CBS12 News Team

Riviera Beach officials defend $15,000 fact-finding trip

RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. -- A top official with the city of Riviera Beach is responding to a story we did earlier this week. You may remember we told you the Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency recently took nine people to the northeast at taxpayers' expense, visiting several cities. Some questioned whether it was an appropriate use of taxpayers' money.

Riviera Beach wants to redevelop a stretch of Broadway. To get ideas, some community leaders and residents from Riviera Beach visited Philadelphia, Washington DC and other cities last week. They traveled at taxpayers' expense, and one of the leaders of the group is defending the trip and says it was not a pleasure trip on the taxpayers' dime.

Dawn Rardo, Riviera Beach CRA board vice-chair: I just question if all of this is a good use of taxpayer dollars.

That was CRA vice chair Dawn Pardo earlier this week, questioning why the CRA would spend almost $20,000 of taxpayer money to take nine people on a fact-finding trip jetting off to several cities in the northeast at a time when the city budget is tight.

Dawn Rardo, Riviera Beach CRA board vice-chair: Whatever the trip cost is a lot of money and I believe that money could be put to better use.

Billie Brooks, CRA chairwoman: I want the people to know in Riviera Beach that their money was well-spent.

Dawn Rardo, Riviera Beach CRA board vice-chair: The city council or the CRA board was not made aware of the trip.

Billie Brooks, CRA chairwoman: The trip had been planned way in advance and all of our colleagues were made aware of the trip.

The trip July 8-13, consisted of stops in Montreal, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Washington DC and Alexandria, and Virginia. To redevelop Broadway, Riviera Beach is thinking of creating a public market where people can sell fruits and vegetables and meats. Another idea is to create an artist's colony at the old Spanish Courts motel which is now vacant where artists can rent cottages to paint and do sculpture. The CRA group visited those kinds of places in other cities where they've been successful.

CBS 12: Why was it worth the $17,500 that was spent on this trip?

Billie Brooks, CRA chairwoman: Because we're going to get the return for our money. We're going to be able to say where we need to go with all of these projects.

The group of 9 that went included city staff, a Rivera Beach police officer, two city council members and two volunteers. Brooks defended the decision to take volunteers along at taxpayers' expense.

CBS 12: Why take such a large group? Couldn't you have accomplished this with fewer people?

Billie Brooks, CRA chairwoman: No, the ones we took were very critical to what we're doing.

Pardo told us we haven't heard the last of this. She plans to bring up her concerns about the fact-finding trip and the nearly $20,000 that it cost, at the next CRA board meeting in early August.

Friday, July 20 2012, 11:42 PM EDT

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