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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-09-20MINUTES ADJOURNED REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 — 2:00 P.M. CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBER 73510 FRED WARING DRIVE, PALM DESERT, CA 92260 I. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Finerty convened the meeting at 2:01 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Present: Councilmember Jean M. Benson Mayor Pro Tem Jim Ferguson Councilman Robert A. Spiegel Mayor Cindy Finerty Also Present: John M. Wohlmuth, City Manager/RDA Executive Director David J. Erwin, City Attorney Justin McCarthy, ACM for Redevelopment Stephen Y. Aryan, Assistant to the City Manager Rachelle D. Klassen, City Clerk Bo Chen, City Engineer Russell Grance, Director of Building & Safety Lauri Aylaian, Director of Community Development Janet M. Moore, Director of Housing Frankie Riddle, Director of Special Programs Dorian Cooley, Division Chief, Palm Desert Fire/Riverside Co. Fire Dept./Cal Fire Steve Brooker, Fire Marshal, Palm Desert Fire/Riverside Co. Fire Dept./Cal Fire Andrew Shouse, Asst. Chief, Palm Desert Police/Riverside Co. Sheriffs Dept. Grace L. Mendoza, Deputy City Clerk III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None IV. NEW BUSINESS A. CONSIDERATION OF THE MANNER IN WHICH TO FILL THE VACANCY IN THE TERM OF COUNCILMAN RICHARD S. KELLY (NOVEMBER 2012). Mayor Finerty related that it had been a wonderful process for Councilmembers participating in the interviews. She said there were 23 highly qualified applicants, including a number of people who served on the MINUTES ADJOURNED REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 City's standing Committees and Commissions: Art In Public Places Commission; Audit, Investment & Finance Committee; General Plan Advisory Committee (2); Housing Commission Chair; Marketing Committee; Parks & Recreation Commission Chair; Planning Commission Chair and Vice Chair; Citizens' Advisory Committee for Project Area No. 4 Chair; Public Safety Commission Chair — an overwhelming show of civic interest from those who already donated a significant amount of time to the City. Additionally from an educational standpoint, she reported that there were 11 applicants with Graduate Degrees and 17 College Graduates (2 - Ph.D., 2 - MBA, 2 - J.D., 6 - B.S., 8 - B.A.), all from notable institutions, such as Harvard, Stanford, Berkeley, University of Chicago, USC, UCLA, Pepperdine, and COD; it was quite an array of talent that the City Council was very fortunate to interview. The City Council appreciated the desire to move forward with the City shown by those who have served or are serving on Committees and Commissions; the City Council is very thankful for all the time and energy they contribute for Palm Desert's benefit. Further, she said that some of the careers that were reflected in the application process included Retired Fire Chief, Investment Banker, School Administrator, United States Secret Service Officer, FBI Special Agent, Industrial Engineer, Non- profit CEO, Real Estate Attorney, Interior Designer, President of COD, Small Business Owner, Aerospace Executive, as well as people who'd been in elected positions, such as 12 years with Desert Sands Unified School District, 16 years with Riverside County Board of Education, and a Council Member from Greenwood Village, Colorado. The process provided an excellent opportunity for the City Council to get to know so many people in the community who were interested in serving, as well as with those having a desire to move up. Given the above, she knew it made for a tough decision for all Councilmembers. Mayor Finerty went on to explain that in order to comply with the Brown Act (Open Meetings) the next step in the process involved her asking the City Clerk to speak with each Councilmember and request that they write down their number one and number two choices on a piece of paper and place it in a sealed envelope. The envelopes would be collected by the City Clerk and delivered to the Mayor upon her arrival at today's meeting, and she opened them moments ago. She was advised by the City Attorney that this would be a good process to follow, and he also indicated that if upon opening the envelopes she saw three ballots containing the same name, it would indicate consensus of the City Council. Upon review of the lists, she saw one name appearing three times, and she asked for a motion to appoint William Ralph Kroonen to fill Councilman Richard S. Kelly's vacancy. 