Councilman Alan Marchione
MARICOPA, AZ. – August 21, 2012 – On May 25, 2012, City Manager Brenda Fischer provided City Attorney Denis Fitzgibbons with a complaint alleging City Councilman Alan Marchione communicated with certain city staff members in an unprofessional manner.
Due to the parties involved and the nature of the complaint, the City requested that Attorney Bill Sims conduct a neutral fact finding investigation, regarding the allegation in the complaint.
Mr. Sims currently represents five cities and towns throughout Arizona and
serves as the Legal Counsel for the Arizona Municipal Risk Retention Pool, which is comprised of 76 cities and towns.
The goal of the investigation was to determine if inappropriate behavior by Council member Marchione occurred and if so, to address and cease it while protecting the City from liability. Based on his investigation findings, Mr. Sims made six recommendations aimed at improving and strengthening the City’s personnel practices and code.
Those recommendations include:
1. Council adopting a Code of Ethics
2. Clarifying the Personnel Manual to more clearly address intra-office
communications, grievance reporting procedures and prohibitions on retaliation
3. Amending the City Code to include a censure provision
4. Providing Staff and Council training on the council-manager form of government, as well the City’s personnel policies and practices
5. Councilman Marchione has agreed that for the remainder of his current term he will communicate with City staff through the City Manager or her designee and copy the City Manager on all written communications with staff
6. To avoid the appearance of conflict of interest or possible retaliation, Councilman Marchione has agreed to recuse himself from any personnel matters involving the City Manager for the remainder of his current term.
The City Council adopted these recommendations at its City Council meeting on August 21, 2012.
Mayor Christian Price stated “it has been greatly appreciated that throughout the duration of this investigation, Councilman Marchione, City Manager Brenda Fischer and the current and former City employees who were interviewed, demonstrated the professionalism that best characterizes the employees who work for the City of Maricopa. This has been a learning experience for all involved and the City work environment will be stronger for having gone
through this. We are taking the necessary actions to make sure similar misunderstandings are less likely to occur in the future. I also want to acknowledge both City Manager Fischer for bringing these issues forward and Councilman Marchione’s voluntary acceptance of Bill Sims’ recommendations.”
Mayor Price further stated “I speak for the entire Council when I say that we are pleased the investigation is complete, that Council adopted the recommendations making us a stronger community moving forward and that we can continue to focus on making the City of Maricopa a great place to work, locate a business and raise a family.”
Information in this article was provided verbatim to Maricopa360.com via official press release.
Alan Marchione should resign and reimburse the city for the cost of the investigation.
Mr. Marchione had this cloud over him during his campaign and is now varified by his actions as councilman. He should resign but I doubt that will happen. It’s not like this was an isolated occurance against one person but involved numerous complaints from several individuals. Interesting he had the nerve to talk retaliation and his integrity. We will never know the truth but as was the case with previous council members where there is smoke there is fire.
Trying to label people that call for his resignation as playing politics is rediculas. It just shows his arrogance and the belief that he is above everyone else.
Alan, quit staring at Brenda’s Ta Ta’s. I know it’s hard, but c’mon dude, get a pron movie or something.
http://www.inmaricopa.com/Article/2012/08/22/fischer-city-manager-council-report-sexual-harrassment-investigation-marchione
“Two of the incidents directly involved Fischer.
In one, she alleges Marchione spoke to her about his personal sex life inappropriately and in another she said he referred to their relationship in an untrue and vulgar manner.”
More details will come out about Marchione and his inappropriate behavior. Again, his arrogance prevents him from doing the right thing. This slap on the wrist only encourages bad behavior. His behavior shows a complete disrespect for women, city employees, his wife & family and the city council.
But that’s not enough to get him to resign. The only thing that will work is a public outcry.
Mark, I think you meant former wife. She got out a while back. I feel badly for her that she has to endure the stigma attached to having her kids have the last name of Marchione. I understand she took back her maiden name after the divorce. Again you are correct in saying that he had a cloud handing over him in the election, as I understand it, the black cloud of inappropriateness has followed him his entire career.
I’ve only met his once but that was enough. He presented himself as a know it and everyone person who pretty much felt he was the cog in the wheel that made Maricopa run. What BS. My friends who live in the Villages were happy when he decided not to run for re-election to the Board there. They hold a similar bad opinion of him.
It certainly would be the most appropriate and perhaps the most reasonable thing if he just resigned, saved the City a lot of time and monetary resources, surrendered his what I’ve heard are his overleveraged, underwater and probably about ready to be foreclosed on homes.
I applaud Mrs. Fischer for reporting the incidents brought to her attention. Sexual harassment in and out of the workplace cannot be tolerated.
Lastly, I think Mayor Price should have a ‘come to Jesus” talk with Alan and tell him that he cannot be effective as a Council member. After all when nine people come forward with allegations and sign their names to a document, it is not hearsay, it is substantiated; it is not the first time allegations of similar conduct have been claimed against him. I suspect that his tactics of fear kept some from doing something formal as well as the former City Manager’s lack of objectivity.