Council supports city manager, a 'victim' of economic times

Colorado Springs City Manager Penelope Culbreth-Graft may lose her home in California, but she hasn’t lost the support or confidence of her bosses.

Culbreth-Graft and her husband, William, are being sued for allegedly failing to pay a mortgage on their two-story, Cape Cod-style home in Huntington Beach, Calif. Records also show they owe Orange County more than $8,100 in delinquent property taxes.

Culbreth-Graft, who was city manager in Huntington Beach before she was hired to oversee Colorado Springs city government in January 2008, the same month she closed on an $875,000 home in the Broadmoor area, declined to discuss her personal life.

“Unfortunately, I can’t discuss the matter because it involves litigation and my family,” she said in an e-mail.

City Council members defended Culbreth-Graft, saying her situation is a microcosm of the economic downturn and the collapse of the housing market, which has hit California especially hard.

“They’re facing the same kind of financial problems that many Americans are facing, especially ones that own two homes,” Councilman Bernie Herpin said.

“From what I understand, the house in California is going to go into foreclosure. It’s unfortunate, but I can certainly understand how that could happen to a person,” he said.

Councilman Jerry Heimlicher said Culbreth-Graft is “another victim” of the poor economic climate.

“Obviously, she was planning to sell the house (in California) and continue to live here, and everything would have been fine – had that worked – but it got to the point where she wasn’t able to do that,” he said. “It doesn’t lessen my respect for her.”

Councilman Randy Purvis said Culbreth-Graft has continued to serve the city well.

“Of course I’m concerned that this adds stress in her personal life and that it might carry over into her job,” he said. “But so far as I can tell at the moment, she’s continuing to do a fine job.”

Critics, however, question whether it’s hypocritical for council members to place a property tax increase on the November ballot when Culbreth-Graft and her husband haven’t paid their taxes in California.

Vice Mayor Larry Small took umbrage at the question.

“I’m not even going to respond,” he said.

But Councilman Darryl Glenn, the lone council member to oppose the property tax increase, said it was a fair question to ask his eight colleagues who voted to support it.

Regardless, Glenn said he still has “a lot of confidence” in Culbreth-Graft.

“She was very upfront that if this becomes an issue, then we’ll schedule a personnel session,” he said.

Why?

“If an appointee or whatever is in a difficult situation, sometimes people make decisions to allow that person to leave,” he said. “At least as far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t rise to that level.”