2 MINUTES ADJOURNED REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 Mayor Pro Tem Ferguson moved to, by Minute Motion, appoint William Ralph Kroonen to the vacancy on the City Council left by the death of Councilman Richard S. Kelly, with a term ending November 2012. Motion was seconded by Benson and carried by 4-0 vote. Mayor Finerty congratulated Councilman Kroonen on his appointment and invited him to make a few remarks. Dr. Kroonen stated that he wouldn't have applied if he were not interested in the appointment. However, in consideration of the huge amount of talent just identified by the Mayor, he was somewhat overwhelmed by the fact that his name came out on top, thanking the City Council for the opportunity and looking forward to working with his new colleagues. He, too, knew Dick Kelly very well, becoming acquainted with him in the early 1980s when his very dear friend, the late Supervisor S. Roy Wilson, encouraged him to join the Palm Desert Rotary Club. At that time Dick Kelly was either President or in line to be, and he was fortunate to become acquainted with Dick's dedication to serving the public; shortly thereafter, Dick Kelly began his service on the Palm Desert City Council. He promised to try to carry forth the same sense of dedication demonstrated by Councilman Kelly. He also expressed tremendous respect for the late Councilman's wife, Mary Helen Kelly, and invited all in attendance today to acknowledge her willingness to continue to stand up for the Palm Desert community. Additionally, he acknowledged longtime friends, Mike Rover, Roger Dash, and others whom he'd had the pleasure of knowing and working with over the years, and he thanked them for their willingness to step forward in the application process at this time too. Lastly, he introduced his wife, Paula, who he said had made a significant amount of contributions to the community in her own right. He again thanked the City Council for the opportunity and looked forward to his service to the community. Upon Councilman Spiegel's question about disclosing how all Councilmembers voted in the process, Mr. Erwin agreed it would be appropriate to do so, adding that there were obviously three in favor of the successful appointee for whom the motion was made. City Clerk Rachelle Klassen administered the Oath of Office to Councilman William R. Kroonen. Mayor Pro Tem Ferguson stated that he voted for Bill Kroonen. He did not feel it necessary to go into all of his deliberations or choices, but as the Mayor previously indicated, all applicants were outstanding candidates, and it completely reaffirmed his faith in the City's Committee and Commission 3 MINUTES ADJOURNED REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 system and in members of the Palm Desert community. He didn't know of any finer group of individuals who would step forward on short notice in the middle of an already hectic campaign season to volunteer their efforts. He counted nine of the City's Committee and Commission Members who applied — five Chairs of those Committees and Commissions. The pool of applicants consisted of people who already have very busy careers and were volunteering to take what they asked and, admittedly, knew going in would be a sizable chunk of time out of their schedules in order to serve. Although Dr. Kroonen struck him as an incredibly humble person, if one looked at his resume, they would quickly learn that he is a doctor, has been teaching at College of the Desert since 1969, was its President for a number of years, and served as its Dean of Liberal Arts for even more years; was a Desert Sands Unified School District Board Member for 12 years and has been serving on the Riverside County Board of Education for 16 years to date, from which he'll be stepping down shortly given his appointment to the City Council. He went on to say that Dr. Kroonen's been an elected official for 28 years — very much a part of the Palm Desert community and very much a team builder. In his judgment of all the excellent choices, Dr. Kroonen rose to the top as the leading candidate to fill the vacant seat, noting, however, that no one would be able to "fill" Councilman Kelly's seat. He acknowledged Mary Helen Kelly for her fantastic interview and noted that it was refreshing to learn that she offered some differing viewpoints from those of her late husband's. He hoped that she would continue in her desire to assist the City, especially with her excellent ideas. He also went on to acknowledge many of the applicants who were in attendance at today's meeting — Mike Rover, Roger Dash, Carole Schaudt — along with all those who weren't present this afternoon. He hoped that when it was time to go through the annual Committee and Commission process in December, it would be fairly easy for the Council; a lot of people indicated they'd be interested in serving, especially since only one could be chosen at this time from a field of 24 — he hoped to take them up on that offer. He closed his remarks by welcoming Councilman Kroonen to the City