often short-tenured. In both utility and pleasure, the other person is not valued and is a means to an end. The friendship of virtue is stable because it is true, real, and good. This is the friend you like for who they are and often they push you to be a better person. To understand these friendships we must look at their anatomy. Anatomy is a branch of biology, and it is concerned with the study of the structure or internal workings of something. Through dissection or the separation of parts, much can be revealed.
July 2016: Robert Elliott formed The Associates, a full-service residential real estate brokerage.
So, who is Robert Elliott? Well, he is the Principal of Robert Elliott Custom Homes which has developed many projects throughout University Park, Highland Park, and the Preston Hollow area. Elliott also formed The Associates in 2016, mostly known in Dallas for its high-end luxury personal service and sold over 200 million in real estate in the Dallas area. Lastly, he is also a Partner in Stillwater Capital which was a fully integrated, private real estate company that has experience in design, construction, and operations of mixed-use developments, urban living communities, and custom projects. Stillwater is a key player in the PGA Frisco. They helped with the recruitment of bringing The PGA to Frisco, and is the developer behind The Link which neighbors the PGA Frisco.
May 2017: Jeff Cheney is elected Mayor for The City of Frisco
August 2017: Mayor Cheney and Councilman Will Sowell travel to Charlotte, NC for the 99 th PGA Championship. It was there they meet with PGA leadership and Robert Elliott and his fellow representatives of Stillwater Capital.
November 2017: The Associates, a brokerage owned by Robert Elliott announced its expansion to The Star in Frisco, and that The Cheney Group would be joining his brokerage.
In 2017, The Cheney Group was considered a powerhouse and recognized as one of the #1 Home-Selling Teams in the Frisco market with over $900 million in sales. There was no better place to set roots than the prominent location of The Star. At the end of 2017, Stillwater Capital, The Associates, and The Cheney group office together at The Star.
December 5, 2017: Cheney filed an affidavit recusing himself from an item on the agenda during the executive session. The reason listed is that he was a “partner with Stillwater Capital, Robert Elliott is also the broker for The Associates, my employer.”
Throughout 2018 talks and planning continued for both Stillwater Capital projects, the PGA Frisco and The Link in the same office where The Cheney Group presided. It is fair for one to assume he had plenty of access to all things PGA Frisco as the development was coming together.
December 2018: A notice was posted by The City of Frisco for a special meeting of the City Council on 12/4/2018 at 4:30 pm to authorize and execute the proposed Master Development Agreement for the PGA Frisco. Cheney announced he was turning the meeting over to Mayor Pro Tem Shona Huffman but first wanted to make a few statements. He said he would be recusing because of the conflict between his private business, his broker being Robert Elliott and Elliott’s partnership in Stillwater Capital which is involved in the project before the council that evening. He then laughed and said he thought it was a little of a loose association but after speaking with the city attorney it was best out of an abundance of caution to recuse himself. He said the last thing he would want to do is put any doubt into a project of this magnitude and how excited and proud he is to be a part of a special team in the City of Frisco. He then announced he was going to take “mayor’s privilege” to make a few comments. He talked about the PGA Frisco dream of Mr. Ovard and his family, his trip to The PGA championship, and how the council members deserve credit for taking an active leadership role to bring The PGA to Frisco since he had to recuse himself from most of the project. He made mention of how much hard work was put in by the City Manager George Purefoy and city staff. Lastly, he thanked The PGA for trusting Frisco and choosing Frisco as their new home. As everyone clapped he left the stage.
Wait, what? A little loose of an association?There is nothing loose about the association between The Cheney Group, The Associates, and Stillwater Capital. At this point, we have established the connection between the three groups and to anyone who is not blind, there is a clear relationship that creates a conflict of interest for Cheney. In our opinion, he should have removed himself from any conversation relating to these projects, from providing input on the projects, from talking to developers and other parties of the project.
Mayors Privilege?We tried to find the mayor’s privilege in the rules of the Texas Meeting Laws, but we couldn’t.Overall, he spoke for over 6 minutes and 45 seconds before the vote. We can all agree at this point the decision is made and the meeting is really about pomp and circumstance, but he should have reserved his comments until after the vote.
October 15, 2019: In a closed session, the council received legal advice regarding amendments to the Master Development Agreement executed by the City of Frisco with the players of the PGA Frisco development. Did Cheney participate in these conversations or recuse himself? We don’t know and doubt anyone will tell us.
