Questions of a possibly unethical discounted weekend vacation are being raised after the Press-Telegram reported on Friday evening that Craig Beck, director of the Long Beach Redevelopment Department, received a discounted bill from a company that is considering building hotels in Long Beach.
Beck and his wife accompanied a lobbyist named Mike Murchison, who represents Avia Hotels. Murchison’s wife also attended.
The District Weekly on Saturday night reported that writer Dave Wielenga spoke with City Manager Pat West about the matter several days before the P-T broke the story, and that West told Wielenga three versions concerning what he knew about the trip. West told Wielenga that he did not have knowledge of the situation, then revised his story gradually. According to the P-T story, West learned of the situation several days before he spoke with Wielenga.
The District also reported that Kraig Kojian, head of the Downtown Long Beach Associates, was on the trip as well.
The P-T reports that according to Beck, his wife handled the hotel checkout and he noticed the discount when he returned home and called the hotel to paid the full amount. The story says that Beck and Murchison are longtime friends, that the trip was personal, that the trip does not appear to violate any laws or City regulations, and that Beck and West will meet to discuss the situation on Monday.