{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 1, "text": "MINUTES OF THE CONTINED JULY 14 AND 21, 2020\nSPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING\nTUESDAY- - JULY 28, 2020- 5:00 - P.M.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft convened the meeting at 5:06 p.m. and led the Pledge of\nAllegiance.\nROLL CALL -\nPresent:\nCouncilmembers Daysog, Knox White, Oddie, Vella,\nand Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft - 5. [Note: The meeting was\nconducted via Zoom and Councilmember Daysog\narrived at 5:36 p.m.]\nAbsent:\nNone.\nAGENDA ITEM\n(20-549) Resolution No. 15684, \"Declaring Racism a Public Health Emergency,\nincluding Identifying and Approving Direction to Staff Regarding Initial and Ongoing\nActions to Address the Crisis.' Adopted.\nCouncilmember Oddie stated the discussion time for Council should be suspended.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft inquired whether the previous vote to suspend Council speaking\ntime would apply to the current meeting discussion or whether a new motion would be\nrequired, to which the City Attorney responded another motion is not needed to suspend\nCouncil speaking time.\nCouncilmember Vella provided proposed resolution language; stated the Wisconsin\nPublic Health Association's resolution includes citations for WHEREAS, clauses; 44\nmunicipalities have signed onto the resolution; the resolution has been structured to\nkeep the WHEREAS, statements as well as provide citations originally included in the\nWisconsin resolution; it is important to provide citations and credit the work being done;\nthere is a thought of California leading the way in progressive issues; however, much\nwork is being done in Wisconsin and the Midwest; the resolution includes information\nrelated to Alameda County and provides referenced statistics; the matter is a crisis\nlocally and nationally; Council may now focus on the local jurisdiction and make a\nchange; to allow for the community-led process to inform Council of the outcome rather\nthan Council dictating the desired outcome, it is important to take out the underlying\nprincipals and goals under NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED,\" which were driving\nthe original resolution; the language relates to promoting justice through Citywide\npractices and policies and allows focus on diversity, inclusion and the core services\nprovided; looking at alternative service delivery, in relation to calls for vulnerable\nmembers of the community, will be guided by the community-led process; it is important\nto credit the process and work to be done; focus on anti-racism principals should be\ngiven to all aspects of the City; partnerships and alliances need to be built with other\norganizations; the language provided is based on original principals and attempts to\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n1\nJuly 28, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 2, "text": "create a work plan with input from the community, which will lead to needed outcomes,\nrather than dictating outcomes from the beginning.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft expressed support for the revised resolution; stated it is important\nto include source material; the topics are vital and crucial; the matter must be respectful\nto the community-led process agreed upon by Council; the over-arching framework and\nrecommendations, which come from community-led workgroups will inform Council's\nwork.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated the City Manager has started the community-led\ncommittee on enforcement and public safety, but not on racism in general; noted that he\nis struggling to understand how the proposed resolution directs the City to take action\noutside of the area.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft responded the five subject matter areas to be looked at by the\nsubcommittee are the areas previously presented by Councilmember Vella and Vice\nMayor Knox White in June; stated many areas address policing and services; the areas\nalso include systematic and community racism and anti-racism.\nIn response to Vice Mayor Knox White's inquiry, Councilmember Vella stated the matter\nis not precluded under the direction; she is asking for a community-led process;\nassessing policing will be one aspect; part of the directive is for Council to look at the\nissue with regard to all aspects of the City and calls for Council to look at racial equity\nand injustice issues as well as principals of anti-discrimination relative to Council,\nBoards and Commissions, and policies and practices; the process welcomes\ncommunity input; there will be a specific process relative to policing; should Council\ndesire to outline the process, a Council Referral may be submitted or the matter could\nreturn to Council for review at a future date.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated the process is unclear; he would like clarification of the\nintention.\nCouncilmember Vella inquired whether there is specific language proposed which can\nbe included.\nVice Mayor Knox White responded in the negative; stated it is important for the\nlanguage to commit Council to actions; expressed support for the idea of a racial justice\nimpact statement; stated current reports include a climate impact analysis section; a\nracial justice impact statement should be included as well to help visualize the\ncommitment on all future policies.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated that she and Councilmember Vella have attempted to\ncreate the framework; all aspects are important; the next step in the process is to have\ncommunity groups addressing and examining the various subject matters; Council will\nbegin work after the August break.