November 19, 2019 Email: Mike Smith with TRT Holdings, who represents the Omni Hotel portion of the PGA Frisco deal sends out an email to several folks involved in the deal. Just a few are Fehmi Karahan (Fields) and his team, Robert Elliott (Stillwater) and his team, Chris Kleinert (Hunt) and his team, plus he included Jeff Cheney, George Purefoy, Ben Brezina, and Ron Patterson. He wants to host a lunch at his office to update everyone on the PGA Frisco project and catch up on what is happening on the surrounding land and discuss any issues that should be coordinated between each of the respective developments. A second email from Stephanie New the Executive Assistant at TRT Holdings for Mike Smith goes out asking if December 9, 2019, would work for everyone.
Two days later, Julie Venture with Frisco EDC responds Ron Patterson is available and Jeff Cheney responds he is available as well. That is where the email chain stops so we were curious why our PIR didn’t include the rest of the conversation which seemed odd. To say we are perplexed is an understatement. Why is Mayor Cheney the only one on the council invited, why not invite all the council members? Did Cheney or city staff update the rest of the council after this meeting what transpired at lunch. Remember, at this time Mayor Cheney’s personal business is under Robert Elliott so it is obvious he was involved in conversations regarding the development. Is his involvement a conflict of interest? Yes!
June 16, 2020: Did he oversee the consent agenda vote where two items pertaining to Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort was involved? Yes he did!
June 29, 2020 Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends Jeff Cheney an email to his personal business account, not the city email. He states he and Robert are compiling information on The Link with the goal of creating a discussion piece for the joint Council and Planning and Zoning work session coming up. He would appreciate Cheney’s perspective on the development and what they can do to find “win-win” solutions to the outstanding items in the PD. Then he asks when Cheney has time to connect. Does Cheney give feedback to all developers on future presentations going before the council and Planning and Zoning? Does Cheney help every developer find “win-win” solutions to outstanding issues in the PD? Should the Mayor be involved in these discussion on the sideline without brining in other council members? Should this be considered a conflict of interest? Yes!
July 14, 2020 Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends an email to Cheney letting him know that he and Robert have been working on a presentation for the joint work session coming up on Aug 3rd and would appreciate his feedback before they submit the final version to the city. He asks if Cheney has any time the next day to connect. Cheney responds from his personal email (cheneygroup.com) that the next day from 2-4 would work. Robert Elliott responds that the time works for him and the appointment is set. The next day before they are set for the 2pm call Clay Roby sends to Jeff Cheney a draft of the presentation again to his personal work email, not his official City of Frisco email. Again Cheney is giving feedback to a developer he wants us to believe he has no conflict with for a presentation that will be presented at a city work session. Did Cheney disclose to his fellow council members his involvement? We think it is a valid question.
Nov 02, 2020: Council received legal advice from the city attorney regarding the 3rd Amendment to the Master Development Agreement for the project. Did Cheney participate in the closed-session discussion since it involved Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort? We don’t know.
In 2021, The Link was coming up before the council. On March 12, P&Z approved the project, and it was listed on the council’s agenda for a vote on April 6, 2021. One would think Cheney should recuse himself from The Link (the other half) of the Frisco PGA project that Stillwater Capital was involved in. But, no!
March 22, 2021: Monument Realty founded by Eddie and Tiffany Burns acquired The Associates owned by Robert Elliott and The Cheney Group with Jeff Cheney. The two groups moved separately the same day to a new brokerage to break up the connection or so-called conflict of interest. Cheney has said his move to Monument cleared any conflict he had with the projects. Really, we would argue that regardless of his move to Monument it does not erase or expel his interwoven relationship to the project or the players in the project.
Fast forward the VHS tape (I would say Betamax but no one remembers that) to June of 2021, Cheney said in his response to an ethics complaint filed, the investment group handling the PGA is Omni Stillwater Woods per the city’s agreement. He also said there is no conflict of interest because there are no contractual agreements with The Associates, Stillwater Capital, or Monument Realty. Part of his rebuttal was the complaint’s information was inaccurate.
