Councilman sees no conflicts in new job

City Councilman Andraé McGary said Tuesday he saw no conflicts of interest in his new job as interim executive director for the Chattanooga Homeless Coalition and said he planned to be completely transparent about his financial dealings with the organization.

BY THE NUMBERSThe City Council approves three different funds each year for the Chattanooga Homeless Coalition. The funds for 2010-2011 include:* $56,000: Money for Centralized Intake Program to pay salaries and benefits for case managers* $34,000: Annual match for U.S. Housing and Urban Development funding* $25,000: Money provided for the Continuum of Care applicationSource: Chattanooga

If the City Council were to vote on anything with a financial interest for the coalition, he would disclose it to the full body, he said. He also would not vote on the measure, he said.

"I would abstain," Mr. McGary said.

Council Chairman Manny Rico said this week he would like a ruling from the city attorney. Mr. Rico said he disagreed with Mr. McGary's position.

"That's a conflict of interest from what I understand," Mr. Rico said. "We give money from the coalition, and he would be getting a salary from that."

Mr. McGary said he was hired by the Chattanooga Homeless Coalition on March 15 under a contractual basis for $50,000 annually as an interim head while the coalition's board conducted a search for a new director. Karen Blevins, the former executive director, stepped down from the post.

He also said he does not receive any of the money provided by the city or federal agencies. Mr. McGary said his salary is funded completely by private donations such as money raised through the annual Grateful Gobbler walk.

Julianne Crow, president of the coalition's board, did not return a call for comment.

Mr. McGary said he was told by City Attorney Mike McMahan that there was not a conflict of interest with city or state laws, but that there could be some issues with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which also provides funds to the group.

Mr. McMahan confirmed this week there could be some issues with HUD, but he did not go into specifics. He said he met with Mr. McGary Monday evening to talk, but nothing was resolved.

"I don't see it being resolved this week," he said.

Mr. McGary said he has "not even considered" applying for the position permanently. He worked at the agency as director of planning before being elected last April to the City Council. He left the position to concentrate on his council work.

In January, he took a job as a consultant with Mark Making, a group that advocates for public funding of the arts. He said he did not feel there were any conflicts of interest with that job because it does not receive any city money.

He said he would consider resigning if the board of directors thought there would be.

"First and foremost, the decision is the board's," he said.

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