DALLAS (1080 KRLD) - The Dallas Ethics Advisory Commission has cleared City Council Member Philip Kingston of violating the city's code of ethics.
A complaint had been filed against Kingston related to his vote on a zoning change in his neighborhood.
The Council voted earlier this year to allow accessory dwelling units in the Belmont Addition Conservation District, making it easier for homeowners to add on to their homes or to build additional small homes or apartments on their lots. Kingston was accused of pushing through the policy change so that he could personally benefit by adding one of those accessory units to his lot.
The Ethics Advisory Commission unanimously found that Kingston had not violated the city's ethics policies for elected officials. They concluded that while Kingston may have benefited from the new policy, he did not receive a special benefit that was denied to other homeowners in the area.
"In looking at the complaint, it was made clear today that...there was not distinguishable interest," Ethics Advisory Commission Member Paul Castillo said during a meeting to review the accusation. "Certainly this particular measure affected a conservation district which happened to be where you live...but we can't carve out those streets," he said to Council Member Kingston. "You serve everybody. There was not an iota of evidence that was presented here today that provided any semblance of particular economic interest."
Kingston is running for re-election. He faced two challengers in the general election in May, but none of the candidates got more than 50 percent of the vote.
He faces David Blewett in the run-off election on June 8th.