April 6, 2021: Now rewind the VHS tape to the City Council meeting where The Link was before the council. Two of the speakers “in favor or for” the project were Clay Roby and Cole Henley and the minutes state they are there on behalf of Stillwater Capital Investments (not Omni Stillwater Woods). When Mr. Roby approached the podium he stated, “he was there to speak on behalf of The Link application, as the Managing Director with Stillwater Capital one of the investors of The Link property before you tonight.” Well, well, well if Cheney wants to argue semantics at his ethics complaint then we would like to argue the same back. See the semantics of the language used by Mr. Roby does not state he is with Omni Stillwater Woods so that means Cheney’s argument given during his ethics rebuttal is null and void and there is a conflict of interest.
The meeting continued and a few of the council members raised concerns. Mayor Cheney’s response was swift and immediate and you could tell he appeared aggravated when he respond to the council’s concerns saying this is a new asset class to Frisco. He continued and said “when it comes to density it’s a political dog whistle and good for political campaign mailers. When you speak to people and actually educate them (because he thinks we are stupid) on how multi-family works, how it actually reduces traffic and builds our commercial basis they are okay with it. It’s ironic to him that people who consider themselves conservatives don’t look at the economics behind the developments and how it’s driving our tax bills down and it’s the model for how we build Frisco.” He then went on to talk about the challenges of the property and the topography of the area. It would be one of this council’s greatest failures if we do not allow the only piece of property with unobstructed views of the golf course to be developed into anything less than spectacular. To do that we must have blend-use projects. Mayor Cheney continued with his selling and pushing of the development and ended up talking for a little over 5 minutes.
Then Mr. Roby said at the podium he understands what it is like to knock on doors because at Stillwater we have a residential development arm called Robert Elliott Custom Homes … Stop the presses! Again, Roby calls the company behind The Link Stillwater Capital Investments and acknowledges Mr. Elliott’s residential arm as part of the company. Closing the meeting Cheney said they should table the issue, then said he thought they were all under the same understanding based on all the work sessions and meetings and it was clear he was annoyed at the council’s concerns and with the delay.
April 16, 2021, Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends Cheney an email with a presentation and notes page 15 is a new slide that shows the PD adjustments they are contemplating to propose based on the meetings with the council members they had the last few weeks and he would like Cheney’s feedback. The next day Cheney responds he likes the presentation and asked what the feedback has been from the council. Clay responds the same day Bill Woodard appreciated the commitment to the trial and said SWC has his support. Brian Livingston and Dan Stricklin like the reduction in the residential units but would not commit support. They plan to meet with Shona on Thursday. They have not been able to meet with Will Sowell but anticipate he will support the project.
April 30, 2021, Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends Cheney via his personal email a copy of the presentation he plans to present at the council meeting next week. He mentions they have been meeting and talking with several on the council to answer any questions from the April 6 council meeting. He mentions good feedback from most on the council, but Dan and Brian might still be on the fence. Then Clay asks Cheney if he has had a chance to discuss with anyone on the council and to let him know if they need to connect prior to the upcoming Tuesday council meeting. The funny thing is there is no response in the emails from the PIR. Why was the response back to Clay not provided? Where is it?
May 1, 2021, Email: Roby (Stillwater) sends an email to Cheney that they are working on the press release in anticipation of next week’s approval. He wanted to see if Cheney would be willing or able to provide a quote for the release. On May 3 Cheney responded absolutely he would like to help and asks if their marketing people want to write something up that he can approve so it is on message. Then he also offers something along the lines of: “The Link delivers to promise of capitalizing on the PGA and Omni Resort and Convention Center. The links delivers quality office with unobstructed views of the golf course as well as a mix of entertainment and destination dining. The large open space and trail connectivity will make the residential components highly livable. The Link is a world-class project that will maximize the energy of the PGA Frisco brand.” Should the mayor allow a third party marketing like Stillwater to write the copy for him to approve for their own marketing materials? Probably because his statement makes no sense but seriously no the Mayor should be using the city’s internal communication department. Again it is an appearance that some would consider to be a clear conflict of interest.
May 4, 2021: City Council tables The Link to May 18, 2021. During the public hearing, Clay Roby once again said he was there to speak on behalf of the project applicant and that he is the Managing Director at Stillwater Capital and is responsible for SWC mixed-use projects. Once the public hearing closed Mayor Cheney points out there a few more questions to be answered so they are tabling until the May 18 meeting.