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n2\nJuly 21, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 3, "text": "Councilmember Vella proposed adding a statement to Item 2 which reads: \"Council\ncommits to developing a comprehensive action plan on racial equity and justice;\" stated\nthe addition will allow Council to have a community input process and staff feedback;\nthe process must start with Council directing the development of a comprehensive\naction plan specific to racial equity and justice; inquired whether the addition is\nacceptable to Vice Mayor Knox White.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated that he would like to see a date specific provided.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated that she is not certain a date specific belongs; noted there\nmight be another way to incorporate specific directives; questioned whether the\nproposal may be accompanied by giving staff direction.\nCouncilmember Oddie stated there is always room for improvement; noted other\norganizations have committed to Black Lives Matter; stated that he understands the\nconcern about waiting; expressed support for adding actions to be taken by Council\nfollowing the community-led workshop under Item 2; stated Council has decided to\ndelegate the analysis and the recommendation out to community-led workgroups;\nhowever, there is no commitment from the Council; there are high-level value\nstatements and broad concepts; questioned whether Item 4 will come from Council or\nstaff and whether Item 5 will determine the policies; stated that he would like to hear\nfrom the voices within communities of Color; expressed support for an understanding of\nwhat Council will be producing once the committee process is over and for an expedited\ntimeline with solid results.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft expressed support for adding another Item between Items 5 and 6,\nincorporating proposed language.\nCouncilmember Oddie expressed support for adding: \"The City commits to the timely\nreview of the recommendations of the community-led workgroups;' questioned whether\nCouncil should commit to implementation without knowledge of the proposed policies or\nwhether Council should wait until policies are provided; expressed concern about\ncommitting to unknown policies.\nCouncilmember Vella proposed adding: \"The City Council hears the urgent cry for\nchange and is dedicated to developing a comprehensive action plan on racial equity\nand justice that requires a comprehensive approach of reflection, engagement and\naction beginning with our community-led subcommittees;\" expressed support for the first\nsteps including community input starting in late summer to early fall 2020; stated that\nshe would like to recognize the subcommittee dealing with racial equity and justice\nspecific to policing reform; the proposed language may not cover all of what is desired\nto be accomplished, but is a starting point for a comprehensive Citywide action plan that\ncan be built upon.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated Council cannot provide direction to expand the\ncommittees; noted that he does not want to wait until the committees are done before\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n3\nJuly 28, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 4, "text": "Council begins work on other issues; stated there is no language committing Council to\naction; expressed support for taking quick and immediate action regarding the public\nhealth crisis; stated coming back in September or early October with a plan is important;\nexpressed concern about the matter being bumped over time; stated staff may propose\na different timeframe; however, knowledge of specific work beginning in the near future\nwill be needed in order for him to support the resolution.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft expressed support for Council input; proposed language: \"The City\nCouncil acknowledges and is dedicated to the swift review or incorporation of Council\nconsideration stated the concept is Council will receive input from various\nsubcommittees and will then meet to consider incorporating the input into action;\nCouncil may add September or October 2020 to provide a timeline; noted Council\nshould give space and respect the work of the committees in order to incorporate\nprovisions into decisions; stated Council will have the final say on the matter; it is\nrespectful to ask and not assume what Black, Indigenous, and People Of Color (BIPOC)\nprovide as input.\nCouncilmember Oddie proposed: pledges to develop and implement a strategic\nwork plan to address the recommendations of the community-led workgroups;\" stated\nthat he is open to a timeline being placed on the workgroup; noted the timeline may be\nplaced on how soon Council can respond to the workgroup recommendations.\nVice Mayor Knox White noted the focus is primarily being placed on the enforcement\naspect; inquired whether anything additional will be addressed; inquired which\nworkgroup is being referenced.\nCouncilmember Oddie responded there is a non-police workgroup, which relates to\nsystemic racism; stated much of the meat will come from the workgroup discussions.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated the topic is subcommittee enforcement work and is\nbroader than what is currently in place; expressed support for providing clear direction.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated there are a number of areas that are more appropriate for\nCouncil to discuss, such as land use policies; expressed support for the subcommittees\nto bring subject matter expertise.