Tough CP Questions Reserved for "Goo-Goos," I Guess

An Enclave reader who is also a long-time gadfly of Charlie Tygard pointed me to the following problem in a recent City Paper article:

Based on the following CP article, it appears that Tygard is trying to get funds for a non-profit for which he is a board member. Doesn't this constitute a conflict of interest? And hasn't he already done something like this before? A couple years ago I think he got funds for a non-profit that he was the treasurer for. And, of course, we all know how he likes to use non-profits for his campaigns.

These are significant questions that some--including CP reporter Nate Rau--should have asked Tygard. It seems to constitute a conflict of interest, and typically those on whom we depend to root that information out are reporters. But even with Rau reporting that Tygard is seeking $15,000 for the Bellevue Exchange Club Foundation, he didn't bother to follow up with Tygard.

In 2007, when Tygard was Treasurer of the Bellevue Exchange Club Foundation, Metro initially denied a request he made for $5,000 for lights for the organization's ballfield. A couple of months later he moved to earmark $10,000 for the BECF out of the council's infamous discretionary funds.

Calling Charlie Tygard "Council Member at-Large" seems to be a misnomer. He's never stopped representing certain Bellevue interests as far as I can see. Being at-Large only gives him a larger platform from which to do so.