May 18, 2021: Council Approves The Link
Roby spoke again on behalf of the applicant and the minutes produced by the city again list his company as Stillwater Capital Investments (not Stillwater Capital Woods). Mayor Cheney points out they have been talking about the project for a long time and it has been tabled a couple of times. He points out the odd shape of the land, the topography, and how this land before the PGA Frisco would have been developed into boring office space. Today we sit here discussing a billion-dollar development because of the halo effect of the PGA Frisco. This odd, shaped property is probably one of the most important zoning cases the city has ever had, and it had to be looked at in the totality of the whole region. Because of how important this project is the city has never been more demanding, more difficult to work with, and more challenging with any developer. In closing, Cheney says this is a project we should be celebrating, and he feels like we must justify making a world-class decision that will impact generations in their community. He told the developer they are excited about their project and proud to move forward with them as partners, and that we’re grateful they see Frisco as the city to invest a billion dollars in over the next 10 to 15 years. Now here is our question, does Cheney really feel citizens need him to justify the project or does Cheney feel the need to justify it because he knows the scrutiny his involvement could possibly play?
If you remember at the end of my blog, The Silicon Valley of Golf I was left pondering a few questions. Did Cheney have behind-the-scenes access to the inner workings of these 3 world-class developments since officed with Stillwater Capital and worked with The Associates? The answer is a resounding YES! Cheney clearly has had a relationship with The Associates, Robert Elliott, and Stillwater Capital since 2017. Robert Elliott was his boss (broker) and all three offices are together at The Star for several years. Moving to Monument Realty on March 22, which is 15 days before the expected vote on The Link project does not absolve him of a conflict of interest. Did he recuse himself from all conversations or meetings with developers? He stated in some of his comments that he had conversations with the developers and based on the emails clearly he did not recuse himself. Did he recuse himself from council discussions, due to his relationship with Stillwater Capital? No, he spoke at nauseum at the April 6, May 4, and May 18 council meetings. To anyone watching, it was clear his determination to help get this project approved. Is that because it was a good project, because of his relationship with the applicant, or because he had an investment in the deal? We honestly can’t determine his motivation because of the clear glaring violations that took place. Is it fair for the mayor to argue language semantics as a defense during his ethics complaint when clearly the applicant stated their name as Stillwater Capital during the approval process on record and it is listed on city minutes the say way? No, he should not be able to bend the rules to suit himself when necessary but in Cheneyville we live by his rules. Should Cheney be helping the developer with presentations and marketing materials? Should he be sharing private conversations that he has had with other council members with developers or using those conversations to help developers “win” approvals? Should Cheney be doing “city business” via his personal real estate email? No, absolutely not! When someone files a PIR does the city actually review his personal email or do they ask him to turn over documents pertaining to the request on good faith? How can he say his personal business is not a conflict when he is using it to run city business as well? The city is asking residents to “trust me” we did the right thing. Based on what we have already unloaded would you “trust the city?” Probably not, since all these things give off the perception of shady behavior.
We agree this is a project to be proud of, a project that will change Frisco forever which is a great thing. Stillwater Capital and all of those involved have done a phenomenal job in bringing this together and creating a true masterpiece. Where we disagree is Mayor Cheney’s clear and almost blaring horn-honking conflict of interest. Our concerns are ligament when our mayor is so closely connected with a project, and it is justifiable for us to ask about his relationship whether it be a friendship or business relationship. We don’t think it is out of line to say something smells like shit and up to the end there was a major conflict of interest. Trying to “CURE” a conflict just weeks before the vote for The Link should have everyone’s eyebrows raised including the city attorney unless he fell asleep. What we cannot understand is why are citizens not outraged, asking questions, standing up, and saying something is not right here. It is time for citizens and the media to ask questions and the first should be what shady shit is happening in Frisco?
Since childhood, I have loved a movie night with the family. My dad would take me to the corner store where he always got my mom a Bit-O-Honey and then he would look at me and say in his deep voice, kid you can pick a sweet treat too. I am sure I smiled ear to ear the whole way home looking out the window of the old truck with my $100,000 candy bar in my hand. Today the candy bar is called 100 Grand and I still pick one up every Friday with a quick pick lotto. In the movie Other People’s Money (1991), Lawrence Garfield said, “I love money more than the things it can buy…but what I love more than money is other people’s money.”
