Barbanica confirms; Ogorchock reiterates call for investigation of Rolando Bonilla’s recent actions; Bonilla claimed city manager authorized press release

By Allen D. Payton

In the wake of a recent firestorm with the Antioch police chief and his officers caused by the City’s Public Information Officer Rolando Bonilla, City Manager Con Johnson terminated Bonilla’s contract, it was confirmed, today. According to District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica, who spoke with Johnson Wednesday afternoon, the city manager ended the PIO’s contract in the past few days. Since September 2019 Bonilla was paid $8,000 per month for his work in Antioch through his position as Chief Strategy Advisor with San Jose-based Voler Strategic Advisors, according to his contract and his LinkedIn profile. However, a search on the company’s website resulted in no information about him.

As previously reported, Bonilla issued a press release to KRON-4 News on Friday, Feb. 17, which he claimed Johnson authorized, attributing a false quote to Police Chief Steve Ford that took a swipe at the Antioch Police Officers Association claiming their previous statements critical of Mayor Lamar Thorpe and Bonilla were “circus like antics”. In addition, the press release claimed Bonilla worked with Ford and his team “to develop and distribute a letter to our community where the Antioch Police Department takes full responsibility for the recent burglaries.” But Lt. Michael Mellone, who is in charge of the department’s Community Engagement Unit that includes their own PIO, Ashley Crandell, claimed that wasn’t true, either. He then issued another press release to the Bay Area media asking them to check with him or Crandell on any information they might receive from Bonilla regarding police matters in the city and denying Bonilla worked on the apology press release.

The police department didn’t take responsibility for the burglaries, instead apologized for the slow response times.

But Johnson did not inform at least two of the council members, including Barbanica and District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock, who asked for an investigation of the recent incident and for Bonilla to be let go during Tuesday night’s council meeting. According to Ogorchock, Johnson informed city staff of Bonilla’s termination by email but did not include the mayor or council members.

“I was told an email was sent out,” she said. “I asked if anyone on council had been added to the email and I was told ‘no’. But we didn’t have to be according to what the city attorney told me.”

“Rolando Bonilla needs to be investigated because the press release he sent to KRON-4 was not only impersonating a police officer, but the police chief of Antioch,” Ogorchock exclaimeed. “That’s why I said what I did last night. I believe not only Antioch needs to investigate it but the district attorney needs to investigate it. Whoever authorized that press release needs to be held accountable.”

Questions for City Manager Go Unanswered

Questions were sent late Tuesday night to the city manager, and copying all five council members and City Attorney Thomas L. Smith asking to verify if Bonilla had been terminated from his position as the City’s Public Information Officer and if so, when did that happen and what was the reason.

In addition, Johnson was asked for a copy of his communication with city staff members about the matter. Finally, he was asked if he will be issuing a Request for Proposal for a new City PIO, assigning the responsibilities to an existing staff member or hire a city employee to fill the position.

Neither Johnson nor the other three council members responded as of publication time on Wednesday at 7:25 p.m.

 

Says “Bay Area leaders have not stepped up to fix the fiscal oversight problems with BART…”

Only BART Board Director Allen responds applauding Glazer

By Allen D. Payton

Senator Steve Glazer, D-Contra Costa, announced that he resigned today, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023 from his position as a member of the Senate Select Committee on Bay Area Public Transit, saying Bay Area leaders have failed to support fiscal oversight of BART.

Senator Glazer is a longtime supporter of public transit and is concerned about the financial problems facing Bay Area transit systems, which are essential to the health of the regional economy. But, he said, the status quo is unacceptable.

“Bay Area leaders have not stepped up to fix the fiscal oversight problems with BART, as well as the underfunding of the Inspector General’s office,” Glazer said. “When these problems are addressed, I will join with my colleagues and support greater transit funding.”

In June 2022, an Alameda County Grand Jury found that BART’s leadership has repeatedly blocked the Inspector General’s authority and autonomy.

Just two months later, former State Auditor Elaine Howle found that the BART office “lacked the authority and independence necessary to do its job…”

The BART inspector general was created by Senator Glazer as part of a transportation bill in 2017. Senator Glazer advanced legislation (SB 827) to the governor’s desk last year that enhanced independence for the IG, conforming its auditing standards and investigations with other transportation IGs. At the request of the BART Board, Governor Newsom vetoed the bill.

