In 2008, Ward 5 Councilmember Harry Thomas, Jr. threw his support behind a proposal from developer EYA to build 237 townhouses on the grounds of St. Paul’s College in Ward 5.

The project was controversial: Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 5C opposed it, and the DC Zoning Commission – the entity responsible for approving the development – gave it a lukewarm reception. Several DC Zoning Commissioners questioned the project, describing its architecture and building materials as uninspiring and of indifferent quality.

The Zoning Commissioners ultimately overcame their reservations and voted 3-1-1 to approve the development in November of last year.

Whether the outcome would have been different without Councilmember Thomas’ staunch support for the project is unknown.

Mr. Thomas wrote a letter to the Zoning Commission on June 27, 2008 praising EYA’s proposal and expressing his unqualified support. Mr. Thomas’ Senior Policy Analyst, Vicky Leonard, read testimony on the councilmember’s behalf in front of the Zoning Commission, calling the project “exceptional.”

This testimony was cited in the Zoning Commission Order approving the development.

Mr. Thomas did not disclose to the Zoning Commission that the day before he wrote his letter of support, EYA revised its proposal to include a $40,000 payment to an organization newly formed by the councilmember.

The organization, called the Ward 5 Business Council, had been created by Mr. Thomas six weeks before, in May 2008. Mr. Thomas appointed the organization’s three board members: staff member Vicky Leonard, and Ward 5 residents Andre Tyler and James Grayton. Mr. Tyler was named president and Ms. Leonard was named treasurer.

Thousands of pages of official documents, transcripts, and emails were reviewed by Brookland Heartbeat for this article, some of them obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Numerous people involved were interviewed.

Acting in her official capacity as a member of Mr. Thomas’ staff, Ms. Leonard negotiated with EYA Vice President Jack Lester to secure $40,000 for the Ward 5 Business Council as part of the “community amenities package” for the EYA/St. Paul’s development. The amount was ultimately increased to $55,000.

A “community amenities package” is a set of donations and improvements made by a developer to offset the impact of its development on the local community.

EYA Vice President Jack Lester was emphatic that EYA’s $55,000 donation to the Ward 5 Business Council was unconnected to Mr. Thomas’ letter of support for the project.

Councilmember Thomas’ support “had nothing to do with the amenities package,” stated Mr. Lester, who said that Mr. Thomas supported the project even before the details of the amenities package were worked out.

According to official documents, neither Mr. Thomas nor Ms. Leonard disclosed the nature of their relationship with the Ward 5 Business Council to the Zoning Commission or to the parties involved. Mr. Thomas would not comment for this article except to say that he believed disclosure had been made. Ms. Leonard made no comment.

Mr. Lester said he knew little about the Ward 5 Business Council and its ties to Councilmember Thomas. He said he was unaware that Vicky Leonard was its treasurer and a board member.

The Ward 5 Business Council does not make its leadership structure and Ms. Leonard’s role in the organization public. At the group’s meetings, Ms. Leonard presents herself as a representative of Councilmember Thomas and does not identify herself as an officer and board member of the organization. President Andre Tyler would not provide the names of the Ward 5 Business Council’s officers and board members when asked at a recent meeting of the group. The organization’s website and brochure do not include information about its leadership.

Failure to disclose a potential conflict of interest by a government official is punishable by a $2,000 fine from the DC Board of Elections and Ethics.

By raising money through the Ward 5 Business Council, Mr. Thomas gains access to funds that are not subject to the regulation and disclosure requirements of the DC Office of Campaign Finance.

The Zoning Commission Order approving the EYA development states that the Ward 5 Business Council is supposed to use the $55,000 payment to provide grants and training to small businesses located in ANC 5C.

However, according to Leigh Johnson, Compliance Manager in the DC Office of Zoning, the DC government and the public do not have the authority to require organizations that receive amenities funds to use the money for its intended purpose.

The Ward 5 Business Council has no experience administering grant programs.

Silas Grant, the ANC Commissioner where the development will be located, opposed EYA’s application in part because of the money going to the Ward 5 Business Council.

In letters to EYA and the Zoning Commission, Mr. Grant expressed skepticism that giving money to the Ward 5 Business Council would benefit the nearby businesses that would be most impacted by the development.

In fact, the idea of adding the Ward 5 Business Council to the amenities package appears to have originated in discussions between Vicky Leonard and Jack Lester. No records indicate that members of the community requested the funding. Other elements of the amenities package, such as the scholarship fund, repairs to Shaed Elementary School, and improvements to a local triangle park, were the result of suggestions from Mr. Grant or members of the community.

In a scathing letter sent to DC Zoning Commission Chairman Anthony Hood in September 2008, Mr. Grant called attention to changes EYA had made to the amenities package without consulting the community, including increasing the funding for the Ward 5 Business Council from $40,000 to $55,000.

Mr. Grant wrote: “As a representative for the community, I was never approached or contacted by [EYA] about any of their alterations to the amenities package. This package…was never presented before ANC 5C or the constituents in the immediate community impacted by the development proposal.”

ANC 5C passed a resolution opposing the development based on Mr. Grant’s concerns about the amenities package and the development’s impact on traffic.

Mr. Grant’s persistence in the matter apparently alarmed EYA Vice President Jack Lester, who emailed Vicky Leonard in November 2008 to say: “[Silas Grant] wants very much for the $55,000 proffered to the Ward 5 Business Council to be brought under the control of a different entity. . . . I will give you a call tomorrow to talk about how to avoid being further delayed by Silas.”

In his testimony before the Zoning Commission, Mr. Lester was emphatic that the amenities package reflected the wishes of the community. At one hearing, Mr. Lester said: “I want it to be clear that none of these amenities came from EYA or anyone at EYA nor did any one of them come from Councilmember Thomas or his staff.”

Damien Agostinelli, who lives near the development site, said his concerns about traffic during and after project construction were never resolved. Mr. Agostinelli said amenities packages amounted to “legal bribery,” because some people benefited from them “to the detriment of the people who are directly affected.”