City Council Leaves Major Questions Unanswered After Special Meeting

The penchant for official secrecy at Malibu’s City Council has once again left residents in the dark.  There are more questions than answers remaining after last Friday’s special city council meeting.

Specifically … four questions were raised at the short meeting … all four were left unanswered.   It was a special city council meeting on a Friday afternoon … called behind closed doors.

Item one … discuss the contract for Steve McClary … the proposed new city manager.  Apparently … the city council voted on final contract terms for McClary.

The city’s lawyer …John Cotti:

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“Council discussed some terms of that agreement and I will report back to Mr. McClary. Ultimately the city Council decided that matter would appear on the next regularly scheduled agenda for consideration by the council as required at a public meeting.”

In other words … at lest one city council member … we don’t know who … has held up the proposed contract for the city manager in order to make changes in the terms … we don’t know what.

Although hiring an employee is often a matter of confidential talks … this is not just any employee … it’s the city’s chief executive. 

Second unanswered question … is the city hiring a new city attorney???   That was in the agenda for closed door talks, too.

John Cotti … the interim city lawyer … has been working for a year and a half on a day to day contract.  The city council was suppoosed to discuss that … but if they did … nothing was reported out.

Third on the agenda … a discussion of some sort of a potential lawsuit that the city might file.  No mention against who or why.

Again .. interim city attorney John Cotti:

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“The third item was a conference with legal counsel regarding potential anticipated litigation. The city Council heard from City attorney Steve Tabor and ultimately decided to take no action …  i.e. no initiation of litigation … relative to airport noise.”

Aha,   A clue … Airport noise.  

Steve Tabor is the special assistant city attorney brought in to battle with the FAA.

As we reported last month … Tabor has filed a petition for rule making with the FAA.

It’s aimed at undoing a route change that the FAA implemented five years ago … that sends jets over eastern Malibu after taking off in the daytime … or brings them in over Point Dume when landing at night. 

Apparently … the city council has decided for some reason to not file a lawsuit against the FAA.

At this time.

Is there a reason to file a suit?  A cost?
We don’t know

And the fourth question … as Mayor Paul Grisanti called the meeting to order. 

NEWSCART A 73408 PG KELSEY PETTIJOHN 

GRISANTI: “Is Bruce going to make it?

CITY CLERK KELSEY PETTIJOHN: “No. Mayor Pro Tem Silverstein’s is not going to be able to make it to this meeting.”

GRISANTI: “OK.”

That would be Silverstein’s second meeting in a row without calling in… or explaining to the council what is up.  If he is ill … we wish him a speedy recovery.   

In all four cases … the city is allowed to keep details of what happened behind closed doors secret. 

Allowed to.

But not required to.