Senator Glazer’s letter reads as follows:

Dear Senator Wiener,

I hereby resign from the Senate Select Committee on Bay Area Public Transit, effective immediately. The failure of Bay Area leaders to hold BART financially accountable makes my participation in this transit support committee incompatible.

I recognize and support the pressing need for the state to invest in public transit agencies throughout the Bay Area given the financial uncertainty that looms over these systems. However, there is no guarantee that these agencies will spend taxpayer dollars sensibly without adequate oversight of their expenditures. I point to the recent alarming reports from BART’s Inspector General regarding BART’s financial mismanagement and brazen defiance of voter-mandated oversight.

In June 2022, an Alameda County Grand Jury found that BART’s leadership has repeatedly blocked the Inspector General’s authority and autonomy. Specifically, the Grand Jury found that BART’s board of directors and management engaged in a “pattern of obstruction” that has impeded the Inspector General’s ability to conduct independent oversight and “stymied OIG independence and the confidentiality of investigations.”

Just two months later, former State Auditor Elaine Howle, comparing the powers and responsibilities of the BART IG to other, similar offices, found that the BART office “lacked the authority and independence necessary to do its job according to the best practices recommended by national professional organizations that set standards in the accountability field.’ She also asserted in a letter to Governor Newsom that ‘(e)nsuring the independence of the BART Inspector General is critical to the credibility and effectiveness of the office.”

As BART and other regional transit systems seek additional state funding to stave off upcoming fiscal problems, the Legislature must ensure that the same systems spend public resources responsibly.

I wish you well with your important work.

———————

BART Director Responds

When reached for comment about Glazer’s resignation from the committee and reason for it the four BART Board directors who represent Contra Costa County, including Vice Chair and District 3 Director Mark Foley, District 1 Director Deb Allen, District 3 Director Rebecca Stutzman and District 7 Director Lateefah Simon. Only Allen responded writing, “I applauded CA Senator Glazer for standing up to Bay Area elected leaders to insist on accountability to transit riders and taxpayers. They deserve answers about how BART spends $2.5B plus annually and those answers aren’t easy to come by.

Senator Glazer and I have worked for over six years together to get answers and still continue to meet resistance in making meaningful independent oversight a permanent part of the BART culture. We have worked tirelessly over last 4 years on strengthening the role of the Office of Inspector General we created and built, while the majority of BART board directors, unions and executive staff continue to focus on the ‘more money please!’ approach. We saw it last week in BART’s annual Board Workshop and it seems Senator Glazer is seeing the same approach evolving from the Senate select Committee on Bay Area Public Transit. That will only produce more of the same failed policies we see now for BART.

I believe BART executive management and a majority of directors will continue to fight proper oversight. Unless our state leaders like Senator Glazer attach oversight strings to new funding at the state level to keep transit agencies accountable to the people who are paying for it, transit will continue to fail the riders, workers and the Bay Area.”

Please check back later for any updates to this report.

Assistant City Manager leaves community with experienced leadership vacuum

“This is a huge loss for the city,” District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica

By Allen D. Payton

On Tuesday, Feb. 21, the Piedmont City Council (see 10 minute mark of video) voted unanimously to hire Antioch Assistant City Manager Rosanna Bayon Moore as their new city administrator. Item 3 of the regular meeting agenda it reads, “Consideration and Adoption of a Resolution Appointing Rosanna Bayon Moore as City Administrator and Approving the Employment Agreement Between the City of Piedmont and Rosanna Bayon Moore.” Please see Item 3 of the attached or here – City of piedmont (civiclive.com)

She will be paid an annual salary of $275,000 plus any cost-of-living adjustments to lead the 11,270-person city.

After serving as city manager in Brawley, CA for nine years, Bayon Moore was hired by former Antioch City Manager Ron Bernal in September 2020 in what appeared to be part of his succession plan 15 months before his retirement. But instead of promoting her to the position of interim and then permanent city manager, the Antioch council voted 3-2 to hire retired San Francisco Police Lieutenant Con Johnson as interim city manager. They then made his position permanent last fall in a three-year contract.

During the Piedmont Council meeting and before the vote Bayon Moore said, “Very excited about this opportunity to work with you…to work with amazing and engaged residents and city staff on this next chapter on this journey. Look forward to learning so much more about this amazing place and very, very hopeful and optimistic that I have something to offer you that is going to help us all grow and be stronger together. The best is in the days ahead.”

