pages: OpenGovernmentCommission/2021-03-01.pdf, 16
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OpenGovernmentCommission | 2021-03-01 | 16 | the City did not contest the timeliness of Mr. Foreman's complaint for that reason. In response to Commissioner LoPilato's inquiry regarding when the creation of the Committee occurred, Mr. Harrison stated what the RPC did, which was consistent with the Brown Act and the Sunshine Ordinance, was to designate a less than a quorum of its members to act as a temporary advisory body; if the RPC stopped there, Mr. Foreman would not be here tonight; the RPC went further by directing the two-member ad hoc committee to work with the Recreation and Parks Director to facilitate public input; that involved the appointment of individuals to serve on the Renaming Committee, which is what led to the concern about that body having come into existence through some action of the Commission itself even though the Recreation and Parks Director appointed the members because the Commission had appointed two of its members to serve as an advisory body to work with the Recreation and Parks Director; the merging of the two is where the issue arose. Commissioner LoPilato inquired whether the Chair and Vice Chair of the RPC participated substantively in the actual preparation of the process, including application for membership, outreach, interviews and appointments. The Recreation and Parks Director responded that she met with the Chair and Vice Chair initially to discuss where outreach could be done, but she was the one who led the process, received the applications, did the outreach, conducted the interviews and made the appointments. Commissioner LoPilato inquired whether the Recreation and Parks Director notified a group of Jackson Park neighbors via email about a July 9, 2020 RPC meeting including discussion of the park renaming. The Recreation and Parks Director responded in the affirmative, stated there is an email group of neighbors of the park; whenever there is anything related to the park, she lets the group know. Commissioner LoPilato stated it was a very proactive method for ensuring accessibility and transparency at an important stage in the process. The Recreation and Parks Director stated she also reached out to the Jackson Park neighbors group to see if they wanted to have representation on the committee as well. Public Comment: Acknowledged the work of all the Commissions; stated the Chief Assistant City Attorney's predecessors took every opportunity to stifle any attempt to open City activities to the public; thanked Mr. Foreman for raising the issue; stated that he does not agree with Commissioner Reid being excluded from the discussion; expressed concerned about the Commission deferring to the City Clerk for past practices: Jay Garfinkle, Alameda. Meeting of the Open Government Commission March 1, 2021 16 | OpenGovernmentCommission/2021-03-01.pdf |