Council Delivers Mail Message
Debate focuses on expediency versus privacy
as talk of vote to change law discussed
By Sondra Murphy
Rights to privacy vs. public record were discussed at great length Tuesday during the Ojai City Council meeting. The instigating item concerned the city practice of opening council members’ mail.
The issue was brought to the council in September, when public speakers requested that confidential letters to council members remain so. Councilwoman Betsy Clapp then requested the subject be itemized. During open discussion Oct. 13, more information was requested of city attorney Monte Widders, bringing the item back before the council this week.
The result was a nine-page memorandum Widders submitted regarding the ordinance background and history governing how city manager forms of government, like Ojai is, must proceed. In it, Widders gives historical overview of the law voted in, 1,286 to 640, on April 10, 1956 following City Council submittal.
The ordinance was then codified as Section 2-3.04 under Title 2, Chapter 3 outlining city manager duties and authorized by the California Government Code Section 34851 and continues to require that cities adopting city manager forms of government may only abolish it in the same manner it was adopted.
Included in the city manager’s duties is, “(r) To receive and open all mail addressed to the Council and give immediate attention thereto to the end that all administrative business referred to therein and not requiring the Council action may be disposed of expeditiously.”
There was differing opinion among council members and public speakers about what the phrase “addressed to the Council” actually means. Some, like Clapp, thought it meant when correspondence is not addressed to a specific member. Others, like Councilwoman Carol Smith, believe it meant letters addressed to any council member to assure prompt action to requests.
Widders said that the public has, “the right to see virtually everything we see. It’s the right of the people to know their own business. Balanced with that is the right of the people to petition anonymously.”
Widders further advised that the issue is not about who opens the mail, but who reads it first and whether information might be inappropriately disclosed. “I think that’s what the members of the public want, that their complaints aren’t disclosed to anyone else and that’s the problem because the state political reform act does not allow that,” said Widders. He said balancing confidentiality with the California Public Records Act is tricky because the act intends to keep government accessible to its citizens.
“There are three criteria. 1) is it in writing, which includes e-mails, 2) does it pertain to city business, and 3) is it retained by the city,” Widders said. “Once all those prongs are satisfied, it is a public record no matter who it is addressed to.” He added that because oral communications do not meet all three prongs, they rarely count as a public record.
Len Klaif suggested that council members had leeway to determine whether letters addressed specifically to them may be opened by staff or not. Pat McPherson said that notions of expediency in the ‘50s differed from today and he did not think action would be much delayed if letters were first opened by individual members. “Will somebody say something to you as City Council members if they thought there would be some sort of reprisal?” he asked.
“When personal correspondence with council is reviewed by a city manager, it has a chilling effect on communications between the public and the council,” said Scott Eicher, Ojai Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO. He added that having mail returned to sender unopened would only worsen the impact and said OVCC members supported placing an initiative on the June election ballot asking voters to prohibit city staff opening personal mail addressed to council members unless so directed by individuals.
“I think the public absolutely has the right to communicate privately with us. Whether we needed hours and hours of legal opinion on it, go figure,” said Smith. She and Mayor Joe DeVito said they had never had any problems with staff opening mail. “I’ve worked with four city managers and my mail has been opened for almost 24 years and I have never had a complaint from anyone who has written to me,” said DeVito. “All the city managers have always been very professional.”
Kersnar had no opinion as to the direction of the council but wanted to address confidentiality concerns. “The implication that somehow there is a danger of staff opening letters, that we would seek retribution against negative comments, if there is any evidence for that, I would like to know about it. That is just not appropriate,” he said. “If there are complaints about staff members or about me, especially about me, I would like to know about them.”
Smith agreed with that sentiment.
The council members agreed to two of Widders’ three recommendations on the issue. A notice will be placed on the city’s web site informing people that written communications are public records and will be opened by the manager’s office. It will also direct people seeking confidential communications to seek a personal interview or contact council members at their private phone numbers or e-mail addresses. Council members who wish to share their private addresses will also make them available on the web site.