That was followed by a 5-0 vote of the council.

The Piedmont City staff report on that council’s agenda item reads, “Following a formal recruitment process, Rosanna Bayon Moore was identified by the Council as the candidate most qualified to perform the duties of City Administrator. Ms. Bayon Moore has extensive experience in city government, and currently serves as the Assistant City Manager to the City of Antioch, a role she has held since September of 2020. In this role, she has worked alongside the City Manager to provide fiscal and management oversight to an agency with over 350 full time employees (“FTE”), and a General Fund budget of $85 million. Ms. Bayon Moore directly oversees the Finance, Economic Development, Parks & Recreation and Information Services Departments, as well as provides special support to the recently established Department of Public Safety & Community Resources. Prior to her work in Antioch, Ms. Bayon Moore served as the City Manager to the City of Brawley, California from September 2011 to August of 2020. In that role, she supervised and oversaw all city departments, comprised of 140 FTEs with a General Fund budget of $15 million and overall budget of $48 million. Ms. Bayon Moore received a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from Columbia University, and a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of California, Berkeley.”

Bayon Moore’s employment will begin on April 6, 2023.

She was contacted via email Friday evening, Feb. 17 asking if she had any comments regarding her new position and about her two-plus years with the City of Antioch. Bayon Moore did not respond as of Thursday, Feb. 23.

Questions for Antioch City Manager Go Unanswered

The following questions were sent Friday evening Feb. 17 to Antioch City Manager Con Johnson and all five council members: Do any of you have a comment on the departure by Assistant City Manager Rosanna Bayon Moore to become the new Piedmont City Administrator as of their council vote Tuesday, Feb. 21? How long were you aware of her pursuits of the new position and possibility of losing her experience and expertise from the city staff? Is there a plan to hire her replacement? Will that include using an executive search firm for a possible nationwide search? Or do you have someone in mind from the current city staff? Has there been any thought to combining the positions of Assistant City Manager and Economic Development Director as the City previously had?”

Barbanica Calls it a Huge Loss for the City, Wants Nationwide Search for Replacement

“This is a huge loss for the city,” District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica said when reached for comment. He was the only council member to comment on Bayon Moore’s departure. “It’s Piedmont’s gain but our loss. I’m very sad to see her go. I’ve worked with a lot of city managers and assistant city managers in Pittsburg and here, as well and I can tell you she was a fantastic assistant city manager.”

“One thing I respected about working with her, she’s not intimidated by positions on the council, or the mayor and she’s not afraid to tell any of us ‘no’. She’s willing to stand up for what she believes in and knows to be the best thing for the city.”

Asked how long he knew about this he responded, “About 10 minutes” having first been informed by the media.

Asked if he supported having a nationwide search using a professional recruiting firm for a new assistant city manager Barbanica said, “I absolutely do. I just want the best person for the job.”

By Allen D. Payton

The battle between who is in charge of informing the public about crime in Antioch and what occurs with the police department and the city manager and the City’s public information officer continued Saturday afternoon. Following the publishing of a news article containing comments falsely attributed to Antioch Police Chief Steve Ford, the department issued a press release asking Bay Area media asking to confirm with APD anything sent by the City’s contract PIO, Rolando Bonilla about the police department prior to publication.

The APD press release reads as follows:

The following statement is being issued by Antioch Police Lieutenant Michael Mellone in his capacity as the supervisor of our media relations team:

“I have become aware that some Bay Area media outlets may have received a statement from City of Antioch PIO Ronaldo Bonilla purported to be on behalf of our Chief of Police, Dr. Steven A. Ford. Mr. Bonilla is employed by Voler Strategic Advisors and is the contracted PIO for the City of Antioch. Specifically, a statement attributed in Chief Ford’s name was provided to KRON 4 related to a recent news event involving a series of commercial burglaries, and our delayed response times. While Mr. Bonilla is a contracted PIO for the City of Antioch, he is not the PIO for the Police Department. Our official PIO is Officer Ashley Crandell and I am her supervisor.

Chief Ford has authorized me to inform all media that this attribution in his name provided to KRON 4 was never made or authorized by him personally. We have learned that this statement was provided to KRON 4 from Mr. Bonilla representing himself as the City of Antioch PIO.

