Central Florida Tourism Oversight District hired ethics board member for 911 service contract

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — When Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida legislature targeted Walt Disney World, they said it was to bring in some accountability. The governor hand-picked a new board to oversee the land, but a no-bid deal by the new board raises questions about exactly who is getting paid and how.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Glen Gilzean, who resigned from the Florida Commission on Ethics to keep his $400,000 a year job as the head of the new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District overseeing Disney, discussed a new system he said will improve 911 calls and response times.

“The district is investing a million dollars for a new communication network and completely separating from the Walt Disney World system,” Gilzean said.

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]

And that million-dollar investment will go to Freddie Figgers, a ethics commission member where Gilzean worked just two months ago.

Channel 9 told you in late August that Gilzean resigned from the Commission on Ethics because it was illegal for him to hold both jobs. Figgers was appointed to the ethics commission in July. According to emails, district employees reached out to Figgers as the CEO of Figgers communication consulting firm for his services in early August. Then, less than a week later, a contract was sent over for approval and the deal was done without open bids from other companies. The district said that’s because Figgers communication was able to commit within the compressed timeframe for this important migration of 911 wireless calls.

Read: Jacksonville mother wants answers after her son, who had Down syndrome, was hit and killed on I-95

The district did not accept our invitation for an interview on the deal, but when we asked a spokesperson if his price was fair, we were told when it comes to public safety the district says it looks at qualifications and experience to pick a firm.

As for Figgers, his media team provided a statement that read in part: “This new architecture will enable all wireless emergency calls to be directly routed to the district’s 911 system, significantly reducing response times and potentially saving lives.”

Figger’s people said the contract will be substantially less than a million dollars but haven’t given us a figure yet.

CLICK HERE for the original article by WFTV.

Read: Jacksonville Mayor Deegan announces resignation of Director of Community Initiatives Lakesha Burton

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.