Diane Rose Appointed To Empty Council Seat, Residents Protest At June 3 Meeting
by Jared Cohen

http://www.imperialbeachnewsca.com/articles/2009/06/25/news/news03.txt
 

As several residents protested vocally, the Imperial Beach City Council adopted an ordinance June 3 that finalized the appointment of former mayor Diane Rose to fill the seat vacated by council member Fred McLean.

The council seat opened after McLean passed away unexpectedly May 24 and the council nominated Rose to fill the position at a special meeting May 27.

City attorney Jim Lough said that there is a lot of leeway in the appointment process. The council had the option to either “appoint and/or call a special election.”

Lough said, “There seems to be no set pattern in how to do it. It seems to be individual to each town.”

Despite this, several residents at the council meeting demanded that the council rescind the appointment, over a question of whether it was properly noticed. The notice was dated May 26, but it did not run until May 28, in the Imperial Beach Eagle & Times. The special meeting was on May 27.

I.B. resident Serge Dedina accused the council of posting a fraudulent notice in the paper and violating the Brown Act during the public comment period. There were people, like himself, who wanted to apply for the position but couldn’t, he said. He asked the council to rescind the appointment.

I.B. resident Steve Futterman also asked that the council rescind the appointment. Seven residents spoke against the appointment process and one spoke in favor.

Mayor pro-tem Lorie Bragg asked the city attorney to comment on the notice posted by the city. The Imperial Beach Eagle & Times received an announcement dated May 26, where the city requested applications for the open seat.

“Staff routinely takes action to sort of anticipate where council is going,” Lough said. Lough said it was the second meeting on the subject and both were adequately noticed in accordance with the Brown Act. He told city officials that legally speaking, they were fine.

The notice for the May 27 meeting contains a recommendation from the city manager to discuss the process and options available to fill a council vacancy. Also recommended for the council: to decide between appointment or special election, and if a person was appointed, to decide how long they should serve. “Decide the process by which to solicit, review and appoint a person,” read the recommendation. However, there was no item relating to Rose’s appointment.

Resident John Carr suggested choosing a candidate from the November ballot who received the next-most votes. McLean and council member Jim King received the two largest percentages, earning them council seats in November 2008. I.B. resident Maxx Stalheim was runner-up, with 2,364 votes.

Council member Patricia McCoy said she wants to be on “firm ground.” She said that she understands how people who were not at the May 27 meeting could believe that applications were still open.

King listened to comments by residents and agreed that there was some merit to them. “It would be worthy to open the process up,” he said. King would later be the only abstaining vote on the items relating to the appointment.

Mayor Jim Janney said that the decision was difficult and that Poway’s similar situation “split the community.”

“I was the one who brought forth Diane’s name,” he said. Only after the council took action were people interested in the appointment, he said.

In the end, the city council voted on three items, an ordinance calling for a special election and providing that an appointee holds office only until Nov. 2, 2010; a resolution requesting that the county hold a special election and consolidate it with the November 2010 statewide election; and a resolution appointing Rose to fill the vacancy.

The council voted 3 – 0 for each item, with King abstaining from all three.

As it stands, the city is looking at a special election Nov. 2, 2010, which would fill the remainder of McLean’s term on the council. McLean was elected last November, so his term ends in 2012.

Rose said she felt her decision to approach the council about the appointment was the “right thing to do.” She said May 27 that she has no political aspirations.