Any media outlets receiving statements on behalf of the Antioch Police Department from an individual outside of our organization are respectfully requested to verify the accuracy of these statements by contacting PIO Officer Ashley Crandell (email: acrandell@antiochca.gov), myself (email: mmellone@antiochca.gov), or the Antioch Police Department member directly, which is something we can help facilitate if needed.

KRON 4 has since retracted the statement attributed to Chief Ford’s name incorrectly, with an editor’s note indicating it was provided by an unauthorized representative. We appreciate KRON 4 staff working with us to quickly correct this issue and invite any media to communicate openly with us over matters involving our Police Department. Chief Ford has directed us to embrace best practice police policies on transparency, which involves open communication with media and our community. We continue to investigate this incident and will provide relevant updates when it is appropriate to do so.”

Bonilla, who answers to City Manager Con Johnson, and works with the mayor and council members, was sent a copy of Mellone’s statement and asked if he had any response.

Please check back later for any updates to this report.

Disaster Recovery Center in Danville to remain open

By Kristi Jourdan, PIO, Contra Costa County Office of Communications & Media

(Martinez, CA) – Contra Costa County offices will be closed Monday, Feb. 20, in observance of Presidents’ Day. Emergency services and law enforcement will be available.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Contra Costa County Disaster Recovery Center will remain open from 10 am to 7 pm at 510 La Gonda Way in Danville to help residents impacted by recent winter storms. For more information, please see www.contracosta.ca.gov/9761.

Visit www.contracosta.ca.gov to find information about County services.

APOA announces it, claims mayor, City ‘s PIO muzzling Chief Ford, APD’s PIO; takes more swipes at Thorpe

Claims patrol staff down to 30 officers

“There is NO reason whatsoever to hold onto this information, unless it is the mayor and him wanting to do more press conferences in an attempt to take credit for the good work our officers are doing.” – Councilwoman Ogorchock

By Allen D. Payton

A rash of burglaries in Antioch, this week has led to the arrest of at two suspect.s But the Antioch Police Department is not being allowed to announce it, according to the Antioch Police Officers Association (APOA). Instead, they announced it and claim Mayor Lamar Thorpe and City Manager Con Johnson want the announcement to go through the city’s contracted public information officer, Rolando Bonilla, instead of APD’s PIO, Ashley Crandell, so Thorpe can hold a press conference about it.

The suspects arrested are 34-year-old Casey Beck and Alyssa Castro. According to vinelink.com, he is a white male and was booked into county jail on Feb. 16 at 12:00 AM. According to reunion.com Beck is an Antioch resident and was born on August 18, 1988. According to vinelink.com she is 21 years old and was also booked into county jail at 12:00 AM on Friday. According to her Facebook page, Castro lives in Antioch and attended Alhambra High and Vicente Martinez High in Martinez.

APOA Statement

In a statement issued Friday morning, Sgt. Rick Hoffman, president of the APOA wrote:

“People of Antioch,

The APOA felt it was important to address several issues that our officers have been been dealing with and that you, those who live in Antioch, have likely felt the ramifications of. The issue is twofold and has been affecting our department for some time. These issues are staffing and messaging from our department.

The APD has been hemorrhaging officers for the better part of the last 12 months. Through injuries, attrition, the FBI investigation into a group of our officers, and a host of other issues, the APD’s patrol staff is currently staffed at 30 patrol officers. For perspective, the APD’s patrol staff had 65 officers available to work patrol in late 2020.

The reason we are addressing this now is because of the constant misrepresentations we see about our staffing levels and recruitment efforts being put forth by Mayor Thorpe. It cannot be said with enough emphasis that one of the major driving forces causing officers to leave our agency is the dangerous and irresponsible rhetoric coming from the Mayor. The Mayor’s constant negative comments towards our officers since the time of Chief Brooks has caused a large amount of officers to leave our agency because they do not feel the support from our city’s leadership. Just as important, his behavior and rhetoric has also prevented current officers from other agencies from coming to work for our agency. Anecdotally, we have been told by lateral prospects all over the Bay Area that despite the signing bonus that the Mayor has offered, they will not work in Antioch because of the Mayor’s rhetoric against the police department. We have all heard the Mayor blame our staffing crisis on a national trend of an exodus from policing. Although it is true that staffing levels at police departments around the country are down, it is also true that APD’s staffing has hit critically low levels unseen by other departments in the area. Our neighboring agencies do not have the staffing crisis that we have and the APOA attributes much of that to the Mayor’s ongoing rhetoric.

