The mayors of Colleyville, Keller and Southlake have issued a letter demanding the Tarrant Appraisal District board of directors appoint a new chief appraiser following a series of scandals that have plagued the agency over the past year.
In a letter dated Aug. 24, Colleyville Mayor Bobby Lindamood, Keller Mayor Armin Mizani, and Southlake Mayor John Huffman stated that they “refuse to sit complacent while the Tarrant Appraisal District tries to justify yet another scandal.”
Enough is enough. Joint statement from the Mayors of Keller, Southlake, and Colleyville demanding that the TAD Board of Directors appoint a new chief appraiser. Taxpayers in Tarrant County are tired of scandal after scandal at the Tarrant Appraisal District. pic.twitter.com/ulx13jaof2
— Armin Mizani (@ArminMizaniTX) August 24, 2023
The letter comes after a published news story revealed a top-level TAD executive, Cal Wood, suggested “creating a false narrative that distances the truth from the media.” That executive has since been suspended pending an investigation.
The mayors write in their letter that the executive’s comment is “both outrageous and a breach of the public’s trust.” Huffman, Lindamood and Mizani are calling for a “vote of no confidence” in Jeff Law, TAD’s chief appraiser.
Tony Pompa, chair of the TAD board of directors, said in a statement that he recognizes the letter posted online and the concerns laid out in it.
“We hear you and take this public statement very seriously,” Pompa said.
Pompa said he is currently in discussions with the board’s attorney and will make a public comment at the appropriate time.
This is the latest flare in tension between the appraisal district and several municipalities in Tarrant County.
Back in June 2022, Randy Armstrong, a director at the appraisal district, was investigated for potentially abusing his position to file a complaint against a tax consultant. The board of directors were in violation of the Open Meetings Act that same month after locking out speakers who had shown up in support of the tax consultant.
Following this incident, Law was suspended for two weeks.
The Tarrant Appraisal District made headlines again in March when the board’s chair, Kathryn Wilemon, resigned amid calls for a recall of her seat, raising legal questions. The chair was eventually replaced after the city of Keller threatened a lawsuit against the appraisal district. The board also voted to keep Law employed as chief appraiser.
Editor’s note: This story was updated Aug. 24 to include a statement from Tony Pompa, chair of the Tarrant Appraisal District board of directors.
Sandra Sadek is a Report for America corps member, covering growth for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at sandra.sadek@fortworthreport.org or on Twitter at @ssadek19.
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