Home, Sweet...Home?

"As a major company CEO, I can interact with business leaders from every part of the world and bring a special perspective, particularly because I spearheaded the move of a multibillion-dollar company from New York City to Dallas."

Mayoral candidate Don Hill, a lawyer with no executive experience, has questioned some of Leppert's claims about Turner Construction, particularly his position that his company did a billion dollars' worth of business with minority contractors. Hill has asked Leppert to provide corroborating documentation but says he has yet to receive any. Throughout his campaign, Leppert has steadfastly refused to respond to criticisms from his rivals, avoiding so far the attack-and-defend strategies of local politics in favor of a self-promotional, positive campaign. At times, Leppert's candidacy resembles more of a book-signing tour than a run for office.

Hill says Leppert has mentioned that he moved a $4 billion company to Dallas at just about every mayoral forum as a way to insulate himself from charges that he is a latecomer to the city. Leppert moved inside Dallas city limits three and a half years ago.

"The attack from others, not me, is that he doesn't have enough connections to Dallas. So when he says that he moved the company to Dallas, it's his way of showing off those connections," Hill says. "But it's not accurate, and it's not fair, and it has to be viewed as a direct misrepresentation of the facts."

Having entered the race with no political experience and almost zero name recognition, Leppert has run for office on how he's run Turner. So far, few candidates have questioned Leppert's management expertise in part because he had an impressive record as CEO. The company, which had become stagnant in the 1990s, experienced a renaissance of sorts under Leppert's leadership, last year doing $8 billion in construction. In addition, Turner won accolades for its investment in environmentally friendly projects. Last November, Leppert was the keynote speaker at the fifth annual Greenbuild Conference in Denver where he discussed how the company has built $13 billion in energy-saving projects. "I think he is a visionary," says Matt Papenfus, a vice president at Turner Construction. "He's been the best CEO for the company."

But like any large company, Turner can't insulate itself from criticism, particularly the type that occurs in the final stages of a mayoral race. Max Wells, a former city council member and candidate for mayor, has directly attacked Leppert's management of Turner Construction, citing how it ran afoul of federal law during his tenure. In a press release last month, Wells said that Leppert needed to explain "Turner Construction's own record of troubles with the law which resulted in $6.6 million in fines for fraud and abuse of taxpayers' money."

In June 2005 with Leppert as its CEO, Turner did agree to pay that figure in a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department after the company was found to have taken credits on bonds for dozens of federal contracts without sharing them with the federal government.

But the settlement agreement signed by Leppert and Justice Department officials says that Turner's misconduct dates back to a 1997 arrangement with its bond broker. That predates Leppert's arrival as CEO. Both Leppert and his former company maintain that he did not know about the company's questionable bond credit program, even though it continued for at least a year after Leppert took over. The Justice Department's own records don't lay the blame on Leppert. But in its 2005 press release announcing the settlement agreement, the department unintentionally takes issue with another one of Leppert's assertions when it describes Turner Construction as a—wait for it—"New York, N.Y. based company."