Now, the APD’s recruiting team has been doing an excellent job hiring a good amount of new applicants and they are being put through the police academy as we speak. We know that help to our staffing levels are soon on the horizon and we are confident that the APD’s staffing levels will be back to where they were before. Chief Ford has also been implementing several positive changes and improvements to our training and procedures that will continue to improve our department over the long term. But to be clear, these positive improvements are happening despite the Mayor’s negative comments about our officers and not because of any efforts or programs he has been responsible for. No signing bonus can make up for the damage he’s done to our department but the officers represented by the APOA are resilient and will overcome yet this latest obstacle to accomplishing the mission of keeping the Antioch community safe.

To speak to the issues of keeping the community safe, most of you have likely heard about the burglaries which occurred recently at Antioch businesses and the subsequent apology which was released by APD administration regarding APD’s response. You were told in that apology that there would be positive updates to be released. Those positive updates to this point have not been released and the APOA has been informed that they will not be released because the Mayor has ordered APD’s leadership not to to release any further information regarding this incident. So we, as an APOA, will tell you that the person responsible has been arrested by alert and hard working APD patrol officers. Officers who responded to the original burglary were able to identify the responsible vehicle the night of the burglary and located the vehicle on February 16. They identified the driver as 34 year old Casey Beck and determined that he was responsible for multiple burglaries in the recent past. Beck was arrested and booked at the Martinez Detention Facility.

This update was prevented from reaching you because the Mayor ordered APD leadership from releasing it. We have been informed that this message has reached our department leadership through Chief Strategic Officer Rolando Bonilla. We have been told that Mr. Bonilla ordered the department’s Public Information Officer, Ashley Crandell, from releasing any further information regarding this incident. This is an ongoing pattern that our department has experienced for years. Mayor Thorpe prevented Chief Brooks, interim Chief Morefield and now Chief Ford from updating the public with incidents occurring in the city. The APOA believes he has done this because he does not want our officers to be highlighted positively but rather wants an opportunity to craft the message himself to take the credit for the work our officers do. The APOA will not stand idly by and allow this to happen. We believe that it is important for the citizens of Antioch to know what is occurring with the city. The APOA does not answer to Mayor Thorpe and he will not silence our message. It seems the Mayor routinely forgets that Antioch is a General Law city which means we are governed by a city council of five and we have a “city manager” form of government. Despite this, the Mayor routinely tries to operate as though we are a Charter city with a “strong mayor” form of government. His actions are inappropriate on many levels.

We can assure the people of Antioch that our officers will continue to work diligently to keep you safe and the message of their work will reach you so that you are aware of what is occurring in the city.”

Questions for Thorpe, Johnson, Bonilla, Councilmembers

The following questions were sent to Thorpe, City Manager Con Johnson, Bonilla, Chief Ford, Crandell and the APOA, and copied to the other four city council members, City Attorney Thomas L. Smith and Assistant City Manager Rosanna Bayon Moore Friday morning. They were given until noon, Friday to respond for their answers and comments to be included in this report.

Is the information provided by the APOA correct? Most importantly, are there currently only 30 patrol officers on the force?

Did Rolanod order Ashley to not release information to the media about the arrest of the suspect in the various burglaries in Antioch? If so, what authority does he have to tell any staff member of any city department what to do? Or did the order come from you, Con? And was it made to Chief Ford to give to Officer Crandell?

If so, Con did Lamar direct you to do that? If so, why are you taking direction from just one of the five council members when your job is to do what a council majority directs you to do?

Lamar, did you give that direction to both Con and Rolando so you can hold a press conference about the arrest? If so, do you recognize that you don’t have the authority to direct the city manager, city PIO, city attorney or any city staff member what to do and it takes the vote of three council members to direct the city manager or city attorney – and only them since they are the only two city staff members who are hired by and answer to the council?

Council members, do you agree that Con and Thomas are only to act upon the direction of a majority vote by the council and they are not to take direction from just the mayor or any other one or two council members?

When will the city’s PIO fulfill the role for which he is contracted and provide information to the public and not suppress, or control it and prevent all media that covers Antioch from being included in city press releases or city-related press conference announcements?

Did a majority of council members ever vote to direct the city’s PIO or the city manager to direct him to exclude certain media from press releases and press conference announcements? (As an FYI, the last time the Herald received a press release or press conference announcement from Bonilla was on Feb. 14, 2022).

