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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Min 1998-08-06 7-27-98 / 8-6-98 session be called sometime in the near future to discuss this request and other related issues. Councilman Yost concurred. Councilman Boyd pointed out that of seven Orange County cities he has spoken with all of their City Managers provide the Council with such report on a weekly basis with a one or two page summary of activities. councilmember Campbell deemed the comments made earlier by Ms. Quinlan to be unfortunate, said she supports Cable Foundation member Mahrer, the Foundation is in a transition period and it will be welcomed to put all problems on the table for discussion and resolution. I CLOSED SESSION The City Attorney announced that the Council would adjourn to Closed Session to discuss the items identified on the 6:30 p.m. and the 7:00 p.m. agendas, which is now being reconvened. The Council adjourned to Closed Session at 9:02 p.m. and reconvened at 10:10 p.m. with Mayor Brown. calling the meeting to order. The City Attorney reported the Council had discussed the two items identified on the agenda, with regard to the second item of anticipated litigation, pursuant to Government Code Sections 54956.9(b) and (aI, the Council gave direction to the City Manager, and with respect to the personnel matter, pursuant to Government Code Section 54957, the Council gave direction to the City Attorney. ADJOURNMENT By unanimous consent, the Council adjourned until August 10th at 6:30 p.m. to meet in Closed Session if deemed necessary. It was the order of the Chair, with consent of the Council, to adjourn the meeting at 10:11 p.m. I Approved: Attest: Seal Beach, California August 6, 1998 I The City Council of the City of Seal Beach met in special session at 4:10 p.m. with Mayor Brown calling the meeting to order with the Salute to the Flag. Mayor Brown read the Notice of Special Meeting as follows: 8-6-98 "George Brown, 1710 Tam O'Shanter Road, 12-H, Seal Beach Shawn Boyd, 229 - 7th Street, Seal Beach patricia Campbell, 4433 Ironwood Avenue, Seal Beach William Doane, 1401 Skokie Road, 83-A, Seal Beach Paul Yost, 485 Schooner Way, Seal Beach I NqTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that George Brown as presiding officer of the City Council of the City of Seal Beach hereby calls and gives notice of a special meeting of the Seal Beach City Council to be held on Thursday, August 6th, 1998 at 4:00 p.m., in the City Council Chambers, 211 - 8th Street, Seal Beach, California, for the purpose of: Considering the call of a Special Municipal Election of the City of Seal Beach to be held on November 3rd, 1998, consolidated with the Statewide General Election to be held on said date, to submit to the voters of Seal Beach certain amendments to the Charter of the City, and any and all other actions required relating to the call and holding of said Special Municipal Election. DATED THIS 5th day of August, 1998. (signed) George E. Brown, Mayor City of Seal Beach I by Joanne M. Yeo, City Clerk City of Seal Beach" ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Brown Councilmembers Boyd, Campbell, Doane, Yost Absent: None Also present: Mr. Till, City Manager Mr. Barrow, City Attorney Mrs. Yeo, City Clerk WAIVER OF FULL READING Doane moved, second by Boyd, to waive the reading in full of all ordinances and resolutions and that consent to the waiver of reading shall be deemed to be given by all Councilmembers unless specific request is made at that time for the reading of such ordinance or resolution. I AYES: NOES: Boyd, Brown, Campbell, Doane, Yost None Motion carried A member of the audience inquired if the public would have the opportunity to comment on the items under consideration prior to the casting of a vote, also pointed out that there was no provision for oral communications listed on the agenda. AGENDA AMENDED Councilman Boyd moved to amend the agenda to reflect an oral communications at the end. There was an indication of consensus by the Council. 8-6-98 The City Attorney explained that pursuant to the Brown Act before any action is taken at a special meeting there must be an opportunity for the public to speak. CONSIDERATION - SPECIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION - CONSOLIDATION - NOVEMBER 3, 1998 Councilman Yost inquired as to who can hear this issue, the Mayor has called the meeting, the item affects him specifically, does Mayor Brown need to excuse himself, can he Chair the meeting, can he vote on the item, also, he has indicated he does not wish to vote on the item. Mayor Brown said he believed that he could Chair the meeting until the item is under consideration. To the legal question, the City Attorney explained that there is no conflict of interest, no financial interest relating to any of the actions the Council may take at this meeting, however certain members of the Council may wish to abstain for personal reasons. As to the issue of holding two offices, Councilman Yost noted that another member of the Council holds an office that was elected by the League of Cities, specifically Councilmember Campbell as a member of the Airport Land Use Commission, to which he asked if that would fall under the Charter provision that is subject of this discussion. The City Attorney noted that one of the problems with Section 409 of the Charter, adopted in 1964, is that there is no legislative history, the question is what did the drafters of that provision intend in 1964, there is only the language of Section 709 which reads "any elective officer of the City who shall accept or