An
Open Letter from Ed Castillo - Former Planning Commissioner
- Current Concerned Citizen and Follower of City Events...............
From Edward M. Castillo
Request: If anyone has Tom Holden's email address, I would appreciate it if you
can forward this message
to him on my behalf.
Violation of the Secret Meeting Law, also known as the Ralph M. Brown Act, is a
direct insult to the foundation of our framework of Democracy. In other words,
a direct violation to Open Government.
The Superior Court of Ventura County found the Oxnard City Council and the
Community Development Commission in violation of the Open Meeting Law (Ralph M.
Brown Act). This Conviction and Judgment is a Great Victory for
the Constituents of Oxnard and Ventura County, who believe in honest and open
government.
Judge Vincent J. O'Neill, Jr., has sent a clear message to the members of Oxnard
City Council, that their disregard for this sensitive law will no longer be
tolerated.
Keep in mind, this case involves council members of who voted in 2002 which
included Tom Holden, a candidate in the upcoming November election.
Councilmember Andres Herrera was not on council during this period and
Mayor Lopez excused himself from the vote and participation due to conflict
of interest as he owned property near the theater site.
To date, City Council has spent well over $400,000 to defend a case the City
Council believed to be groundless. Yet the City Council hired three legal law
firms to defend them for their actions. Furthermore, it should be noted, the
attorney representing the Plaintiff, Richard Tentler, offered two settlements
to City Council in 2003. Yet the City Council refused to settle.
With complete disregard of the public taxpayer funds they were spending to
defend their wrongful actions the City refused the settlement offers which
basically sought the City to re-open the meetings and reconsider the theater
project at a public meeting. The cost of settlement would have been zero
dollars versus the million-plus they chose to spend.
On Monday, (8/30) one day before the issuance of the Judge O'Neill's verdict, Tom
Holden, speaking to the Savier's Road Redesign Team told the group of
Oxnard residents "the judge found
fault only with how the City Council posted the agenda." A slight oversight.
He further stated "Our City Council has the most open form of government."
Martin Jones corrected Holden's statements at Wednesday's (9/1) Inter-neighborhood Council Forum (INCF), by retorting the Council neglected to post SEVEN Agendas, not one, as Holden claimed.
Truly, the judge found the City Council misled the public and improperly sold the
Bank of America Building, wrongfully contracted the Parking Structure to Dave
White's son, and other inappropriate action on the part of City Council.
What I find to be ironic in this case is the following:
Whether you believe in the Gang Injunction or not, the City Council has placed
an injunction against a group of people in Oxnard. But I don't believe the
People of Oxnard fully understand or aware Superior Court Judge O'Neill has
placed an INJUNCTION AGAINST THE
OXNARD CITY COUNCIL for
breaking the law on Secret Meetings.
Per the order
of the Superior Court of Ventura County, the Injunction against Oxnard
City Council reads as follows (direct text from the judge's order)
Injunction
The City Council of the City of Oxnard and the Oxnard Community Development
Commission are hereby enjoined from further violations of the Ralph M. Brown
Act, Government Code section 54950 et.seq. Specifically, the Council and
Commission are ordered as follows concerning future closed session deliberations
on pending real estate transactions pursuant to section 54956.8:
1. Such closed sessions shall not include discussions of transactions or
potential transactions pertaining to real property not specifically identified
in a the agenda for that closed session.
2. Such closed sessions shall not include discussions pertaining to proposed
commitments by the city concerning city property other than the property
identified in the closed session agenda as the property subject to the
negotiations.
3. As to the real property being negotiated in such closed sessions,
discussions shall be limited to price, price-related monetary terms and
conditions as to the financing or use of that specific property which are being
imposed or proposed by either the city or another negotiating party.
4. The disclosure of items to be discussed in such closed sessions, pursuant to
sections 54954.5(b) and 54957.7, shall identify all parties with whom city
representatives will be negotiating.
Date: August 23, 2004
/s/ Vincent J. O'Neill, Jr.
Judge of the Superior Court
In the Star's Sept. 1st. article, the City Council stated it has not
decided if they will go forward with an appeal. Needless to say, by the time
the City Council has to pay the Plaintiff's legal fees for this case and go to
an appeal process, City Council will be spending well over $1.5 million dollars
to defend it's wrong doing.
As I have stated three times before city council, I have asked our elected
officials not to direct the city manager nor the city attorney to go forward
with the appeal. Deal with the mistake and move on.
Next
City Council Meeting
is scheduled for September 14, 2004 @ 7:00 PM, City Hall. I encourage all of
you and others to attend and demand City Council to obey the court order of the
Injunction and not to appeal this case.
More importantly, I encourage all of you to directly contact your City
Councilmembers and tell them not to move forward with an appeal. The money
already lost could have been used to extend library hours for the children of
Oxnard, after school programs, or even give the residence of the North East
Community Specific Plan the Sport Park that was promised to them when they moved
into their neighborhoods 11 years ago (Corner of Gonzales Road and Oxnard
Blvd.).
Councilmember John
Zaragoza
= 805-485-1825
Councilmember Andres Herrera = 805-797-6159
Councilmember Dean Maulhardt = 805-339-4150
Councilmember Bedford Pinkhard = 805-485-9566
Former Councilmember Tom Holden = 805-377-3318
Oxnard City Manager Edmund Sotelo = 805-385-7430
With that note, I thank you for your time, patients, and attention.
Edward M. Castillo
805-815-3366