Do any of you have any other comments about this matter?”

Only Two Councilmembers Respond

“100% agree,” District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica responded to the question about the city manager and city attorney only acting upon direction of a majority vote of council members.

Asked if that had ever come up for a vote he responded. “No. I would never vote for that and I don’t recall that ever coming up. Nor would I ever exclude media especially media that are critical of the mayor. If that’s the motive, then that’s wrong. It’s contrary to our system.”

“The press should have access because the press reporting is what keeps government honest,” Barbanica added. “You can’t pick and choose based on who’s going to be friendly to you.”

“I’m very disappointed to learn last night and this morning that the Antioch Police Department is being silenced as to what information they can release to the public. Specifically, and most recently, the arrest of the suspect in this week’s restaurant burglaries.”

Barbanica also posted comments and a video on his official Facebook page sharing additional concerns about the matter and thanking Chief Ford and APD for hosting last night’s Community Forum. The District 2 councilman wrote, “30 OFFICERS WORKING PATROL! (That is NOT at a time…this is TOTAL…divide that by a 24/7 operation and a city of 115,000)

Thank you Chief Ford and the recruiting team for doing everything you can to hire more officers.

Most of all, thank you to the men and women of APD for continuing to work through these difficult times and serve the members of this community.

APD apparently again ordered to withhold press information.”

Ogorchock responded to the questions, as well. In response to the first question about the validity of what the APOA shared she wrote, “If this came from the APOA, they would know and I therefore believe it is true.”

Regarding only 30 patrol officers on the force Ogorchorck responded, “Those are the numbers I have also been given.”

Regarding Bonilla ordering Crandell to not release information to the media about the arrest of the suspect, the District 3 councilwoman wrote, “I understood it was the CM Johnson that had reached out to the Chief and told him he was not to release the suspects information. But I have heard that Rolando has directed the PIO Crandell from APD that she needs to go through him.”

Rolando has NO authority whatsoever to direct staff, period!” she added.

In response to the questions to Johnson if Thorpe directed you to do tell APD not to release the information about the suspect and if so, why is he taking direction from just one of the five council members Ogorchock wrote, “Good question, we are NOT a charter city and we do not have a stand-alone mayor.  All direction needs to be given by the body of the council.”

On the question if she agrees that Johnson and Smith are only to act upon the direction of a majority vote by the council and they are not to take direction from just the mayor or any other one or two council members, she wrote, “We as council have two employees, the CM & CA, they are to only take direction from the majority of council.”

Regarding the PIO fulfilling his role to provide information to the public Ogorchock responded, “We should not be suppressing any media outlets, all should be treated fairly and equally no matter to how one feels about the media and how they share the information.”

About the council voting to direct the city’s PIO or the city manager to direct him to exclude certain media from press releases and press conference announcements, she wrote, “Never on my part. As a matter of fact, I believe in what I wrote above, all should be given the same opportunities. It is not up to the PIO Bonilla to pick and choose which outlets to notify of the goings on in the city.  He should be including all!”

Ogorchock also shared the following comments. 

“In this city we have the most dedicated men and women on our police force, they take pride in this city in which they work and some live,” she wrote. “Their quality of life is suffering due to the lack of officers we currently have as they are being asked to take on extra responsibilities, work several extra hours per shift/week to make sure our residents are safe. Our response times are being impacted by such low numbers of officers, as evident in the recent burglaries, where other priority calls were responded to sooner.

“It is my understanding that City Manager Johnson reached out to Chief Ford and instructed him to NOT release the information regarding the suspects being arrested for the many burglaries that took place,” Ogorchock continued. “APD has a public information officer and her name is Officer Crandell. She through Chief Ford should be releasing information as it becomes available as quickly as possible for transparency.  That is what this legislative body has instructed on multiple occasions with previous Chief Brooks, Interim Chief Morefield and now with Chief Ford. There is NO reason whatsoever to hold onto this information, unless it is the mayor and him wanting to do more press conferences in an attempt to take credit for the good work our officers are doing.”

No other council or staff members responded to the questions prior to publication time.

During the Antioch City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023 meeting, it was announced that application deadline for appointments to the seven vacancies on the City’s new Police Oversight Commission has been extended until this Friday, Feb. 17.

Formation of the new commission was approved by the council in May 2022.

