Scrutinized Fair Official To Quit Job Cotter, Reprimanded In 1994, Faced List Of Allegations Following Fairgrounds Probe
A Spokane Interstate Fair manager will resign rather than answer a list of allegations against him.
“Some opportunities came up that I can’t turn down … It has nothing to do with the county at all,” said operations manager Jim Cotter.
Cotter would not elaborate about his job offer, except to say that it’s in Spokane.
In November, county officials hired a private investigator to look into employees’ allegations of corruption at the fairgrounds.
Following that investigation, Fran Boxer, director of parks, recreation and the fair, sent Cotter a list of allegations, telling him to respond or risk being fired.
Boxer won’t say what was alleged, except that the charges deal with “management issues and safety concerns” and “credibility concerns.” Cotter was not accused of anything criminal, Boxer said.
Cotter, an 11-year employee whose resignation is effective March 17, wouldn’t discuss the allegations. He said he probably won’t respond to Boxer’s letter.
“People who know me know the truth and that’s all that’s necessary,” he said, adding that “I’ve got no grudge” against the county.
Cotter was reprimanded in 1994 for making derogatory comments about fairgrounds customers who are homosexual. Last October, he was suspended for five days without pay for alleged sexual harassment of a female co-worker.
Cotter’s letter of resignation complains of a “lack of support and direction from my previous managers and the total lack of support from Human Resources.
“When it comes to credibility issues, in my opinion, this department rates the lowest, which reflects on your managers in the field,” the letter states.
Boxer took over management of the fairgrounds in November, after Manager Paul Gillingham was forced to resign due to mismanagement.
In a written response to Cotter, Boxer said she couldn’t respond to his complaints about earlier managers or the county’s human resources department.
, DataTimes