The chairwoman of College Park’s Business and Industrial Development Authority and her family are reiterating that there is no conflict of interest between her role as an appointed official and her company RSW Services, which is operated by her husband, Rex Willis.
During public comment at Monday’s city council meeting, Subrenia Willis said she and her family have provided decades of service to College Park, and she believes a recent SaportaReport story misrepresented her character.
“I’ve never tried to save anything for me or my family,” she said.
The story reported that public records obtained by College Park resident Elizabeth Lester showed RSW Services was paid more than $1 million by the city over two fiscal years. It also examined whether Willis’ position as chairwoman of the Business and Industrial Development Authority presents a potential conflict of interest.
College Park’s Standards of Conduct state, in part: “No city official, employee or appointee shall enter into any contract with the city except as specifically authorized by state statutes. Any city official, employee or appointee who has a proprietary interest in an agency doing business with the city shall make known that interest in writing to the city council and city clerk.”
Rex Willis also defended the family during public comment, saying there was no conflict of interest.
“BIDA has never received anything from RSW. Not one thing,” Willis said. “I did a job on BIDA, and initially didn’t know it was BIDA’s property when I got asked to do it. But it’s still not illegal to do it.”
It was unclear whether Willis was referring to renovations RSW has performed at Price Barber Shop, a property owned by the Business and Industrial Development Authority that is undergoing historic preservation. An amount of at least $200,000 has been allotted from the city budget for historic renovation of the barbershop and an adjacent duplex.
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