retain any other elective public office shall be deemed thereby to have vacated the office under the City government," there is no insight as to what was meant by 'any other public office,' it could be viewed broadly, it could mean any public office where there is an election, however it is believed that most people would view the language as meaning any election by the public, there lies the problem with Section 709. He offered that one could speculate, yet clearly one would not want councilmembers to be on the Board of Supervisors or in the State Assembly, that is clear, that an opinion of the Attorney General was that the positions of councilmember and member of a local school board was incompatible, however the Attorney General's opinion does not control court decisions, and in the case on which the Attorney General gave that opinion in 1990 the people brought an action against the councilmember who was on the school board and the Council, the judge ruled that the councilmember could do both, there is nothing in the Constitution or State law that says that one can not do both, it is a case by case analysis of each position. He noted that a memorandum provided the Council contains a list of positions found by the Attorney General to be incompatible, examples are a County' Planning Commissioner and School Trustee, a City Engineer and School Trustee, a County Supervisor and School Trustee, a City Council Member and School District Officer, and Trustee of a Unified School District and City Council Member. In the case of a school board, cities and school boards are vying for the same money, redevelopment funds, school impact fees as examples, both have the power to exercise eminent domain, therefore there could be opportunities if a person sat on both boards to have divided loyalties, an example of that could be that the school board may wish to condemn a property to build a school yet the city may wish to build city offices, a clear incompatibility in that situation. Again, there are no on point court decisions, and as to the Charter it is unclear what 'elected public officer' means. with regard to the League of Cities issue, the City Attorney inquired if the I I I 8-6-98 I position is voted upon by other delegates. Mayor Brown expressed his opinion that the League position was by means of election by the Division members, Councilmember Campbell countered that such positions are considered to be League appointed, then questioned the Mayor's service as a member of the Sanitation District. Councilman Doane stated his opinion that that would not be considered as the public making the selection, it would be the Mayors or their appointees, his opinion based upon his serving on several committees through the selection process, there are certain positions subject to Mayoral appointment others are through the Selection Committee of the League Division, which he again claimed is not a public election process, the key word being 'public.' The Mayor expressed his viewpoint that the positions on the Airport Land Use Commission and the Sanitation District as examples, are elected, Councilmember Campbell disagreed. Councilman Yost made reference to the terminology 'publicly elected official,' inquiring if that could be interpreted as an election before the general public, not an election amongst elected officials. The City Attorney responded that that would seem to be the most reasonable interpretation of the Charter, one of the reasons this issue is before the Council is because if a group of people were asked what an elected public office means some would say any form or sub- district of government is public, even if elected by only four board members as an example could be deemed as an election, he would disagree with such interpretation yet that is how broad the meaning could be. I As a matter of explanation, Mayor Brown said he had been approached as to his interest in serving as a trustee of the Coast Community College District, his initial response was that he could not as he was serving on the City Council of Seal Beach, the District did not see a problem, he then informed the City Attorney that he was thinking of serving as a trustee, he in turn asked if there were campuses in Seal Beach, the answer was no, they are located elsewhere in the County, the City Attorney at that point did not see a conflict. The Mayor said at that point he made contact with the union, they could find no problem with serving as a trustee nor did they see a conflict, then a couple of days ago Mr. Shanks called his attention to Charter Section 709, in reading 709 it was clear, if one accepts another public office you are then off the City Council. His concern is with clarification of the meaning of 709 to others in the future, given the upcoming election the thought was to place 709 on the ballot, also other provisions of the Charter that are in need of cleanup and revision. Mayor Brown said his intention is, should he be elected to the trusteeship, to step down from the City Council, what the Charter says technically does not matter, however in principal, one should not be on a school board or whatever and also serve on the City Council. Mayor Brown suggested that the City Council look at the provisions of the City Charter for things that are in need of being adjusted, clarified, etc., he cautioned the entire Council however that this is a Charter City and that no rights should be given away that currently exist. I Mayor Brown recommended that no action be taken to place measures on the ballot for November 3rd and that a review of the Charter take place at some point in the future when there is adequate time to do so. Councilman Yost moved the recommendation of the Mayor. 