Council. Councilmember Benson agreed with Mayor Pro Tem Ferguson's comments. She added that she was also thoroughly impressed by the caliber of stellar applicants, especially those who'd gone through the City "family history." She felt it was beneficial for applicants to have some hands-on background with the City in their experience. She, too, found the process very refreshing and provided a substantial list of good people to come forward in the future. She noted that residents frequently say they're willing to serve, but then they go out of sight and aren't heard from again. She hoped this group would rise to the cause and be ready to serve when the Council looks for Committee/Commission Members in December. She said when the first 4 MINUTES ADJOURNED REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 eight (8) applicants came forward, the Council felt that was a good number, but when it ended up with 23 (one withdrew; one was unable to interview for health reasons but was well known to the Council), it was incredible. She thanked all the applicants for coming forward. While the interview process made for a somewhat long two days' work with a lot of listening, she felt the City Council had made a very good choice. On behalf of her colleagues, she said they all thanked Mary Helen Kelly for her spirit in wanting to serve and hoped that she continues with the City — she's part of the family — and it was appreciated very much. Councilman Spiegel noted that he wasn't present for the interviews last week because he was attending the League of California Cities Annual Conference in San Diego, having preregistered three months ago. However, he spent Saturday and Sunday listening to the tape-recorded interviews of all applicants and made notes regarding their responses to the questions. Bill Kroonen was an excellent choice, he'd known him for a long time through working with College of the Desert Foundation; although, Dr. Kroonen wasn't his first choice. In accordance with the wishes of late Councilman Richard Kelly, he chose Mary Helen Kelly, whom he felt had the business and managerial background for the position, as well as her years of experience working beside her husband for the City of Palm Desert. He added that one only had to look at Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack to see that this type of spousal appointment has worked well in the Coachella Valley. His second choice was Roger Dash, who has the educational and work experience to help lead Palm Desert forward — also serving on several City Commissions and knowing the inner workings of the City. He felt Dr. Dash was an honest and ethical man who has the desire to serve and a love for the City of Palm Desert. He quickly added it was obvious that all of the applicants had a great love for the City. Lastly, he said after considerable thought and examination of the current situation the City Council found itself in, he believed a Special Election should be held in March to allow Palm Desert citizens to make the choice themselves. There will still be 20 months left in the term, and he felt the expense of a Special Election would be worthwhile for the citizens. Mayor Finerty commented that Bill Kroonen was her number one choice, Roger Dash was her second, and it was incredibly tough. She encouraged all who applied and who interviewed to stick with the City; because of their talent, efforts, and willingness to serve, there were good things to come for Palm Desert - the community was blessed because of them. Although it was a long two days, she couldn't have been any prouder to be Palm Desert's Mayor at this time to guide the City Council through this process with so many willing people coming forward to serve. She said it was very difficult 5 MINUTES ADJOURNED REGULAR PALM DESERT CITY COUNCIL MEETING SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 not to choose Mary Helen Kelly, especially given her tremendous interview, adding to what Mayor Pro Tem Ferguson had said earlier that most wives probably have differing opinions than their husbands' from time to time. She hoped that Mrs. Kelly would apply for one of the City's Committees or Commissions, given that she expressed an interest in the Housing Commission. She also encouraged everyone else who wasn't already serving the City to come forward and apply for Committee/Commission service when the annual appointment process is conducted in December. Mayor Finerty invited everyone to the Administrative Conference Room for a reception to welcome Councilman Kroonen. V. ADJOURNMENT Upon a motion by Ferguson, second by Spiegel, and unanimous vote of the City Council, Mayor Finerty adjourned the meeting at 2:21 p.m. ATTEST: RACHELLE D.KLASSEN CITY CLERK CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA CINDY FINEFeTY, MAYOR 6