Was Mayor Lowes Campaign Website Created with City Resources and Help From City Employees?

UPDATE 4/3/2012:   In a document titled “Proposal for Mayoral Web Page” the Mayor’s office (Craig Lowe and/or Garrett Garner) rationalizes the need for an independent web page for the Mayor in order to;  “facilitate communication between Mayor Lowe and the Citizens of Gainesville.” Document

The web page is contracted to “UNION DESIGN & PHOTO” (UD&P), a media group located in Newberry, Fl. The firm is owned by Jeffrey Edward Stevens and Alicia Kristin Stevens.

The Florida Department of State at SUNBIZ shows fictitious name detail for “UNION DESIGN & PHOTO” but no documents of incorporation were found under either owner’s name -  Jeffrey Edward Stevens or Alicia Kristin Stevens.

Fictitious Name: “UNION DESIGN & PHOTO” Click Here

Corporate Documents for “UNION DESIGN & PHOTO”, Jeffrey Edward Stevens and/or Alicia Kristin Stevens.
Not Found.

The Mayoral web page was planned as an embedded attachment to the City of Gainesville main website maintained by the City’s contracted service.  There is no evidence that the City’s contracted IP had knowledge that they would be tasked with integrating the Mayoral pages into the City of Gainesville’s website created by UD&P.

This photo is disingenuously linked to a Gainesville Sun article that does not refer to Mayor Lowe in any context.

From anectdotal remarks within email exchanges it appears that Garrett Garner had the approval of Mayor Lowe in selecting UD&P to perform the work.

On May 30, 2011 UD&P submitted an invoice (#GM053011) in the amount of $1,060.00 for work performed between 9/4/2010 and 5/30/2011.

In an email from UD&P dated 7/12/2011 to Garrett Garner and “Craig”, Kristen establishes that the Mayoral website was complete and online as of May or June, 2011.  She also reminded Garrett and Craig that she (UD&P) had submitted an invoice. Email 

On the same day (7/12/2011) Garrett Garner sent an email to Kristin at UD&P asking;  “could you send another copy of the invoice along?” ($1,060.00)  invoice

A request for records submitted to Mayoral Aide, Garret Garner on 4/3/2012 revealed that UP&D had been paid the full amount of the $1060.00 invoice from Mayor Lowe’s personal bank account on August 12, 2011.

To date, the Mayoral website appears incomplete and exists as a stand-alone site hosted by “Go-Daddy” systems. The pages that work contain dated material.  For all practical purposes the site continues to appear functionally abandoned.
http://gainesvillemayor.com/

Union Design and Photo website:
http://uniondesignphoto.com/