FAIRHOPE, Ala. — The flyers supporting “Steve Griffis for Police Chief” began showing up in downtown storefront windows this weekend, said Donna Cook, a broker with Baldwin County Properties Inc.

The flyer has seven American flags on its front and encourages people to “call your City Council members and let your voice be heard,” giving the names and phone numbers of Fairhope’s five City Council members.

The flyer is part of what appears to be a grassroots effort to have Griffis’ name added to the list of six finalists for the top police job. Cook said Monday that a group called the Concerned Citizens of Fairhope for Steve Griffis has been organized to help get him the top law enforcement job in the city.

“We’re printing up signs and putting up flyers,” Cook said Monday in two phone calls she made to the Fairhope Courier office. “The citizens have been asking what we can do about this.”

Several dozen people turned out Monday night for a meeting at City Hall, at which the council discussed the next steps for interviews with police chief applicants. About a dozen carried handwritten signs supporting Griffis for chief.

“A lot of people know the scoring was done wrong,” said Cook, referring to how the finalists were winnowed from an original list of 116 applicants. “The council is not listening to the people.”

Or, the citizen effort could be a strategy organized by Mayor Tim Kant with the participation of Councilman Mike Ford and former chief Mike Comalander, now a captain in the department, to see that Griffis gets the job.

“The mayor wanted a group rising up,” Cook said Monday. “The mayor said to ‘go for it’ and also said, ‘I want it as obnoxious as it can get.’

Kant also said, “I can’t just come right out and say it myself,” according to Cook.

Cook spoke at length during the Monday morning phone conversation about efforts on behalf of Griffis, including that she met Friday with Kant and others, whom she would not identify. She did say that she was told by Ford and Comalander to call the Fairhope Courier “to get the story out.”

On Tuesday morning, she denied that she met with the mayor, and also denied that the Monday conversation with the Courier reporter took place.

“I’ve not met with anyone,” said Cook, at a phone number given by her Monday to the newspaper and called by the reporter Tuesday. “This is the first time I spoke with you. I don’t know who you talked with but it wasn’t me. This has better not be in the paper.”

During Monday’s phone conversation, Cook said that several other individuals were working on behalf of Griffis.

“She’s getting all the old money together,” said Cook, referring to Dilana Norman.

Cook also said that David Cooper, president of Cooper/T. Smith in Mobile, was helping fund the campaign, including printing signs.

“David Cooper said if you need money, money is no object,” Cook said.

According to county campaign reports, Cooper contributed $500 to Kant’s mayoral election campaign in 2004.

Cooper could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

When contacted Tuesday at a cell phone number provided by Cook on Monday, Norman at first said, “All I’m doing is just holding up signs for the man and hope he gets a chance. He’s highly qualified and done a lot for the community, especially the kids.”

Norman said she started Baldwin County Properties, and now owns Dilana Norman Realty.

Shortly after the conversation when Cook called to deny Monday’s conversation, Norman called the newspaper back.

“I just got off the phone with Donna Cook,” Norman said. “She did not mention my name to you yesterday.”

Cook called back several times Tuesday stating to Fairhope Courier staff that she had not spoken with the reporter Monday and that her statements had “better not be in the paper.”

Also during Monday’s conversation, Cook said she was attending a funeral out of town but would have someone deliver a copy of the flyer to the newspaper’s office. Within an hour, Mike Skinner came by with a copy of the flyer.

“Robin said drop this by,” Skinner said.

Skinner confirmed that Robin was Steve Griffis’ wife. Although Capt. Griffis was not at the Monday council meeting, his wife was.

“I’m just going with the citizens,” Robin Griffis said after the meeting. “I’m following their lead.”

Capt. Griffis could not be reached at his home Tuesday, and an employee at the police station said he was off work and would return Friday.

Cook also said Monday that Danny Corte, an unsuccessful candidate against Councilman Dan Stankoski last year, would be the spokesperson for the group.

Corte did not attend the Monday night meeting and said Tuesday, “They wanted me to, but no, I’m not. I really don’t know that much about it to be honest with you.”

Comalander was also not at the Monday meeting, but he did say Tuesday that he had heard about the Griffis campaign Saturday and that Ford had called him Monday.

“The consensus is we didn’t get the top individual,” Comalander said. “There’s going to be a lot going on about this. I’m just trying to stay neutral. I didn’t go to the meeting but it’s going to be way bigger than that.”

Comalander said some people in the police department have recently sought transfers. He said people normally want to come work in Fairhope because of what a special town it is.

“We’ve got four officers and three dispatchers who’ve put in for other departments,” Comalander said. “Everyone wants to work here, and now they’re leaving.”

City Human Resource Director Director Rhonda White said Tuesday that she had not received any such transfer requests from the police. “The requests would come here,” she said.

After Cook’s phone call Monday, and shortly after delivery of the flyer, another person called seeking anonymity, and made negative comments about Interim Police Chief Terry Sanders that could not be confirmed by press time.

After the Monday meeting, Kant said at first that, “No,” he did not know about the citizen group. He then said, “I knew a little bit about it. I knew they would have some signs. That’s all I knew.”

On Monday, Cook said, “When Kant was voted in, it was known that Steve was going to be police chief. Kant already had it planned out that he was going to appoint Griffis when Comalander stepped down.”

Comalander took a captain position earlier this year when he was not reappointed to the chief position. He submitted his resignation at that time, but it was not accepted by Kant. He issued a news release at that time stating that rumors he was addicted to prescription painkillers were untrue.

“I talk with the mayor every day,” Cook said Monday. “Some people think Griffis is Kant’s boy, but that’s a joke. Griffis is nobody’s boy.”