8-6-98 Councilmember Campbell said this would be to establish a Charter review committee, to which the Mayor Brown clarified that his suggestion had "been a future Charter review, not necessarily a review committee. Councilman Yost commended Mayor Brown for his decision, stated his belief that the lateness of taking such action may pose problems, and reiterated his motion to accept the recommendation of the I Mayor to take no action relating to the November 3rd election. Councilman Doane seconded the motion for discussion. Councilman Doane spoke favorably of the wording of Section 709 as proposed, that the 'Charter of the City of Seal Beach be amended to provide that elective officers' service in more than one office is controlled by State law'. With regard to the cost involved for a Special Election, the City Clerk explained that for the Charter amendments proposed, to be voted upon citywide, the cost would be approximately $10,000 at minimum. Councilman Doane offered that the Council is in fact second guessing what the intention was of those who created the Charter, agreeing with the City Attorney that it appears to be clear that those persons were specifying that one not serve on two elected bodies, the technical reading of 709 should be revised at some point but in the least expensive way. He expressed pride in the fact that Seal Beach is a Charter City, the Charter is owned by the people and they deserve to have the chance to make the decisions, however, he could not support the cost of an election at this time. Councilman Boyd expressed his opinion that it is the five persons sitting as the Council that should review the I Charter, and it should be revised by the year 2000. Councilmember Campbell spoke favorably of reviewing the Charter however suggested a more methodical way, the Charter is a good document however times change and it does need to be updated, when there are attempts to refine things they often end up being reactionary, there may be provisions that need to be added to the document, this may not be the time to call for a charter review committee, however when that takes place 709 can be looked at as well, and noted there are a number of persons in the community who would be well qualified to do this. It was suggested that such review is about a two year process, request was made also that in the future the staff provide a brief one paragraph synopsis as to an approximation of cost, ramifications of the proposals, etc. Members of the Council again indicated their non- support for the expenditure of an approximate $10,000 for an election at this time, and a suggestion was made that possibly Charter amendment proposals be held over until the next local election. COMMENTS / ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Mr. Gordon Shanks, Surf Place, commended the decision of Mayor Brown. He recalled that the City formed a committee in the 70's that looked at Charter amendments, this has been I done in the past and needs to be done again, and noted the point made by the City Clerk that the next local election could very well be citywide, yet it would not be in the best interest to put off a Charter review for any length of time. Mr. Shanks claimed that the Coast Community College does have a conflict in that it leases space within the City, some courses supposedly given in Leisure World and at the Mary Wilson Library. He noted also that this Junior College District is the second largest in the State with a budget of around $136 million, only smaller than the Los Angeles College District, and it is understood that one of the goals 8-6-98 / 8-10-98 I of being on the District is to frequent Sacramento to secure and protect funds as there is always a conflict between the UC, USC, and Community College Systems for funds, and if there was a potential for conflict between a local school district and City Council persons it is certainly believed that a case could be made that there would be a conflict with the Community College District whether or not there is a campus in this City. Mr. Reg Clewley, Catalina Avenue, acknowledged that the Council motion is to take no action to place Charter amendments on the upcoming election ballot, said the citizens are not anxious to spend their tax dollars on an election, objected to the wording of the proposed amendments as misleading, they suggest a vote in favor, and that as worded too much control would be afforded the State. Dr. Rosenman, Seal Beach, also commended the decision of Mayor Brown. He said since the position of Community College Trustee has a stipend attached thereto it would seem to him that there would be an inherent conflict of interest if someone is voting to place an amendment on the ballot that would allow them to hold two offices. The vote on the motion to take no action to place Charter amendments on the November 3rd election ballot: AYES: NOES: Boyd, Brown, Campbell, Doane, Yost None Motion carried I Ms. Mitzi Morton, Seal Beach, stated she was proud of the decision of Mayor Brown, that he would be missed as a member of the Council however he has done the right thing. ADJOURNMENT It was the order of the Chair, with consent of the Council, to adjourn the meeting at 4:44 p.m. Approved: Attest: I Seal Beach, California August 10, 1998 The City Council of the City of Seal Beach met in regular session at 7:00 p.m. with Mayor Brown calling the meeting to order with the Salute to the Flag. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Brown Councilmembers Boyd, Campbell, Yost