\nCouncilmember Vella stated developing a comprehensive strategic plan can start with\nthe committees; noted the City Manager has explained the subcommittees will remain\nrelative to public safety; expressed concern about listing items which infer only specific\nthings are to be discussed; stated that she would like a plan developed around\nenhancing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in Citywide practices and procedures,\nwhich includes budgeting, land use, recruitment, promotions, training and any other\nprograms, policies or ordinances passed; Council could list items and direct: \"including\nbut not limited to;\" expressed support for the strategic plan being Citywide, looking at all\naspects and not being limited to the subcommittee; stated Council has to start\nsomewhere; community work can help inform; some of the work has already begun.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n4\nJuly 21, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 5, "text": "Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft noted Council agreed to revisit the budget in October; stated\nOctober 20th is a possible date to include the matter.\nCouncilmember Vella inquired whether Council is looking for staff direction and an\noutline of how to develop the comprehensive plan, to which Vice Mayor Knox White\nresponded in the affirmative.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated two months is a workable timeframe to allow Council to\nbe ready for the budget discussion in October.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n5\nJuly 28, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 6, "text": "Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft expressed support for the proposed language; stated that she\nwould like to complete the resolution by adding the language provided by\nCouncilmember Oddie, as well as provide direction to staff as articulated by\nCouncilmember Vella and Vice Mayor Knox White.\nCouncilmember Daysog inquired the language provided by Councilmember Oddie.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft inquired the location of the language to be inserted.\nCouncilmember Oddie responded there is a commitment on Council's part to respond to\nthe task force: \"Council pledges to develop, adopt and implement a comprehensive\nstrategic work plan to address the recommendations of the community-led workgroups\nin October 2020.'\nCouncilmember Daysog stated that he does not mind making the pledge; expressed\nsupport for substantive community input from a broad range of sources as the process\nmoves along.\nCouncilmember Vella expressed support for adding \"informed by\" to the language;\nstated the plan being requested goes beyond public safety.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft inquired the placement of \"informed by\" in the language.\nCouncilmember Vella stated there are two items to accomplish; noted a\nrecommendation for public safety may not be implemented Citywide; stated there is not\nmuch time to implement a Citywide strategy; Council should strive to be informed by the\npublic and also conduct a broader plan.\nCouncilmember Oddie expressed support for replacing \"to address the\nrecommendations of\" with \"informed by;\" noted the location for the proposed language\nshould be Item 2 if the sentiment relates only to public safety; a broader sentiment\nwould be better placed at the end of the resolution; the input received may be more than\nsolely community input.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft proposed the addition of \"informed in part by;\" stated the addition\nwould leave the resolution open to any additional information provided; the proposed\nlanguage is comprehensive and belongs toward the end of the resolution; expressed\nsupport for the proposed language becoming Item 6.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated that he does not understand why Council would provide\ndirection within the resolution or pull out concrete action; the resolution does not add\nanything other than work which has already been committed to; expressed support for\nnot pulling out direction.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft inquired whether Vice Mayor Knox White would propose additional\nlanguage.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n6\nJuly 21, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 7, "text": "Vice Mayor Knox White responded in the affirmative; proposed adding: \"commits to\nreturning by the end of September with a work plan for discussion on how to develop a\ncomprehensive strategic work plan informed by the community-led workgroup.\"\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated Council should not be providing staff direction in a\ndeclaration.\nCouncilmember Vella stated Council is looking for action by the fall; the goal is to move\nalong with a plan; Council may direct staff to return; however, it does not pledge action.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft proposed: \"City Council pledges to return in October 2020 to begin\nto develop, adopt and implement a strategic plan informed in part by recommendations\nof the community-led workgroups and information provided by staff;\" noted everything\nmay not be completed by that time; however, the process will be started.\nVice Mayor Knox White stated the proposed language does not meet his threshold;\nexpressed support for a plan coming back before September and incorporated into the\nbudget discussion; noted the budget window will be missed should discussions begin in\nOctober.