Our lives center around other people’s money, and we don’t even realize it. The bank owns the home until you make the last payment. The car belongs to the lender until you make the last payment. The new furniture you bought at Nebraska Furniture Mart that is financed over 24 months is not yours until the last payment. By now you see the connection, until we make the last payment the thing we love is not really ours. Politicians LOVE other people’s money because it helps pay for costly campaigns. The more campaign contributions they bring in, the less they will have to take out of their own pockets or through a loan. Political contributions are a time-honored tradition, and some would say “The Cost of Doing Business.”
In 2019, Sharon Grigsby with the Dallas Morning News did an article about Phillip Michael Carter, who was accused of taking advantage of elderly investors for million dollars, and the relationship he had with both Cheney and Keating’s campaign. Cheney received $15,000 and Keating received $5000 from Carter, both said they were returning the donations which was the right thing to do. She interviewed Cheney for about 45 minutes and Cheney told her he met Carter sometime after he became Mayor in 2017 and Carter later visited his office at City Hall about a sign-ordinance provision that was causing him difficulties at his Preston Road commercial property. Cheney said it was not unusual and most developers reach out to the mayor and ask for help. Cheney confirmed he helped resolve the issue but was steadfast that the 2018 campaign contribution was not tied to that case and said, “there was never a this for that.”
Cheney also told Grigsby that his “reputation is everything to me.” He regrets not looking deeper into the allegations but he is “so busy every single day, from sunup to sundown to the weekends.” The article goes on to say Cheney first learned of Carter’s state charges and arrest relating to fraud charges on November 14, 2018. He immediately linked the $5000 donation from Carter but said he had completely forgotten about the entire case until he began reviewing his campaign finance reports in anticipation of his interview with Grigsby. He admitted in the interview much of what Grigsby was laying out in regard to charges was news to him. The article was riveting but it never discussed the timeline between his donations and when the “issue” got fixed so we did some research.
May 24, 2018: Cheney $10,000 by Carter Family Office LLC (Phillip Carter)
October 10, 2018: Cheney $5,000 by North Forty Development (Phillip Carter)
October 15, 2018: Keating $5000 by Texas Cash Cow (Phillip Carter)
October 23, 2018: P&Z holds a public hearing for Sign Variance: Preston Wade Crossing by Frisco Wade Crossing Development Partners, LLC (Phillip Carter)
**Interesting fact the P&Z Commission in 2018 was led by Robert Cox who was appointed to the Commission in April 2016 with the first motion by John Keating and second by then councilman Jeff Cheney.
January 2019: SEC Files Charges against Phillip Carter for a multi-million dollar fraud scheme that took place from May 2015 to Feb 2017 and totaled around $45 million dollars and was sentenced to 45 years in prison.
In 2019, Frisco’s population according to the US Census was about 200,907 people. It is hard to believe that someone who is the mayor of a booming and bustling town and also an extremely successful businessman could just “forget” about a fraud case that involved a real estate developer and millions of dollars. At the time it was plastered in local DFW papers and the top story on most local news stations. To be fair, Cheney and Keating accepted a campaign donation and nothing illegal occurred. They were never named in allegations that involved Phillip Carter and both returned the donations. Again, this is just another situation that “doesn’t look good” and could lead many to believe that something improper was happening, even if it wasn’t. That old perception is reality for many folks is a stinker.
Another thing we learned from Grigsby’s March 2019 DMN article was Cheney’s personal policy of not accepting more than $10,000 from a single donor when it comes to campaign contributions. I am not sure when that became his policy because he accepted $20,000 in 2017 plus $6000 in 2020 from Ali Kahla who we believe was a representative for IGO-USA, The Gate developer. I guess he also must have been ridiculously busy and forgot his personal policy almost 9 months after his interview with Grigsby and the article because in 2020 he accepted $15,000 from Fehmi Karahan (Fields). Again, we want to say there is nothing illegal about the donations (we don’t want to be sued) other than they seem to break his personal policy. I guess it is good to have a flexible policy that benefits you when needed.
Philip Anthony Hopkins who played Odin in the movie Thor said, “Even with two eyes, you can only see half of the picture.” If that is true, then we should all go to the Ophthalmologist to get our eyes checked out. The problem is repetition, the action of repeating something that you have already done or the recurrence of an action or event. The repetition of “it just looks bad” starts to become a theme and that can have a detrimental impact on the citizen’s perception of you and the city. The conversation becomes about the lack of trust and confidence in our city, the city council members, and our mayor.
