General Mitchell International Airport Director Ismael Bonilla has been released from his duties effective immediately.
Bonilla, who was on the job almost two years, will be replaced by Department of Transportation Director Brian Dranzik.
Dranzik will serve as acting director of the airport while Milwaukee County searches for a permanent replacement.
According to a county official, in late August, the county executive’s office was informed that the county’s independent Audit Services Division had conducted an investigation into allegations of misconduct by Bonilla. That investigation began in late November of 2016.
The Audit Services Division has submitted its findings to the Milwaukee County Board of Ethics for their review and appropriate action into the alleged violation of the Milwaukee County Code of Ethics, specifically, that Bonilla used privileged information in a way which may have financially benefited former co-workers, the official said.
According to the Audit Services Division report on the investigation, the airport awarded a $250,000 contract to Springfield, Illinois-based engineering and planning firm Hanson Professional Services Inc., to create a business plan for Lawrence J. Timmerman Airport. The Audit Services Division learned that Bonilla and airport deputy director Yul McNair had prior working relationships with Hanson personnel and a Hanson sub-contractor, according to the report. Bonilla has a current quasi-business relationship with Hanson personnel, outside of the Timmerman business plan contract, the report states.
Bonilla and McNair arranged for Hanson personnel to take a site visit of Timmerman prior to the release of the request for proposal for the business plan contract, the ASD report states. When the RFP was issued it did not include explicit notice that site visits were possible and the ASD report states that the division found no evidence that the three other companies that submitted a response to the RFP requested or conducted a site visit.
“ASD has determined that Bonilla and McNair, by arranging a site visit for a company prior to the publication of a RFP which did not include an option for a site visit, violated Milwaukee County General Ordinance…prohibition against disclose of privileged information,” the ASD report states.
“For six years, it has been my unambiguous expectation that county employees operate with the highest ethical standards at all times – the taxpayers deserve no less,” Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele said in a written statement. “The mere suggestion that the integrity of the procurement process was in question anywhere in county government would be a serious cause for concern. In order to ensure confidence in the airport’s operations, I have made the decision to bring in new management. We will also implement comprehensive, formal re-training on procurement procedures at the airport.”
However, while Bonilla has been fired, McNair is still employed by the county, according to Melissa Baldauff, director of communications for Abele.
In addition, the ASD report says the division cannot make a determination if Bonilla or McNair violated the county ordinance pertaining conflicts of interest and required disclosures for professional service procurements.
“While Bonilla’s and McNair’s actions may not be in the ‘spirit’ of the county’s rules regarding conflicts of interest, they appear to be within the letter of the law due to both a strict definition of relevant terms and the lack of procedural detail for a professional services contract RFP,” the ASD report states.
Bonilla was named to the airport director role by Abele in December 2015 and assumed the position on Feb. 1, 2016.
He previously served as chief business development officer for Hi-Lite Airfield Services LLC in Jacksonville, Florida. Hi-Lite is an airport runway and taxiway marking contractor.
Bonilla also held positions in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Jacksonville and Santiago, Chile. He is also a 20-year Air Force veteran.
Before Bonilla arrived, Dranzik oversaw day-to-day airport operations for eight months. Dranzik took over after Terry Slaybaugh resigned just months after taking the job.
Bonilla was the subject of a BizTimes Milwaukee cover story earlier this year. The airport had attracted additional flights and increased traffic under his leadership.
See more on Bonilla’s firing from WISN-TV Channel 12, a media partner of BizTimes Milwaukee.