CURRENT VACANCIES:

• (2) 1-year terms, expiring November 30, 2023
• (2) 2-year terms, expiring November 30, 2024
• (3) 3-year terms, expiring November 30, 2025

MEETINGS:

• Twice a month, except in July and December, when meetings occur only once.

SEATS:

• 4 representatives, 1 from each District
• 1 representative from Faith-based community
• 1 representative from Business community
• 1 employee or student from Antioch Unified School District

REQUIREMENTS:

• All members must reside in the City of Antioch
• Not a spouse of, or a current/former City employee / department-sworn employee / sworn police officer / sworn police officer association representative

To be considered for the vacancy position(s) listed above, please fill out and sign the “Community Service Application” form, available at City Hall or online at https://www.antiochca.gov/government/boards-commissions/.

Then, e-mail it to cityclerk@antiochca.gov, or print and mail/drop off in the water billing drop-off box outside City Hall at: City Clerk, 200 H Street, Antioch, CA 94509

 

Motts says Thorpe reached out to another organization; he, city manager, Wilson refuse to say why, who will organize it or how it will be funded; Johnson claims he was unaware, as do Ogorchock, Barbanica

By Allen D. Payton

According to the board members and officers of Celebrate Antioch Foundation (CAF) that has been organizing the annual Independence Day Celebration for the past decade, the organization will not be for this year’s event, as they’re claiming the City of Antioch wants to take it over. The city council also contracted with CAF to organize all of last year’s Sesquicentennial events, celebrating the 150th anniversary of cityhood.

But in an email from CAF’s Board President Joy Motts on behalf of the CAF Executive Board and Officers, on Friday, January 13 (at 11:39 am) to City Manager Con Johnson and copied to Thorpe, the other four city council members, and Parks and Recreation Director Brad Helfenberger, she claimed the “relationship has changed” between CAF and the City.

The relationship began to sour last year, as previously reported, when Thorpe, Johnson and District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker pushed to take over organizing of the annual Antioch Juneteenth event. Helfenberger withdrew the permit from organizer Claryssa Wilson, whose parents were supporting Thorpe’s recall, including her father Clarke who was the titular chairman of the effort. CAF was the fiscal agent for Claryssa Wilson and her committee, to accept donations to provide the funding, and the event was relocated to Brentwood. The City hosted the Antioch event and contracted with an Oakland-based motorcycle club, Makin’ Moves, whose leaders live in Antioch, to organize it.

The relationship was impacted further in October, when Motts, during her campaign for District 1 City Council seat, publicly called for Mayor Lamar Thorpe’s resignation following the county’s settlement of the sexual harassment lawsuit against Thorpe by two of his former female employees when he was executive director of the now defunct Los Medanos Community Healthcare District.

CAF’s Email to City

Motts’ Jan. 13th email reads:

Council and City Staff,

11 years ago, a group of citizens came together to help our city. During the great recession the City of Antioch, on the verge of bankruptcy, was unable to continue to bring the decades-long 4th of July fireworks and celebration to its citizens. After a two-year absence, this group of citizens, all volunteers, privately raised the monies needed and organized a great 4th of July celebration and fireworks show in 2012 where over 10,000  attended. The following year this group formed a nonprofit 501c3, the Celebrate Antioch Foundation and for the last 10 years has continued to volunteer and privately bring the 4th of July and other great community celebrations free to the residents and families of Antioch.

This has only been possible because of a great working relationship with the City of Antioch and the support of the City Council. Unfortunately, that relationship has changed, and it has become clear to our foundation that the mayor and city would like to go in a different direction. We have come to this conclusion because of the city’s actions toward our organization. Last year’s Juneteenth debacle, the lack of acknowledgement for our work on the Sesquicentennial and your most recent efforts to reach out to another organization, to organize and facilitate Antioch’s 4th of July festivities have spoken for you. For the City of Antioch to proceed in this manner, without the respect of a conversation with our foundation, has been very disappointing.

Planning and fundraising for the 4th of July is a massive undertaking and is a very expensive event for CAF. The preparation for this event starts the year prior in order to bring a safe and quality event to our community. And more importantly, this only happens because of the dedication of our volunteers who unselfishly offer hours and hours of their time and energy to CAF events and giving back to their community. It is impossible nor financially plausible for CAF to continue down this path of organizing an Antioch 4th of July celebration without having a willing partnership with the city.

