Power players caught up in FBI investigation

Some of the most prominent names in the Tallahassee business world are the focus of an FBI investigation into dealings of the city/county Community Redevelopment Agency.

They are the faces behind some of the biggest projects and trendiest restaurants in town, including the Edison restaurant at Cascades Park, the Hotel Duval and the Gateway building at Monroe and Tennessee streets.

More:FBI demands CRA records from city of Tallahassee

More:Tallahassee CRA islatest agency to face scrutiny

Read more: See federal grand jury subpoenas to the city of Tallahassee

Here is a look at the people and the many interrelated companies named in the subpoenas:

John Thomas “J.T.” Burnette — A local businessman who helped renovate the Hotel Duval on Monroe Street through the Hunter and Harp firm with his former partner, Chad Kittrell. Hunter and Harp bought the hotel in 2007 and invested millions in renovations. He and his partner, Kim Rivers, are a Tallahassee power couple who own and manage Inkbridge LLC, a finance and investment company. He serves as principal in SunnyLand Solar LLC, with Rivers listed as the registered agent. The couple also founded Imagine Tallahassee, a public/private partnership that made recommendations on sales-tax funded economic development projects. Most recently, Burnette bought a portion of the Killearn Country Club golf course to develop into residential housing.

Kim Rivers — An attorney and entrepreneur who’s bankrolled high-profile business transactions and has been involved in major renovations of the Hotel Duval and the DoubleTree by Hilton Tallahassee. As CEO of Trulieve, Rivers made an early leap into Florida’s nascent medical marijuana industry. Rivers is featured in the June/July edition of 850 Magazine, which covers business news in Northwest Florida. She has served on several boards, including the Leon County sales tax committee, which was tasked to recommend projects funded through the extension of the Blueprint sales tax.

MelissaOlgesby — President of KaiserKane Inc., a construction management company with offices in Tallahassee and Atlanta. Registered agent for the now dissolved KaiserKane Tennessee & Monroe, LLC, which in December 2012 entered into an agreement with the CRA for $537,600 in grant funds for construction costs, and up to $910,061 for lease support payments for the Gateway Building. Walgreen's moved into the building in 2014, but the business closed this year.

Adam Corey — A registered lobbyist, restaurateur and developer who served in 2012 as Mayor Andrew Gillum’s campaign treasurer. The connected Corey, who runs in political circles, is an owner of the city-backed Edison restaurant in Cascades Park and was behind the now-shuttered 101, Tequila Tribe and Mint Lounge on Kleman Plaza. He is a former vice president of the Seminole Boosters and the International Oil Trading Company. He and business partner Ryan Grindler formed Cascades Holding to take over the renovation of the electric building. This year, he settled a legal dispute four years in the making involving 101 restaurant and his Tallahassee Hospitality Group.

Paige Carter-Smith — A close, longtime associate of City Commissioner and former Mayor Scott Maddox, Carter-Smith was hired last year as executive director of the Downtown Improvement Authority. She formed Governance Services LLC in 2007 and is listed as the sole owner. She also owns Governance, Inc., a consulting firm Maddox formed in 1999. In 2010, in a hand-scrawled note on the company’s letterhead, Maddox sold his interest in Governance, Inc. to Carter-Smith for $100,000 to avoid possible conflicts of interest as he ran for state agriculture commissioner. Governance Services owns Maddox’s private residence and the building that houses his law firm on Adams Street, among many other properties.

Frank Whitley — One of several owners of Hunter and Harp Holdings, which owned Hotel Duval and turned it into a boutique hotel and entertainment destination. 

Chad Kittrell — CEO of Hunter and Harp and a former executive for SunTrust Bank;  joined partner Burnette to create Gateway project.

Whitley Contracting — Contractor on the DoubleTree project.

IB Tallahassee — A company owned by Burnette, IB Tallahassee bought the 243-room DoubleTree hotel for $21 million and is now adding a 17th floor. Corporate documents list Rivers as a company representative.

Kaiser Kane — With offices in Atlanta and Tallahassee, this “performance-based general contractor” focuses on construction management and design/build construction. President is Melissa Oglesby.

SheltonDean Designs – Design company owned by small business owner and general contractor, Catherine D. Baker. The company website touts Baker “putting her stamp on Tallahassee via its very first boutique hotel, Hotel Duval.” Baker also is Burnette's ex-wife. 

Hunter and Harp  — The company paid $4.7 million for Hotel Duval in 2007 and spent $10 million renovating the 50-year-old building for its reopening in October 2009. It sold the hotel to Louisville-based Schulte Hospitality Group for $23 million. It was also behind restaurants and bars including the now-defunct Midtown Filling Station, Alchemy and the Front Porch.

Inkbridge — A finance and investment company owned by Burnette and Rivers. It has also invested in local ventures and startups, including the Stadium Runner app that allows people at sporting events to order food and have it delivered to their seats.

The Edison — A fine-dining restaurant in Cascades Park owned by Corey and business partner Grindler. Opened in September 2015, the Edison has been a lightning rod for criticism over the public dollars it received. The city contributed $1.3 million and the CRA another $817,000 to renovate a decrepit, contaminated building that once housed the city's power station. Corey and Grindler kicked in another $1.55 million for restaurant furnishings. The Edison has struggled with management turnover and finances, prompting a request by City Commissioner Maddox for an audit.

Governance Inc. — A political consulting firm specializing in strategic planning founded by Maddox and currently owned by his longtime associate Carter-Smith.

SunnyLand Solar — A solar energy company run by Burnette that involves the development of solar tubes as part of a solar power generation system. In 2010, the company won approval from city and county commissioners for Qualified Target Industry tax incentives whose cost is shared by the state, city and county, contingent upon job creation. In 2011, it contracted with the city to provide more than 3 megawatts of solar energy. The project faced delays through at least 2014.

Duval Partners LLC — An inactive business whose officers included Kittrell of Hunter and Harp, according to records with the Florida Division of Corporations. 

Burnette Consulting — Firm owned by Burnette.

Contributors: TaMaryn Waters and Jeff Burlew, Tallahassee Democrat, and Sean Rossman, USA Today.