LORAIN — Bill Desvari, the city’s embattled chief building official, said Thursday he has no idea what led to him being suspended and escorted out of City Hall last week.

He said Lorain police officers conducting a criminal investigation that centers on him haven’t talked to him yet.

“All I was told was to leave the building,” he said.

But whatever the accusations are, Desvari said he’s done nothing wrong.

“I’m absolutely innocent,” he said.

Mayor Tony Krasienko and police remain tight-lipped on the nature of the allegations against Desvari, but police have seized Desvari’s computer and Building Department files. Among the files taken by police are records dealing with King’s Woods, once a 75-acre woodland between Leavitt Road and Ashland Avenue.

The Chronicle-Telegram had sought the King’s Woods files through a public records request, which was denied because the files were in police custody.

The woods were considered a unique feature in the industrial city of Lorain, but slowly disappeared after developers purchased the land in 1999 — after a protracted battle with surrounding residents — and began building homes.

More than 30 homes now sit along Stonepath Street and King Avenue, but concerns about some of the homes — including flooding problems —  surfaced shortly after homeowners moved in, according to City Councilman Myroslaw Silecky, D-7th Ward.

Silecky said although he knows nothing about the investigation, he received numerous complaints from King’s Woods homeowners, which he forwarded to Desvari and the Building Department.

“Some of the issues were resolved and some still sit as they were one or two years ago,” he said.

Councilman Craig Snodgrass, D-8th Ward, also remains in the dark about the investigation, but he shares Silecky’s concerns about how the Building Department was run.

“Obviously, there have been complaints that people have been after him (Desvari) to get the (building) code enforced,” Snodgrass said. “If you look around, there’s a whole lot of issues that should have been taken care of.”

Councilman Dan Given, D-at large, would not discuss what role King’s Woods plays in the Desvari investigation. But he did say that during his short stint as the city’s safety service director in January, there were complaints about the Building Department.

“I received complaints from homeowners and turned over those complaints over to the legal department,” he said. “The legal department then sent them to police. That’s all I can tell you.”

Desvari, who blames a disgruntled Building Department employee for the investigation, has taken heat since he joined the city — including a no-confidence vote from City Council. He has faced criticism for lying about his education and felony convictions, intimidating employees, using city vehicles for private business and his management of the department.

Desvari said he stands by the work he’s done during his sometimes stormy career with the city.

“The department was run to state standards,” he said. “All I cared about is what the code said.”

Desvari said he’s protected by Civil Service regulations and state building regulations, which prevent Krasienko — with whom he butted heads while the mayor was on Council — from firing him. He also said he has asked the Ohio Board of Building Standards to investigate the city’s handling of the Building Department.

“A lot of things were done incorrectly, but that’s Lorain,” he said, declining to elaborate.

Contact Brad Dicken at 329-7147 or bdicken@chroniclet.com.

Contact Stephen Szucs at 329-7129 or sszucs@chroniclet.com.

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