Thompson: Detroit Riverfront Conservancy leadership has a lot to prove

Recent revelations that the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, which has been one of the city’s premier jewels, is making major changes, after a massive corruption scandal that took its former chief financial officer William Smith to jail for embezzling $44.3 million is good news. 

The internal financial controls the conservancy is putting in place, including periodic independent audits, is necessary, considering this public body has been the recipient of millions of dollars in taxpayer money as well as private funding over the years. 

No one should provide an excuse for how the conservancy was running its finances under Smith. Yes, Smith was the culprit but the blame should also be placed on everyone who had collective and overall fiduciary responsibility of the organization. The nonprofit should recognize they dropped the ball as a whole and then move forward in a way that instills public trust so it continues to draw support to beautify the riverfront. 

The reduction of its board seat to 30 members from 50 is a good sign. Organizations with that many board members sometimes are bogged down in unnecessary bureaucracy which slows swift decision-making and can lead to less engagement from those who oversee the agency. Some members may feel sidelined because the major decisions often are made by an executive committee. 

In the wake of the riverfront conservancy scandal, some board members reached out to me privately about their own take of events that led to how they believed Smith was running a fraudulent scheme that siphoned millions of dollars, the largest in the region’s history of public corruption scandals. 

For example, one particular board member during a Saturday breakfast meeting told me he was actually not surprised about what happened with Smith because some of them were hardly engaged with the internal activities, especially the financial direction of the group. It was known to most members that only a few people were running the conservancy and that some board members felt like their role was simply ceremonial.

It looked good on a professional resume to be a member of the board of directors of the conservancy. Some of the individuals who were chosen for the board reveled only in the association instead of the responsibilities that came with the title. They knew that being on the board gave them some social capital and allowed them to be in the company of some of the region’s most influential individuals. 

The group must also rethink how it selects board members as well. Simply choosing who has a bigger title in this town should no longer be the qualifier. It should be made up individuals with a deep and profound commitment to the concept and mission of making the riverfront one of the best in the nation. 

The new leadership of the conservancy under CEO Ryan Sullivan has a lot to prove over the next couple of years beyond the issuance of press releases that promise strong changes and a new direction. People want to see that change is not only promised but is self-evident and that this much celebrated institution will continue to serve Detroiters and the region.

The financial scandal was not only a black eye on the organization itself, but also the city.  Organizations like the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy must be exemplary in their conduct and this corruption saga must never happen again. 

 X (formerly Twitter): @BankoleDetNews

bankole@bankolethompson.com

Bankole Thompson’s columns appear on Mondays and Thursdays in The Detroit News.