Metro’s Ethical Conduct Board voted Wednesday morning to recommend a hearing for District 32 Councilmember Joy Styles. The vote stemmed from a complaint filed by John Griswold, a real estate agent spurned by Styles earlier this year.
In his April 17 complaint, Griswold flagged a Cane Ridge property recorded under Styles’ name but not listed on her 2022 disclosure. Styles did list the property on her 2023 disclosure, filed April 18. Members are required to list any nonresidential real estate interests on a yearly form.
“It’s my mother's house," Styles tells the Scene. "I co-signed for it. I really wasn’t thinking about that and wasn’t trying to hide it. Taking care of your parents is not a crime, last I checked.”
Griswold also complained that Styles was unresponsive on a zoning matter and otherwise prejudicial toward him — allegations that, according to the board, did not qualify as ethical matters. Councilmembers are not required to communicate with constituents on a particular timeline. In an April email to the Scene, Griswold said Styles cost him two potential buyers for a property off Murfreesboro Pike.
“She cost me money,” Griswold tells the Scene following Wednesday’s meeting. “I had clients who wanted to buy this property, but I couldn't get in touch with the councilmember to see what she would support. If you go to zoning without a councilmember’s support, you’re fighting an uphill battle. I’m just trying to get the best dollar for my client. I was very disappointed by her actions.”
Developers had contacted Styles previously seeking to rezone the property, located at 5859 Mount View Road, to accommodate townhomes. Styles did not support the plan. Griswold’s ethics complaint, which points out the property discrepancy and a late-filed disclosure this year, was his attempt to retaliate, she says.
“I talked to his client, who owns land in my district," Styles tells the Scene. "I told him I wasn’t supportive and the community wasn’t supportive. Unfortunately, the Board of Ethics is used for petty grievances more often than not. This is a realtor who is upset about not being able to collect a commission on a property.”
In November 2022, Styles faced a separate ethics complaint from a constituent related to a towed vehicle in her district. The Ethical Conduct Board cleared Styles after a hearing in early 2023.
