TOLEDO, Ohio — Toledo’s troubled fire escrow account received another blow earlier this month when demolition coordinator Stephanie Beebe resigned from the position she held for a little more than a year.
The demolition coordinator oversees the fire escrow account, which holds insurance money for those homeowners whose homes have been damaged or destroyed by fire. Once repairs have been made, the money – after inspections have been completed – is to be released. However, for years, dozens of refunds have been forfeited and considered abandoned after the city said they could not find the rightful owners. 11 Investigates has found multiple people.
Beebe began overseeing the account on March 4, 2022, when she was named demolition coordinator. Fire escrow management is a small part of the job, which largely involves oversight of the city’s demolition of blighted or damaged homes.
11 Investigates obtained Beebe’s resignation email and personnel file. She submitted her resignation on May 31, and her resignation went into effect on June 14. She cited the “need to spend some time taking care of myself and changing things in my life.”
In a phone conversation on Monday afternoon, Beebe said she has struggled with her emotional health since a family tragedy in late 2021 and that the stress of the position, along with the politics involved, was affecting her performance.
“Leaving the city will be better for me. I don’t think I dealt with it well. But I worked hard to serve the community and I did for many years,” she said, indicating she worked for the Lucas County Land Bank before moving to the city position.
In May, she was reprimanded for “dishonesty, failure to follow directions, and conduct unbecoming a city of Toledo employee.” The issue involved her presenting at an Ohio Healthy Homes Network Spring Conference. Commissioner Dennis Kennedy said she not only misled him about the fact that she would be presenting, but also that she misrepresented her role in the city. But a short biography on the conference’s web page does list her as the city’s demolition coordinator.
The same discipline letter also said that Beebe was not reporting to work during her regularly scheduled hours and was taking extended breaks.
In December, she was also disciplined for excessive use of sick time – 135 hours – and vacation time.
Beebe said the absenteeism was largely because of trying to deal with the family crisis. But she adamantly disagreed with the discipline last month. She refused to sign the letter from Kennedy.
“I think that did spur me to put in my two weeks’ notice. I was very upset by it. I don’t have a history of misrepresenting myself. That’s not who I am,” she said.
The city did not grant a sit-down interview with Kennedy to discuss the future direction of the position. Rachel Hart, the interim director of communications and marketing, did say that the demolition coordinator position has been posted and is a priority for the city.
Hart also wrote in an email that “we are continuing to work our process – a process that has released over 600 escrow payments since 2015.”
But there continue to be issues with the fund. In April, the city moved nearly $37,000 back into the fire escrow account after it was transferred to the demolition fund in November. The April action followed a February 11 Investigates report that found several people who the city had not been able to contact and who the city said had abandoned their refunds.
The $37,000 involved seven homeowners, including one woman found by 11 Investigates who was owed more than $11,000. At an April agenda review, Kennedy told council that the remaining six were discovered by city staff, who had reached out to them and determined they were owed refunds. But 11 Investigates has talked to five of those six, and none of them have said they were in contact with the city. Some claimed they had given up on getting refunds years ago.
A man owed $10,000 said he has been in contact with Kennedy about the refund. The man claimed Kennedy told him that it would require council action to release those funds.
11 Investigates followed up with the city but has yet to hear back about his situation. The April legislation, however, reads: “authorizing the release ... to the appropriate insured parties as an account closure of funds held in escrow.”
One of those six that Kennedy mentioned received her refund after 11 Investigates put her in contact with the city.
Since our first investigation aired in February, more than $500,000 has been returned to residents.