Therefore, and considering what has transpired, it is the decision of the executive board, officers and members of the Celebrate Antioch Foundation to take a pause and we will not be organizing or sponsoring Antioch’s 4th of July fireworks and celebration this year. We want to be clear that this decision has absolutely nothing to do with Park and Recreation Director Brad Helfenberger or his department. Brad has been an exceptional and professional partner with our foundation, and we look forward to working with him on our foundation’s other upcoming community celebrations.

We wish you well.

Thank you,

Celebrate Antioch Foundation Executive Board and Officers

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Motts Explains Why CAF Withdrew, Will Continue Organizing Other Community Events

Asked why she sent the email and who told her the City was taking over organizing the July 4th event Motts said, “The writing was kind of on the wall. It started with the Juneteenth event, last year.”

“There was no acknowledgement whatsoever for the Sesquicentennial events and our partnership,” she continued. “And then the last straw for the board and officers was when we found out the mayor had reached out to at least one other organization to take over the 4th of July. The City, the mayor, have never reached out to us to indicate they had any concern that they wanted to go in a different direction.”

About her board and volunteers not receiving recognition Motts shared, “These are people with full-time jobs, and they’ve given their heart and soul putting on events. We had great partnerships, too, like the Historical Society and Delta Veterans Group. I thought we did a good job pulling things together especially in such a short time. It’s really disappointing to the board to have the council never acknowledge the Sesquicentennial. We don’t do it because we need a pat on the back but because we care about our community and want it to thrive.”

“The reason it worked is because we had this wonderful partnership with the City. We no longer have that,” she said. “It’s not the staff. It’s the mayor and obviously he has the votes to do what he does. This was really to protect the foundation.”

“We want to work with people who want to work with us,” the CAF president continued. “We’ve proven ourselves in putting on events for 10 years. It’s a vendetta against me, Velma, whatever.”

“We’re still going to do our other events and just approved the list which we’ll be getting out, soon,” Motts added.

Councilwoman Wilson Serves on CAF’s Board

According to the organization’s website, the five-member CAF Board includes Motts and District 4 Councilwoman Monica Wilson. As previously reported, not only did Wilson have a conflict of interest voting for the $145,000 contract with CAF, her own organization, East Contra Costa Women‘s Leadership Initiative, is promoted on the CAF website and CAF has served as its fiscal agent. In addition, one of the directors for CAF is Velma Wilson, who was one of the 20 proponents of Thorpe’s recall along with her aforementioned husband, Clarke.

Questions for Johnson, Thorpe, Wilson

In a January 23rd email to Johnson, Thorpe and District 4 Councilwoman Monica Wilson who serves as one of CAF’s five board members were asked the following questions about CAF’s email: “Why is it happening with this year’s Antioch July 4th celebration and less than six months before? Do you think the City or another organization can do better than the Celebrate Antioch Foundation has been doing to organize it? Do you believe you have enough time to get it planned? Do you have a budget for it, yet? Or do you plan on raising funds through corporate and individual donations? If so, what non-profit will be receiving them? Does the budget need council approval? If so, when will it be placed on a meeting agenda? Then will it be sent out for any group to bid on organizing it or do you have a group in mind, already? Is it going to be Making Moves, the Oakland-based motorcycle club that organized last year’s Antioch Juneteenth event?”

Wilson was specifically asked, “what have you done to advocate on their (CAF’s) behalf, either with last year’s Juneteenth event and/or with this year’s July 4th event?”

Ogorchock, Barbanica Not Aware of City’s Efforts, Johnson Claims the Same

Asked if she was made aware of the City’s efforts District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock said, “No. I did reach out to Con in an email, asking why Joy felt that way.”

Her email was sent at 12:21 p.m. on January 13.

Ogorchock said Johnson responded at 4:03 p.m. that same day writing, “I haven’t heard anything pertaining to this issue.”

Asked if there had been any additional information about the City taking over organizing the July 4th event, she said, “None that I know of.”

Asked if the council will have to approve any support for the event, Ogorchock responded, “We’re going to have to. We used to provide a financial contribution and city services, including police and public works for the event, each year. That always required council approval.”

District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica was asked the same question if he was aware of CAF’s allegations before receiving Motts’ email, to which he responded, “No, I was not.”

Asked if he had followed up with Johnson about it Barbanica responded, “Not yet.”

As of Saturday afternoon, Jan. 28 no responses were received from Johnson, Thorpe or Wilson.