Rain, rain go away, come again some other day! Many were hoping and wishing for that back on August 22, 2022. The metroplex had a few days of intense rain and the overcast sky gave off a humble gray tone. By mid-morning to everyone’s delight a glorious glow from the sun appeared from behind the two-tone gray moving clouds. This was going to be a monumental day for Frisco as the PGA of America unveiled its new $33.5 million dollar headquarters. Along with the new headquarters, Forbes Magazine reports the 600-acre campus will include two 18-hole courses, Fields Ranch East and Fields Ranch West, plus The Swing, a 10-hole, par-3 short course.
There is no doubt the PGA was an extraordinary WIN-WIN for Frisco. It was reported that the deal included a $90 Million abatement, which means the PGA won’t pay property taxes for at least two decades. The economic impact is expected to be $2.5 BILLION over the next 20 years for North Texas according to a State of Texas study. PGA President Jim Richerson said, “the new HQ will be a first-of-its-kind golf laboratory that offers the best in professional development for our nearly 28,000 PGA professionals.” The big draw for the PGA was the opportunity to create a destination instead of the standard office development.
Surrounding the PGA campus will be the Omni PGA Resort which Texas Monthly reports will be the second largest resort in Texas at a cost of $520 million. A pedestrian promenade will link the PGA to its neighbor, The Link, a $1 Billion-dollar mixed-use development featuring office space, dining options, and green park space. The 240-acre master-planned project is the brainchild of Dallas-based investor/developer Stillwater Capital.
The entire project is nothing short of extraordinary and I wanted to know how did it end up in Sports City USA? I found an amazing article by LocalProfile.com that talked about how in 2014 a local dad convinced The PGA to move to North Texas. David Ovard’s two sons had a natural talent for golf but there were a limited number of courses available for teen boys to practice. He felt like Sports City USA forgot one major sport, Golf! It started with a napkin, some connections to important people, and a father’s determination to give his two boys and other teens a chance to achieve their golf dreams. I was stunned to learn that one man had the idea and the golf drive (a long-distance shot) to make it happen.
I had no idea the project dated back to 2014 or that the first visit by a PGA official to tour sites was in 2015. In 2017 city officials and local movers and shakers traveled to North Carolina for a championship PGA event to talk with PGA officials. The turning point was in 2018 when Omni Hotels & Resorts, local Dallas-based developer & investor Stillwater Capital, and Woods Capital came together and committed to the project. This commitment is what helped to solidify an amazing win for so many.
Stillwater Capital is a co-owner in PGA Frisco today and is owned by Robert Elliott. In reading several articles that name stuck out to me. Elliott also owns a full-service real estate brokerage called The Associates which was formed in July 2016. While sitting in my favorite lazy-boy recliner, I glanced at a timeline I had written on a little notepad with my old teeth-marked pencil (old habit) sitting on the side table. In November 2017, just a few months after that official visit to North Carolina, Cheney’s Real Estate Group joined The Associates, owned by Robert Elliott. Based on that relationship, Cheney had to file affidavits to recuse himself from discussions in executive session. Filing the affidavit was 100% the right thing to do! There was one thing that puzzled me, did the new relationship give Cheney behind-the-scenes access to these 3 world-class developments since he shared an office with Stillwater Capital and worked with The Associates? Did he recuse himself as Mayor from all conversations or meetings with developers and did he recuse himself from council discussions, due to his relationship with Stillwater Capital? What is the city’s policy when it comes to conflicts of interest? What is the State of Texas policies when it comes to politicians and potential conflicts of interest?
There is one thing for certain, after the Win-Win of the PGA the goal to become Sports City USA was complete. Its fantastic for local residents, businesses, future teen pro golfers and for the City of Frisco and the State of Texas.
Everything you wrote is contradictory.... everyone knows it's SD who snitched on Tammy. An insider—tired of the two-faced politics, of…
Getting paid to not work for months? Yes that makes perfect sense. It’s all caught up with the city management…
Jared, Congratulations! Well done.
It’s looking like toxic Tammy is going to be defeated along with the go man! Woohoo!
This article is definitely not non biased regarding this nonpartisan election.