State to conduct ‘operational audit’ of city’s building division
In wake of CCCIA complaint, city manager says internal review also underway
The city of Cape Coral has begun an internal review of its building department financial practices following a letter written by the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association to state representatives requesting an audit investigation.
The CCCIA sent a letter to Rep. Mike Giallombardo and Sen. Jonathan Martin on Sept. 25 with the subject line “Re: Urgent request for joint legislative auditing committee investigation of Cape Coral Building Department Fund Mismanagement.”
The letter addressed critical areas of concern – apparent violation of Florida Statute 553.80, questionable interdepartmental transfers, systemic operational issues affecting industry and consumers, and impact on Cape Coral community.
The letter requested an investigation focusing on a forensic accounting audit of the Building Department Fund from 2014 to present, a review of all interdepartmental transfers and service fees charged to the building fund, examination of compliance with the statute and assessment of operational practices for consistency and statutory compliance.
“Our Building Industry Oversight Committee has compiled extensive documentation to support this request, which we are prepared to provide for the JLAC. Given the current deficit status of the Building Fund and ongoing impact to our community, we emphasize the time is of the essence,” the letter, signed by Keith Quackenbush, 2025 CCCIA president, states.
City Manager Michael Ilczyszyn said he has received a lot of questions from community members asking if he knew of the audit request.
“I want to be honest with the entire community. No, I did not get a phone call, an email, or text. I was completely blindsided by this action,” he said. “I would like to take a moment to address the letter that was recently submitted by the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association to state elected officials regarding the city’s building department and certain financial and operational concerns.”
Ilczyszyn said as a result, the city has received a subsequent letter from the Joint Legislative Audit Committee indicating they approved a motion to perform an operational audit of the City of Cape Coral Building Department.
He read that letter.
“First, I want to be clear that we take all concerns raised by stakeholders seriously. Letters of this nature warrant careful review, and it is important that we approach them in a manner that is transparent, factual and consistent with good governance,” he said. “The issues raised in the letter spans several years and involve financial practices, fee allocations and operational procedures. Because of that scope, it is essential that any response be based on verified information rather than assumptions or speculations.”
Ilczyszyn said from that perspective, the city has initiated an internal review, a process put into place to evaluate concerns raised, confirm compliance with state law and city policies and to ensure the public has accurate, reliable information.
“My intent throughout this process is straight forward – we want to ensure the facts speak for themselves. At this time, it would not be appropriate to respond point by point to the claims outlined in their letter. Doing so tonight before the internal review is complete risks providing incomplete or inaccurate information. The purpose of the audit is to gather and verify facts, and we will allow that process to move forward without prejudgment. Once the independent review is complete, those findings will be made available to the council and to the public,” he said.
In the meantime, Ilczyszyn wanted to assure residents, the building community and council that the city is committed to full transparency.
“We welcome the independent review and believe it is the best way to ensure confidence and integrity in financial practices and operations of the building division,” he said. “This organization has nothing to gain from speculation and everything to gain from clear and accurate assessment.”
The building department will continue its normal operations, permit processing, inspections and customer service.
“We remain committed to delivering consistent service throughout in supporting our homeowners, builders and contractors. We will also continue structured communication with our partners, including CCCIA, to ensure their concerns are heard and documented while allowing the audit to proceed independently,” Ilczyszyn said.
He said when open communication is handled appropriately, it helps promote trust and avoid misunderstandings.
If the audit shows where improvements can be made, Ilczyszyn said city staff will take corrective action.
“Accountability and continuous improvements are fundamental values in this organization,” he said.
The city has uploaded all the documents that were transmitted to the state on its city website under the open government tab, under Government, at the bottom of www.capecoral.gov. The direct link is https://www.capecoral.gov./government/open_government/index.php#outer-3614sub-3620 .
“Every document. Every piece of information is there. We are going to add this letter. Documents will be uploaded there in order to keep transparency open,” Ilczyszyn said.
He said he is confident that a lot of the allegations, if not all of them, have stemmed from misunderstanding.
“What is unfortunate, is had I had a call, email or text, I am confident we could have resolved clarifying all the pieces of information,” Ilczyszyn said.
“Messages to the CCCIA made before Wednesday’s Cape Coral City Council meeting were not returned as of Thursday morning.
To reach MEGHAN BRADBURY, please email news@breezenewspapers.com