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2017-10-17 CC CS MinutesSpecial Meeting Alameda City Council October 17, 2017 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY- -OCTOBER 17, 2017- -5:00 P.M. Mayor Spencer convened the meeting at 5:00 p.m. Roll Call – Present: Councilmembers Ezzy Ashcraft, Matarrese, Oddie, Vella and Mayor Spencer – 5. Absent: None. Public Comment Ruth Dixon-Mueller, League of Women Voters of Alameda, read from a letter submitted by the League; stated the League urges the City Council to support an independent review to provide a fair and open report to the public on the Fire Ch ief selection process. Paul Foreman, Alameda Citizens Task Force (ACT), read from a letter submitted by ACT; stated ACT objects to the Council proceeding with the City Manager’s evaluation; until the City Manager’s allegations are fully investigated and any necessary actions are taken, the evaluation should be delayed or at leas t limited to participation by the Councilmembers who are not accused of misconduct; urged the Council to listen to the City Attorney. Ken Peterson, Alameda, stated that he agrees with the League of Women Voters and ACT; the City Manager and City Attorney evaluations should be put off until the situation is clear; after the situation is resolved, the Councilmembers involved in the action should recuse themselves. David Mitchell, Alameda, stated the memo written by the City Manager to the City Council was unfortunate, contains a lot of unsubstantiated accusations, and, along with the editorial piece, tarnishes the names of Councilmembers and the Fire Department; the City should exercise extreme restraint going forward and have an internal process that uses discretion; in the event of future instances of misconduct, the matter should be investigated before information is released; he works with everyone on the Council and all members try to do the right thing; expressed concern about the information impacting the upcoming election. Gray Harris, Alameda, urged Council to go forward with the City Manager’s review, which has been agendized since April; stated false accusations should not derail Council’s work; the investigation is a bad management ploy to divert attention from the City Manager, who is not doing a good job, and is a waste of time and money; she has heard complaints in the community about the City Manager’s performance; the re was a huge delay with the Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter and deliberate voter confusion over the rent control measures; the City Manager lef t town during the water crisis and mismanaged the Fire Chief hiring process; candidate Domenick Weaver Special Meeting Alameda City Council October 17, 2017 expressed concern over the process before the investigation was launched; she represents teachers in Moraga where the City Manager failed as a City Manager ; it is clear to her that the City Manager thought she was going to get fired and is deflecting onto the City Council, which did nothing wrong; before investigating Councilmembers, the claims should be investigated and if there is no basis found, the City Manager should be investigated for misuse of the process. Nick Portoles, Portman Enterprises, stated that he has worked with the City Council over the last six months; he is concerned over recent news casting a negative light on Councilmember Oddie and Vice Mayor Vella; he feels both are honest and trustworthy and he hopes they remain on the Council. John Stead-Mendez, El Cerrito, stated that he does substantial business in Alameda; he has known Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Oddie for four years; Vice Mayor Vella is a professor of ethics at Mills College, which makes the recent article even more egregious; Councilmember Oddie is forthright and trustworthy; the slander that has come out is egregious; for the same four years he has known the Councilmembers, the Bay Area News Group and Daniel Borenstein have been anti -worker, anti-working class and anti-pension; anti-worker troops are being rallied to attack advocates of working people; he worked with Vice Mayor Vella trying to bring labor peace at BART and in Hayward; labor peace matters a lot to Vice Mayor Vella; Councilmember Oddie and Vice Mayor Vella have been great advocates of working people and resolving issues with local government; holding the City Manager accountable is the City Council’s job; hiring and labor peace are the City Manager’s job; investigation of allegations is a waste of time and money; urged moving forward with the evaluation. Wei-Ling, Unite Here Local 2850, stated that she is speaking to vouch for the character of Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Oddie; Vice Mayor Vella is an advocate for workers and immigrant workers and has been a tireless champion for rent control and immigrant rights; Vice Mayor Vella cares deeply about workers having a voice; unions are supposed to express workers’ voices; Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Oddie listen to the voices of workers; Councilmember Oddie has always listened to workers with concerns; even if they disagree, Councilmember Oddie has been honest and straightforward about his position; urged going forward with the City Manager’s evaluation. Assemblymember Rob Bonta stated that he appreciates the service and commitment of Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Oddie, who serve the City with distinction , stand up for people who