A Winter Park city commissioner is under fire for taking five free tickets to an Orlando Magic game provided by Chabad of Greater Orlando, which is seeking commission approval for a controversial development in the city’s downtown.
Commissioner Elizabeth Ingram, who took the post March 25, said she received the five tickets from a friend for the April 6 home game on the Magic’s Jewish Heritage Night. At that point, Chabad’s plans for a synagogue and childcare center on Morse Boulevard had not yet come before commissioners.
Ingram acknowledged in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel that she knew her friend got the tickets for free from Rabbi Dovid Dubov, Chabad’s director of operations, who in June contacted Ingram to discuss the development project. The project has come before the commission twice since then but has not yet been approved. Ingram initially voted to advance it but then voted to delay final approval over concerns about noise, parking and traffic.
Jonathan Beaton, a city resident, raised concerns about Ingram taking the free tickets after learning about them when he requested public records related to the Chabad project. He opposes the project because of concerns about downtown traffic and overdevelopment. Pete Weldon, a former Winter Park commissioner has also raised concerns about Ingram accepting the tickets, posting about it on his blog.
The records Beaton obtained — which he provided to news organizations and were first published by WFTV Channel 9 — showed images of text messages between Dubov and Ingram. Dubov sent her a text June 2 saying he hoped she enjoyed the basketball game and asked about meeting “regarding the development of our first synagogue in Winter Park.”
She responded June 4, saying “We had a great time at the Magic game thanks again. I would be happy to meet with you to discuss the synagogue.” They met in person for about an hour on June 22.
Beaton questioned whether her taking the tickets violates Winter Park’s code of ethics, which prohibits city officers and their relatives from accepting gifts from anyone doing or known to be seeking business with the city.
He also said elected officials cannot engage in activity that would either affect their impartiality or their appearance of impartiality. Accepting Magic tickets from an applicant should clearly be a conflict, he said.
“Since the tickets originated with Rabbi Dubov, a representative of the applicant, why would passing them through a friend make them permissible?” he asked in an email.
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Once Beaton started complaining Ingram said she asked the city attorney if she should recuse herself from a vote on the Chabad project but was told that was not allowed. She does not stand to benefit from the development, so cannot legally abstain, she was told.
In a statement issued late Thursday, Ingram said she wanted to avoid a vote because of “misleading narratives” but also said the tickets that she, her husband and their three children used will not impact how she will vote on the Chabad’s project.
“I listen to our residents and consider different perspectives, but my decisions are my own,” she said. “I believe every development application deserves fair consideration under the applicable laws and land-use standards,” she added. “Political support, personal relationships, and outside criticism does not determine my vote.”
Ingram did not initially file a gift disclosure for the tickets since she did not think their value exceeded $100, she said. Florida’s ethics rules, which Winter Park follows, state that someone in Ingram’s position is prohibited from knowingly accepting, directly or indirectly, a gift from a vendor doing business with the city or from someone lobbying the city if he or she knows or reasonably believes the gift has a value of over $100.
According to Ticketmaster, Magic tickets cost an average of $100 to $200 each, but the prices fluctuate based on factors including matchup and seat location. Ingram described them as “regular seats” — not in the upper section or close to the court. That suggests the value of the five tickets Ingram accepted was many times the allowable limit.
Ingram said she filed a disclosure form Monday in the interest of full transparency, though she said on the form she did not know their actual face value. However, she told the Sentinel that she realizes “it’s very expensive for five people to buy Magic tickets.”
The centerpiece of Chabad of Greater Orlando’s project is a new, three-story synagogue featuring a grand columned entrance and hosting a 60-child daycare. It would rise at the southeast corner of Morse Boulevard and Knowles Avenue. (City of Winter Park)
Dubov could not be reached for comment Friday. However, in a phone interview Oct. 16 he said neither he nor anyone else with Chabad had directly given Ingram tickets to the game.
The project as initially proposed would replace three buildings containing 35 apartments at the southeast corner of Morse Boulevard and Knowles Avenue with five townhomes and a three-story synagogue. The synagogue would include an 80-seat worship space, a daycare for up to 60 children and a rooftop gathering area. The congregation currently meets in a rented space on North Park Avenue.
Although Ingram was part of the 3-2 vote advancing the project Aug. 28, in the Sept. 9 meeting she joined a 4-1 vote to delay a final vote until Oct. 28. She said then she still had concerns about noise and traffic generated by events on the rooftop venue, among others, on the little more than half an acre at 210 E. Morse Blvd. During meetings residents have been almost evenly divided about project, with some speaking in favor but others urging the commission to vote it down.
The commission agenda for Wednesday’s meeting lists the project’s next vote. However, it also says the applicant has requested tabling it until Dec. 9.