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Minutes 77-06-21MINUTES OF AN ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING OF THE CYPRESS CITY COUNCIL HELD June 21, 1977 The adjourned regular meeting of the Cypress City Council was called to order at 7:10 p.m. on Tuesday, June 21, 1977 in the Employees' Lounge of the Cypress City Hall, 5275 Orange Avenue, Cypress, California, Mayor Donald Hudson presiding. PRESENT: ABSENT: Councilmen Lacayo, MacLain, Sonju & Hudson None Also present were Brian Hawley, Planning Director, John Murphy, City Attorney, and Dennis Davenport, Assistant to the City Manager. The City Council interviewed applicants for the vacancies on the Youth Commission. Mayor Hudson adjourned the meeting at 8:35 p.m. to the Adminis- trative Conference Room of the Cypress City Hall. The meeting was called back to order at 8:40 p.m. in the Adminis- trative Conference Room with all Councilmen present. Hearing no objections, Mayor Hudson added Item #3 to the agenda which was a request for an Executive Session for personnel and litigation matters. CONSIDERATION OF CITY COUNCIL VACANCY DUE TO THE RESIGNATION OF CITY COUNCILMAN ROBERT HARVEY: The Planning Director transmitted to the Council a letter of resignation from Councilman Robert Harvey dated June 13, 1977, a report from the City Attorney out- lining the legal alternatives for filling of the vacancy either by the Council appointing a successor within 30 days after the date of resignation or by calling a special election, which would cost approximately $9,000, and a letter from Mrs. Vickie Evans dated June 14 expressing her interest in being appointed to the Council. Mayor Hudson stated he presented Councilman Harvey with a plaque over the weekend and he suggested that the Council adopt a resol- ution of commendation and present it to Mr. and Mrs. Harvey at the upcoming League conference in San Francisco. It was moved by Councilman Lacayo and seconded by Councilwoman MacLain to adopt the following Resolution by title only, title as follows, and to invite Councilman and Mrs. Harvey to the annual League of California Cities conference for the presentation: RESOLUTION NO. 1863 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CYPRESS COMMENDING COUNCILMAN ROBERT C. HARVEY FOR HIS DEDICATION AND SERVICE TO THE CITY OF CYPRESS. The motion unanimously carried by the following vote: AYES: 4 COUNCILMEN: Lacayo, NOES: 0 COUNCILMEN: None ABSENT: 0 COUNCILMEN: None MacLain, Sonju & Hudson City Council Minutes June 21, 1977 The City Attorney answered several procedural questions from the Council regarding filling of the vacancy. Councilmen Lacayo, MacLain and Sonju stated they preferred holding an election to making an appointment. Councilman Lacayo felt selection would be difficult as well as getting unanimous Council support for a candidate and that interviewing would take considerable time. Councilwoman MacLain agreed and was concerned about spending $10,000 for an election in November and then again in March. She felt an appointee would have an unfair advantage in the March election. Councilwoman Sonju felt residents in the past have demonstrated that they want the opportunity to vote on important issues. Mayor Hudson suggested that if an election is held, charter amendments could be included on the ballot. He suggested amendments to clean-up the charter, a measure limiting Council- men to two consecutive terms, and a measure regarding the parking of recreational vehicles on the street. Councilwoman Sonju recommended that the parking ban on street sweeping days be included as a ballot measure. Mayor Hudson stated he would oppose an election if the Council could agree on an appointment since it would force candidates to go through two elections within six months. Without an appointment, the Council would have to meet with only four members until November and this could be a problem if there is difficulty in getting a quorum at meetings. He felt it was not a judicious way to spend $9,000 for the short period of time that the new Council member would serve. Mayor Hudson reported he spoke with representatives of community organizations who made several recommendations for the appointment of persons who have no political background. He felt such organizations could provide an untraditional resource for candidates who have not been politically involved and have no political bias but who are actively involved in other community activities such as the Boys' Club, Little League or School District. He also suggested that another alternative could be the chairman of the Planning Commission who is familiar with activities of the City. He suggested that the Council consider such persons first and, if they cannot decide, then hold the election. Councilman Lacayo felt the letter from Mrs. Evans should not be overlooked or that the Council should disqualify persons who have been politically active in the City. Mayor Hudson felt the problem with appointing someone who has taken a public position on important City issues is that the Council could be accused of trying to load the City Council. Councilwoman Sonju agreed that it would be unfair to eliminate candidates who have worked hard to get elected and she felt this was a reason why the selection process would be difficult. She felt that someone who is elected would have more of a sense of responsibility to the citizens who elected him than someone who is appointed. Mayor Hudson stated the economic and mechanical considerations make it impossible for him to support an election. He felt there may be a poor choice of candidates in November since persons may want to wait for the March election. He felt the Council would be at a disadvantage acting with four members and that the Council should first determine whether they can agree on an appointment. The Council heard comments from several persons in the audience on whether to hold the election or make an appointment. City Council Minutes June 21, 1977 It was moved by Councilwoman MacLain, seconded by Councilman Lacayo and carried, with Mayor lIudson voting no, to direct the staff to prepare a resolution calling for the election in November. The Council agreed that they would submit recommendations to staff on measures they would like included on the November ballot. The Planning Director stated he would prepare a time schedule for submitting these recommendations for the June 27 meeting. Mayor Hudson asked that the press be notified tomorrow of the Council's action. Councilman Lacayo suggested that the next newsletter contain an announcement on the process for applying for election to the Council. Councilwoman Sonju suggested a charter amendment to permit the Council to hold an election when it chooses. The City Attorney suggested an amendment that any Councilman who fills a vacancy by election shall fill the remainder of the unexpired term plus two years. EXECUTIVE SESSION: Mayor Hudson called an Executive Session for matters of personnel and litigation at 9:53 p.m. The meeting was called back to order at 10:05 p.m. with all Councilmen present. The Council held discussion regarding the Youth Commission appoint- ments. Councilwoman MacLain requested that staff prepare an attendance record of all City commissions for a one year period. Councilwoman Sonju felt a four year term may be too long for a Youth Commissioner to serve and she suggested that the term be limited to the school year. Mayor Hudson suggested that the Council not designate the number of Commissioners to serve. He felt the junior high school students who applied might be better served by the Recreation and Park District programs. The Council agreed to appoint all of the high school candidates to the Youth Commission, in addition to the existing commissioners, with the exception of the candidate who exceeded the age limit and they requested that the staff send her a letter to this effect. It was moved by Councilwoman Sonju and seconded by Councilwoman MacLain to read the following Ordinance by title only, title as follows, and approve the first reading of the Ordinance which will change the number of commissioners to a number to be deter- mined by the City Council and change the term of office to the academic year (September 1 through June 30) with the meeting time to be once a month during the school year: ORDINANCE NO. AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CYPRESS AMENDING SECTIONS 2-91, 2-92, 2-93 OF THE CYPRESS CITY CODE RELATING TO THE CYPRESS YOUTH COMMISSION. The motion carried unanimously by the following vote: AYES: 4 COUNCILMEN: Lacayo, NOES: 0 COUNCILMEN: None ABSENT: 0 COUNCILMEN: None MacLain, Sonju & Hudson City Council Minutes June 21, 1977 ADJOURNMENT: It was moved by Councilwoman Sonju, seconded by Councilman Lacayo and unanimously carried to adjourn the meeting at 10:20 p.m. MAYOR OF THE/CIT~ OF CYPRESS / ATTEST: