Berman leaves office with an apology

As Steve Berman prepares for life after eight years as mayor of one of the country’s fastest-growing municipalities, there’s one thing in particular he’d like to say to Gilbert residents:

“I want to apologize to the town for the soap opera that I brought in over the last year,” he said. “It wasn’t on purpose, and I’m just humiliated.”

Berman is referring to the negative publicity attracted by his imploding marriage. The couple's problems went public last June through media coverage of an investigation by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office into domestic abuse allegations by Michelle Berman. She later recanted the allegations.

The case was closed with no charges filed after it was transferred to the county attorney’s office, but not before an investigation of previous abuse claims by two of Berman’s three previous wives. The investigation never led to charges.

The couple reconciled, but Michelle Berman filed reports shortly before the March 10 primary election which said her husband might be trying to poison her, triggering a new Gilbert Police Department investigation. That story received its first local TV coverage on the eve of the primary election, which Berman lost.

It was an ignominious end for a man who tied the record for longest-serving mayor of Gilbert and watched the town add 200,000 residents since he became a town councilman in the 1980s. But Berman says one thing he doesn’t have to wonder about is why he finished third in the primary.

“My own mother wouldn’t have voted for me if she’d read that,” he said.

Gilbert police closed the investigation into the poisoning allegations, calling them unfounded. Michelle Berman filed to restart the dormant divorce proceedings, and Berman said it became final on April 14, about a year and a half after they married following six years of dating.

Berman said this week he’s moving on with his life and ramping up his commercial real estate brokerage, though not without some hiccups, adding he lost a $212,000 deal.

Berman has had one political comeback, having been on the council from 1987 through 1993 before losing his bid to be the town’s first elected, rather than appointed, mayor. He ran and won in 2001 and will leave office on Tuesday.

Just after this spring’s defeat, he formed a new campaign committee to run for council again in two years.

He said this week the committee was formed because “I had $15,000 left over from the last campaign, and I had to put it somewhere.” That money could be used for other campaigns, and he said others have suggested he run for everything from Congress to county supervisor to state legislator.

The latter option holds some interest for him, since the state Legislature has approved a veto-threatened budget that goes after revenue from cities and towns. He said he’s never had a huge desire to serve there, especially given his strained relationships with local lawmakers, but “it may be that Gilbert needs some good representation there.”

In the immediate future, Berman said he’ll keep a lower profile and allow John Lewis to find his footing as mayor. He said he has a positive relationship with the man who dominated the five-man race to unseat him, and the respect Lewis has shown him has made the transition easier.

“I’ve been told (Lewis) has superb people skills, and I was told right,” Berman said.

Berman’s own dealings with opponents and media have drawn some criticism on his temper and conduct, but he said he doesn’t think “anger management” has been one of his issues. “I’ve never been rude to a resident,” he said. “I’ve never been rude during a meeting.”

Longtime Gilbert resident Jerry McBee said Berman’s temper has definitely hurt him while he’s been in office. McBee said he’s disagreed with Berman on many zoning-related issues, but never questioned Berman’s commitment to the town or the job. And he appreciated how Berman was an advocate for Gilbert in regional arenas like at the Maricopa Association of Governments, the Valley’s transportation planning agency.

“I have a lot of respect for Steve Berman. He took a backwater town and brought it into the 21st century,” he said.

He said the mayor’s personal woes, along with other recent missteps, such as using town letterhead to sent a letter a judge seeking leniency for a man convicted of killing a student while driving drunk, led to his downfall. Berman apologized last year for writing that letter.

“If you can’t control your public life and keep it from spilling over into public view, sometimes that can kill you,” McBee said.

Craig Nelson, the former chairman of the Republican committee for Legislative District 22, said Berman lost support from conservative voters on spending for Big League Dreams and other budget issues, while more middle-of-the-road residents were driven away by the personal issues.

Nelson is personally excited about Lewis taking office, but he can’t rule out another Berman comeback.

“Of course, it’s all going to depend on who he’s running against. If he has a weak opponent, then he has a good chance of winning,” Nelson said. “He’s a very good campaigner.”