A Florida mayor abruptly resigned last Friday after outlining a pattern of “corrupt behavior” throughout his small town's government in a shocking letter sent to all residents.
“What's going on in our little town is just wrong,” former Madeira Beach Mayor Jim Rostek told Fox 13 on Wednesday. “I'm sorry I have to step down. This is for my health. Please keep fighting. I'll always be on your side. Please keep doing the right thing.”
According to the June 14 letter, reviewed by Fox News Digital, Rostec's complaint points to Mayor Robin Ignacio Gomez and his “discretionary” and “discriminatory” enforcement of the rules.
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Madeira Beach, Florida, Mayor Jim Rostek resigned on Friday and sent a letter to all area residents denouncing “corrupt practices” in city government. (Fox 13 Tampa)
“I am sorry to be stepping down, but as Mayor, I cannot be complicit in Gomez's corrupt behavior, his roundabout language, his lies, his preferential treatment of some, his discriminatory enforcement practices, or in his daily waste of taxpayer money and his attempts to justify it,” Rostek wrote. “At the end of the day, some people get to heaven and some don't. I will always do what is ethical and right, but some people don't.”
The outgoing mayor alleged that Gomez had ignored Rostec's requests to institute life jacket regulations, smoking regulations and a formal ban on cellphone use for city employees operating city boats and vehicles.
“I had residents take pictures of the code enforcement boats, and there are people on board without life jackets, going about their duties,” Rostek added. “Smoking regulations… I've seen one or two people smoking in city vehicles. There is a federal law on this subject. He refuses to enforce the regulations.”
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Mayor Jim Rostek of Madeira Beach, Florida, described himself as a strict ethics and safety advocate and said he fought mismanagement, which led to recurring health problems. (Google Maps)
Rostec complained that he saw city sanitation workers holding onto the back of their trucks with one hand and typing texts with the other.
“Gomez is well-liked by employees because, in my opinion, it's 'runaway camp,'” he said. “We should set an example for the public.”
Rostec also alleges that his former colleagues engaged in technically legal but unethical financial practices, including circumventing commission approval for projects totaling more than $30,000 by negotiating multiple line item contracts for lesser amounts instead of issuing requests for proposals.
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Madeira Beach, Florida, Mayor Robin Gomez had her contract renewed by the city commission this week through 2028. (City of Madeira Beach)
Attached to the June 14 email was a separation agreement between Gomez and the city of Clarkston, Georgia. The document, dated Sept. 7, 2021, states that Gomez voluntarily resigned as the city's mayor and that he and city officials cannot discuss his history with the city with other parties.
Rostek told Fox 13 he has strict principles about ethics, safety and city accountability, and that stress from disputes with former colleagues has led to multiple health scares.
“I told him, 'You can't just pay lip service to this,'” Rostek said. “I said, 'You need to have a policy to back up what you're telling them, because if it goes to court you won't have anything to back it up,'” he told the outlet. “If you can't do the little things right, how are you going to do the big things?”
“God only knows what else is going on,” he continued. “Until we investigate and dig deep, we don't know what we don't know.”
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Following Rostek's resignation, she was replaced by Ann Marie Brooks, a former Madeira Beach District 4 commissioner. (City of Madeira Beach)
In an email to Fox 13, Gomez denied Rostek's allegations.
“While Mr. Rostec is entitled to his opinion, the City has offered responses and solutions to his comments that Mr. Rostec does not fully support, agree with or understand,” Gomez wrote. “It is unfortunate that Mr. Rostec's disagreement and misunderstanding of City processes and policies has led him to state and enumerate allegations of corruption that are completely unfounded and false.”
“We continue to carry out our daily operations and responsibilities in the most ethical manner, in accordance with federal, state, county and city laws, ordinances and statutes,” he continued.
In Rostek's absence, former city commissioner Ann Marie Brooks became Madeira Beach's mayor.
Gomez wrote that city administrators will be holding a special meeting next week to fill her vacant seat on the commission.
According to TBN Weekly, the commissioners voted to extend Gomez's contract through 2028.
Meanwhile, Rostek told Fox 13, “Someone at the state level has reached out. [him]”About allegations of corruption in a small town.”