Council modified the third recommendation by the city attorney by requesting that any letter addressed as confidential be forwarded to their private addresses and a letter mailed to the sender regarding the city policy on private communications.
Kersnar said the modifications would be made to the directive and brought back to the council as a consent item.
Teens Talk To Packed House
Fears, hopes of 300 local youth explored on stage
By Linda Harmon
After hundreds of Ojai teenagers volunteered their innermost thoughts, a talented troupe of students and the Ojai Valley Youth Foundation brought those feelings to the stage. “Teens Talk … Will You Listen?” was performed last Thursday evening at Matilija High School Auditorium to a packed house. The audience was treated to a riveting, fast-paced, and thought-provoking evening.
“We have over 300 students represented tonight,” said the evening’s director, Kim Maxwell.
Maxwell, currently director of Besant Hill communication and annual fund, introduced the performance, saying, “Tonight is the brainchild of Meg Wall and Dan Burrell.”
According to Maxwell, OVYF program director Wall and OVYF board member Burrell took on the daunting task of getting students to open their hearts and minds. In a process which took only a month and a half, they first culled questions from parent groups in schools throughout the area, private and public. They then distributed the list of questions via the schools’ English classes. To make sure students felt comfortable responding honestly, answers were kept private.
It was Wall, a 23-year-old not much older than the students being polled, who compiled the responses and gave them to Maxwell. Maxwell, also a professional writer, drama teacher, and a founder of Theater 150, then molded the material into the readings that the 12 students performed on stage.
“They really only had three rehearsals,” said Maxwell, who added they made the last revisions the day of the show. “I was really impressed by the level of commitment of the students who participated.”
“Wasn’t it great?” said Joanna Iwata, executive director of OVYF, after the performance. “And these are not professional actors.”
The troupe that took the stage for the readings were: Brianna Bohnett, Kim Del Manzano, Mitch Edelson, Karla Flores, Lumi Grasso, Sierra Hoskins, Giani Interiano, Lily Mays, Tyler Mikkelson, Henry Monny, Daniela Razo, and Journey Zephyr. The supporting ensemble included: Maggie Angeles, Kayla Arnold, Angela Cimmarusti, Sandra Hernandez, Khalil Lennon, Jacob Morgan, Ashley Pulido, Freya Randle-Helgesson, and Yesenia Sanchez.
The dialogue was formed around a series of questions including: “What inspires you?,” “Why do you hate me?,” “Why don’t you like yourself?,” “How do you feel about the future?,” and “Is it OK to read a teen’s text messages?”
It felt intimate and personal even though the readings took place from the stage in a crowded auditorium. Teens told parents they drink too much and embarrass them, that they complain too much about the other parent, and that they miss having time to talk to a parent absent, whether physically or emotionally. There were tender moments too, like when a teen wrote no matter how depressed they got they always kept trying because their parents kept trying and kept caring.
There were also readings delivered about the April stabbing of 16-year-old Seth Scarminach. Starting with free verse about the peaceful Ojai night sky that gave way to violence, students used words like terror, anger, despair, guilt. Monologues told of facing violence, “that happens here.” Teens asking, “How did we get here?” and “How do you heal the rage?”
Throughout the performance the dialogue came straight from the heart, at times sad and funny, at others scary and touching.
At the end, I, for one, felt inspired. Inspired that 300 students trusted enough to be part of something bigger than themselves. Through their words, they reminded everyone in the audience how very precious and besieged, yet tough and resilient, each young adult can be.
Wall said it best in her closing remarks, thanking the audience and her readers. She closed her remarks by thanking “every teen who submitted anything, every spoken word, every monologue and bit of poetry. This is what made this script so incredible.”
According to Iwata, the evening is only the first in a series of events the Youth Foundation plans for the coming year as part of their outreach programs to valley youngsters and their parents.
Iwata mentioned the upcoming return of the organization, Straight Up from Ventura, on Nov. 14.
To find out more or volunteer go online to ovyf.org or call 640-9555.
And if you missed Thursday’s performance, take heart. Burrell announced the event was filmed by Jim McEachen and an eight-member student crew who will be submitting it to film festivals.
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