Lafayette, Calif., Nov. 5, 2015.
The California Grand Jurors’ Association has granted the 2015 News Media
Excellence in Reporting Award to the Lompoc Record for its news coverage of “A
Failure of Oversight: Lompoc Housing and Community Development Corporation,” a report issued by the 2011-12 Santa Barbara County Grand
Jury.
The Lompoc Housing and Community Development Corporation is a nonprofit
organization that owns and operates homeless shelters and many other affordable
housing projects in the Lompoc area. In January 2012, the corporation suddenly
(with five days notice) closed two homeless shelters on a holiday weekend. That
fact coupled with complaints of homes in disrepair and defaults on loan
payments indicated that the corporation was in serious trouble. The Grand Jury
received several citizen complaints requesting an investigation into what went
wrong. By the beginning of 2012, 30 of the corporation’s 42 properties had been
repossessed by lenders, placed in receivership or foreclosed upon.
The Grand Jury’s report addressed oversight (or its lack) and the steps
the County and City of Lompoc should have taken to protect the public’s
investment in funds loaned to the corporation.
The report focused on the relationship between the County and the City
of Lompoc as conduits of funds to the corporation as a provider of affordable
housing and the monitoring undertaken on behalf of the taxpayer.
The Lompoc Record, (LompocRecord.com) a local
online news outlet, made the Grand Jury’s report available to its readers and
published 25 articles describing and following up on the Grand Jury’s findings.
This reporting encouraged the Santa Barbara County District Attorney to look
into the nonprofit's operations. It also revealed a potential conflict of
interest involving a county supervisor.
The California Grand Jurors’ Association is a statewide nonprofit
organization of current and former grand jurors throughout the state. The
association’s mission is “to promote, preserve and support the grand jury
system through training, education and outreach.”
The News
Media Excellence in Reporting Award program recognizes individuals and media
that have created positive changes in their communities and increased awareness
of the California Grand Jury system. The award was presented on November 2 at
the association’s 34th annual conference held in Lafayette.
November 5, 2015
California
Grand Jurors’ Association
Press Release.
Contact Jim Ragan, Public Relations Director (805) 927-2723,
jimragan@charter.net
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