Miami International Airport deals tarnish image of Mr. Clean

March 22, 2004

Miami International Airport deals tarnish image of Mr.
Clean
Granma International, Cuba

 • THE feud between U.S. Attorney Marcos Jiménez and
Miami-Dade Police Director Carlos Alvarez couldn't
have blown up at a worse time for Mayor Alex Penelas.

Penelas is running as Mr. Squeaky Clean for the U.S.
Senate, and the last thing he wants to be asked about
is the never-ending scandal at Miami International
Airport.

An investigation of contract shenanigans at MIA is the
latest friction point between federal prosecutors and
local police -- and in the middle of the mess is the
mayor's top fund-raiser and political guru.

His name is Chris Korge, and his long tutelage of
Penelas has made him a wealthy fellow. Much of that
wealth has come from deal-making at the airport, and
much of that deal-making was not disclosed to the
public.

More than a year ago, The Herald reported that Host
Marriott Services Corp., which won the lucrative food
and beverage contract at MIA, had funneled more than
$1.7 million to lobbyists and political insiders,
preeminently Korge and friends.

Even before that, the U.S. Attorney's Office, FBI and
Miami-Dade Police had jointly launched a corruption
probe. To date, nobody has been indicted.

Two months ago, police chief Alvarez yanked his
detectives off the case. He said that federal
prosecutors were dragging their heels, and that they
seemed reluctant to pursue individuals with heavy
political connections.

U.S. Attorney Jiménez angrily denied it. He said that
corruption investigations are often complex and
time-consuming, and called it ''indefensible'' for
Alvarez to pull out.

KORGE'S CENTRAL ROLE 

To appreciate how sensitive the MIA case is, it's
important to understand Korge's central role in the
Host Marriott deal, and his clout with the mayor and
the Miami-Dade Commission.

One of South Florida's top Democratic fund-raisers,
Korge is also a lobbyist whose connection with Penelas
has brought him a windfall of business. Of all the
dubious airport contracts, the Host deal in 1998 was
the big enchilada.

For starters, the company privately agreed to give
Korge 10 percent of its profits at MIA -- a laughably
obscene fee for ''political consulting.'' But that
wasn't all. To help Host win the concessions contract,
a bunch of Korge's buddies formed a ''disadvantaged
business enterprise'' called World Wide Concessions,
ostensibly to be minority participants.

The group was supposed to open and manage eight
restaurants, and during the first year MIA reported an
impressive $12.3 million in sales. As it turned out,
the reports were bogus. Not a single restaurant had
yet opened.

Later, it was revealed that Host quietly agreed to pay
$33,225 a month to the so-called minority group, so
that Host itself could keep running the food
concessions.

It gets worse: World Wide was paying Korge 10 percent
of its airport earnings, too. It paid an additional 10
percent to Rodney Barreto, another lobbyist with ties
to Penelas and several county commissioners.

Meanwhile, Host was sliding yet another 10 percent of
its airport booty to a person named Paula Gómez, the
wife of BellSouth vice president Tito Gómez.

PRESENCE NOT REQUIRED?

Mrs. Gómez was initially supposed to operate Burger
Kings at MIA, but her duties quickly evolved into
something less specific -- meaning her presence at MIA
was seldom required.

You probably wouldn't be stunned to learn that her
hubbie is also a pollster, fundraiser and pal of
Penelas. Get the picture?

It's illegal to create a sham minority firm for the
purpose of securing public contracts. Investigators
have been trying to figure out what services, if any,
were provided by Korge's friends, who presented
themselves as ''disadvantaged'' partners.

In reality, no prospective vendors could have had a
greater advantage than Korge's personal blessing.

When this whole stink surfaced 13 months ago, Penelas
responded with his customary mock surprise and feigned
indignation. He claimed to know nothing of the Host
Marriott debacle, or of the outlandish fee
arrangements that enriched so many of his cronies.

“THE VOICE OF INTEGRITY” 

Penelas pointed out that, as mayor, he has no vote on
county contracts. He also restated his support for an
independent airport authority that would take contract
approval away from the commissioners (and,
theoretically, the lobbyists who manipulate them).

In the meantime, though, Penelas has made no move to
sever ties with his lobbyist pals who have turned MIA
into a suckhole of avarice, favoritism and waste.
Korge, in fact, is a key player behind the mayor's
Senate bid.

Neither of them wanted voters to be reminded of what's
happened to the airport. The squabble between
Miami-Dade police and U.S. prosecutors over the Host
case is bad news indeed for the Penelas campaign.

It's not easy to sell yourself as the voice of
integrity, when so many slime trails lead straight to
your door. •

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