often do not have people speaking for them and provide for people who are oppressed and suffering and try to make their lives better; both stand up for renters, people who need strong public safety services, and workers and working families, ensuring people have a living wage, health care and retirement security; critical City decisions should be made with as much information as possible, based on evidence, history and experience; sometimes the information is not all within the decision maker; others with a longer arc of history can provide input and insight for the Special Meeting Alameda City Council October 17, 2017 decision maker; he lived through something that feels similar; focus should be on the will of the people, not on political witch hunts or self-serving political attacks. Yvonne Williams, Alameda Labor Council/ATU 192, stated whenever two champions are attacked unnecessarily, she feels it is her duty to come stand for their character and commitment to the community; Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Oddie have exemplified a commitment to the community; sometimes people are persecuted for choosing to stand up; applauded both for their courage and ethics. Mark Williams stated that he works for AC Transit; he is speaking for Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Oddie; he has had great dealings with them and knows them to be forthright; they have the City’s best interest at heart and have always been fair, honest and compassionate; urged their history and background be considered . Joe VanWinkle, Alameda, stated the actions described in the press recently speak poorly of Alameda and gives rise to a whole new level of interference with the City Manager and her staff ; the Council sets policy, not operations; threatening the City Manager’s job for not appointing a union crony is outrageous and violates the City Charter; given the investigations that must ensue, the Councilmembers are in no position to evaluate the City Manager or City Attorney; potential conflicts of interest and lawsuits could come upon the City; the Council must postpone the evaluation; if the evaluations proceed, the two Councilmembers must recuse themselves. Janet Gibson, Alameda, stated people representing labor or groups in need do not effect what is being discussed tonight; what is important is looking at how Councilmembers handle themselves and run campaigns; many actions being taken are leading up to the political campaigns next November; Councilmembers should commit to campaigning coming from election fairness; since 2010 things have changed dramatically in Alameda; the people elected have often been elected because of heavy donations with self-interest; labor unions have been involved; in the last election almost $50,000 went from the fire unions into Vice Mayor Vella and Councilmember Ezzy Ashcraft’s campaigns; Councilmembers should commit to not taking money from groups of which it will have to make salary and pension decisions; Vice Mayor Ve lla refused to be fair with her; read a note she wrote to Vice Mayor Vella requesting a meeting. In response to Ms. Gibson, Councilmember Ezzy Ashcraft stated that she told Councilmember Matarrese she wished the matter would not get personal. Ms. Gibson stated the community is asking Councilmembers not to be pushed or drawn by outside forces as has been in the past, including negative campaigning against Tony Daysog. August Zajonc, Alameda, stated the accusations are unproven; the full story is not known; more work needs to be done to determine whether or not something occurred; there can be an assessment of whether the Charter rule was followed; if the evaluation occurs, the folks involved should recuse themselves; that he recommends waiting, Special Meeting Alameda City Council October 17, 2017 which is the City Attorney’s recommendation; having an open process allowing everyone to apply and be considered is good; there should be time to allow the investigation to occur. The meeting was adjourned to Closed Session to consider: (17-603) Conference with Legal Counsel - Anticipated Litigation; Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 54956.9 of the Government Code; Number of cases: One (As Defendant - City Exposure to Legal Action) (17-604) Public Employee Performance Evaluation; Pursuant to Government Code § 54957; Positions Evaluated: City Manager - Jill Keimach; City Attorney - Janet Kern; and City Clerk - Lara Weisiger Following the Closed Session, the meeting was reconvened and the City Clerk announced that regarding Litigation relating to allegations made in City Manager Jill Keimach’s October 2, 2017 letter to the City Council, which did not identify the Mayor or any individual City Councilmembers as being accused of potential wrong doing, the City Council unanimously voted to follow the City Attorney’s advice to cause an independent investigation of allegations arising out of the October 2nd letter from the City Manager; and regarding Performance Evaluation, the City Council voted unanimously to follow the City Attorney’s advice to postpone all three performance evaluations and that at the next convening of the closed session, agendize assistance that may be needed to continue the evaluations. Adjournment There being no further business, Mayor Spencer adjourned the meeting at 6:52 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lara Weisiger City Clerk The agenda for this meeting was posted in accordance with the Sunshine Ordinance.