The Salt Lake City Council is making good on its promise to thoroughly investigate Mayor Deedee Corradini's solicitation and acceptance of $211,000 from influential Utahns to pay a personal debt.

Tuesday, the council's staff sent out a memorandum to all city departments asking for any and all information regarding the 27 donors and more than 70 businesses associated with the donors.Seven letters were also mailed Tuesday to individual donors asking for their cooperation in the council's investigation.

In November, the mayor released a list of people who'd given or loaned her money to help pay a debt she incurred in a settlement agreement with the Bonneville Pacific trustee. Corradini was an officer in a sister company to Bonneville Pacific and entered into the settlement agreement to avoid being named in any civil lawsuits.

The mayor asked Salt Lake District Attorney Neal Gunnarson to look into her actions to determine whether she'd broken any municipal ethics laws. He determined in late March that she had not. His investigation and all records related to it are sealed because of a court order.

But in January, the council hired Massachusetts attorney Martin Healey to look into the matter for them. They have said they're looking at slightly different issues and just want to make sure the matter is thoroughly investigated. Their probe is expected to cost about $15,000.

Tuesday's memo says the attached list is a more complete list of businesses associated with the donors, and asks the seven department heads to review all available records associated with any of them.

Specifically, the council is looking for any correspondence or other documents related to contracts or agreements with any of the donors or businesses.

The council would also like to review any documents related to reclassification of real property, including zoning changes, the memo said.

The request excludes any documents that have already been provided to the council, which are the same documents provided to the District Attorney's Office when it conducted its investigation.

View Comments

In addition to reviewing more city documents, the council staff wants Buzz owner Joe Buzas, Jazz owner Larry Miller, businessmen Richard Winwood, James L. So-ren-son and Spencer Eccles and labor union leaders Gordon Ottley and Ed Mayne to voluntarily release the transcripts of their interviews with investigators from the District Attorney's Office.

The letters ask each man to give to the council copies of any correspondence or other records relating to the payment of the cash gifts or loans, excluding bank records. It also asks for copies of records related to business transactions with the city.

The letters state if the donor believes the documents being requested are already public, he can just provide the council with a list of the documents.

Council staff expect responses from the memo and letters in about a week. Healey, who is the head of the Rhode Island Ethics Commission, is not in Utah, but will review all the information gathered by the staff.

Join the Conversation
Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.