CAPE CORAL, Fla. — The City of Cape Coral has released its formal response to allegations raised against its Building Division, saying an internal review found no violations of state law or city policy as a state-ordered audit moves forward.
The response comes after the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association (CCCIA) asked state lawmakers to intervene, alleging the city improperly used building permit fees, overcharged contractors, violated Florida law and engaged in discriminatory practices.
Those allegations prompted the Florida Joint Legislative Auditing Committee to direct the Auditor General’s Office to conduct an operational audit of the city’s Building Division.
City Manager Michael Ilczyszyn said city staff spent the last three weeks reviewing all 26 assertions outlined in the association’s letter to state officials. According to Ilczyszyn, the city has now published documents addressing each allegation and providing supporting records.
“We have provided the city response to each one of those with documentation showing how we are compliant with city policy, state law, or generally accepted accounting principles,” Ilczyszyn said.
Ilczyszyn said the city’s review found that building department operations and financial practices complied with state statutes, internal policies and government accounting standards. The city said it welcomes independent oversight and will cooperate fully with the Auditor General’s audit, which is expected to begin early next year.
“We have annual audits of our financial records. We have internal audits of our internal processes,” Ilczyszyn said. “And in a case like this, we’ll have an external auditor that will come in and look at our practices.”
The CCCIA, which represents contractors, builders and developers, alleges that building permit fees were used for unrelated city expenses and that certain practices contributed to higher construction costs and delays. The association took its concerns to state Rep. Mike Giallombardo, who requested the state-level review.
“My constituents called for an audit. They called for transparency,” Giallombardo said. “And so we’re going to give it to them.”
Giallombardo said the city’s internal review does not replace an independent audit, which could return different results.
“Of course they’re going to come out and say they did nothing wrong,” said Giallombardo. “We want this audit to come through. We want to see where everything is. We want to make sure that it’s transparent. If they’ve done a great job and there are no issues, it is what it is.”
Cape Coral’s full response to each allegation is publicly available online and emphasized that the internal review was conducted to prepare for the state audit and to inform residents ahead of that process.