\nCouncilmember Oddie inquired the language to be added.\nVice Mayor Knox White responded Council must return to finalize a plan by the end of\nSeptember in time for budget discussions in October.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft expressed concern about the timing of hearing from the\ncommunity.\nCouncilmember Vella inquired which October meeting the budget discussion falls on;\nquestioned whether the first meeting in October could have a placeholder to hear an\naction plan outline.\nVice Mayor Knox White responded a discussion at the first meeting in October only\nallows for two days to include budget items related to the discussion; the discussion\nmay not be easy or clear, may require questions, clarifications or changes and may not\nbe timely for the budget item.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft noted the City Manager will likely be hearing from subcommittees.\nCouncilmember Vella stated budget allocations are often made outside the budget\nprocess; the upcoming budget is an update process due to COVID-19 among other\nitems; expressed support for hearing from the City Manager about how to incorporate\nthe matter and any necessary budget allocations and for possibly hiring a consultant in\norder to fully understand the overall intention; stated Council shares the intent on getting\na plan together with a report; however, a process is needed.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n7\nJuly 28, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 8, "text": "The City Manager stated the October budget was first shown as a first quarter update\nand review due to COVID; there has not been as high a revenue loss as originally\nanticipated; however, COVID is still present; discussed budget revisions; stated Council\nmay also provide an off-budget revision at a later date; the October budget meeting is to\naddress resources, policing and revisions, if needed.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft inquired the timing of an off-budget request.\nThe City Manager responded a budget amendment could arise at any time; noted the\nOctober budget presentation will look at possible adjustments.\nCouncilmember Oddie proposed \"Council pledges to return by October 2020 prior to the\nnext quarterly budget discussion\"\nVice Mayor Knox White stated that he would like to see Council move faster.\nCouncilmember Oddie noted there are only two months until October; stated the matter\nshould be done right and quickly; expressed concern about there not being enough\ntime; stated that he is unsure the expectation is reasonable.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated Council is working with all deliberate speed on the matter.\nCouncilmember Vella stated that she would like to move with deliberate speed in a way\nwhich will allow the matter to be completed correctly; expressed support for providing a\ndate when staff may return with recommendations for a process to create the plan; off-\nbudget items have been made previously and the matter could require an off-budget\nprocess; the matter is a priority; Council has the opportunity to do this right; expressed\nconcern about receiving input from staff on a process that will not succeed due to\ntiming; stated the matter should move forward timely; expressed support for hearing\nproposed language.\nMayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated there is an intention to direct staff to move forward\nexpeditiously, yet allowing the subcommittees meeting to discuss a broad range of\ntopics; there are short, medium and long-term goals; a better understanding of the\nbudget will be presented in October; Council is close to a decision; noted both\nperspectives should be respected; requested clarification on the final proposed\nlanguage.\nThe City Clerk read the language: \"The City Council pledges to return in October 2020\nprior to the next quarterly budget review to begin the process to develop, adopt and\nimplement a comprehensive strategic plan informed in part by the community-led\nworkgroups.\"\nCouncilmember Oddie expressed support for the proposed language.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n8\nJuly 21, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}
{"body": "CityCouncil", "date": "2020-07-28", "page": 9, "text": "The City Clerk noted the proposed language would be added as a new Item 6.\nCouncilmember Daysog moved approval of adoption of the resolution as amended.\nCouncilmember Oddie seconded the motion.\nUnder discussion, Vice Mayor Knox White stated that he will not support the motion;\nnoted the original resolution had been created with members of the BIPOC community;\nthe proposal committed Council not only to a declaration of emergency, but also to a\nnumber of actions which could have been discussed or changed; BIPOC speakers\nspoke in favor not only of the declaration, but of the committed action as well; the intent\nand values of the declaration are important and nice, but the immediate action has been\nstripped of the public health emergency claimed; expressed support for the idea and the\nresulting work.\nOn the call for the question, the motion carried by the following roll call vote:\nCouncilmembers Daysog: Aye; Knox White: No; Oddie: Aye; Vella: Aye; and Mayor\nEzzy Ashcraft: Aye. Ayes: 4. Noes: 1.\nADJOURNMENT\nThere being no further business, Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft adjourned the meeting at 6:15\np.m.\nRespectfully submitted,\nLara Weisiger\nCity Clerk\nThe agenda for this meeting was posted in accordance with the Sunshine Ordinance.\nContinued July 14 and 21, 2020 Special Meeting\nAlameda City Council\n9\nJuly 28, 2020", "path": "CityCouncil/2020-07-28.pdf"}