By Contra Costa County Office of Communications & Media
The Contra Costa Commission for Women and Girls is partnering with California Women Lead to host a State of California Commissions Appointments Workshop on July 29.
The workshop will provide information on state and local commissions, the application process, and tips for strong applications. The Commission encourages participation of active community members seeking to learn about public governance, preparing for elected office, or aiming to make more significant community impact. Learn about the value of serving on boards and commissions and why there needs to be more women at the table.
The Contra Costa Commission for Women and Girls was formed in 1984 as an advisory committee to the Board of Supervisors. The Commission provides information and advice to the Board relating to the health and welfare of women and girls in the County. The Commission strives to increase awareness of women’s and girls’ issues, celebrate achievements of local deserving women, champion opportunities for women and girls, and recommend legislative solutions at the city, county, state, and federal levels.
For further information about the California Commissions Appointments Workshop and the Contra Costa Commission for Women and Girls, please email cccwomenscommission@gmail.com.
Resigns effective July 14; no severance will be paid
“…in the best interests of the city it’s time to move on.” – Cornelius “Con” Johnson
Antioch City Manager Cornelius “Con” Johnson has resigned effective July 14, 2023.
By Allen D. Payton
Embattled Antioch City Manager Cornelius “Con” Johnson has submitted his two-week notice and resigned his position effective July 14th. That’s the same day Economic Development Director Forrest Ebbs will be leaving the City for a new position with Modesto. Johnson was placed on paid administrative leave on March 17 by a 5-0 vote of the council.
According to District 2 City Councilman Mike Barbanica, “This morning, Con Johnson resigned. He gave the City a two-week notice.” Asked if it was in writing, the councilman said, “yes”.
He also said Johnson will not be paid the one-year severance included in his contract. But he will continue to be paid his $22,000 monthly salary for the remaining two weeks.
Asked if the city will continue pursuing the investigations or legal action, Barbanica said, “No further action that I know of is anticipated. As of the 15th he will no longer be a city employee.”
A copy of Johnson’s resignation letter or email was requested from City Attorney Thomas L. Smith and Acting City Manager Kwame Reed. It was not received prior to publication time.
Johnson confirmed his resignation. Asked why, now, he said, “I want to move on. I think Antioch has suffered enough and in the spirit of stability and in the best interests of the city it’s time to move on.”
Later, Barbanica said, “I sent an email to the city attorney requesting to keep the special meeting for Monday, July 10th at 10 a.m. and that we add an agenda item to authorize the process to start immediately recruiting a city manager.”
UPDATE #2: Early Friday afternoon, Reed provided a copy of Johnson’s resignation letter. Addressed to the City’s Human Resources Director Ana Cortez, it reads simply, “NOTICE OF RESIGNATION. Dear Director Cortez, This correspondence serves as my two weeks official notice of resignation as the City of Antioch, City Manager. My last day of employment is Friday, July 14, 2023. Respectfully submitted, Cornelius H. Johnson” and signed by him. The letter was cc’d to the five council members.
The mayor and other council members were sent an email asking for comment.
UPDATE #1: Only District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock responded. She wrote, “Now that Mr. Johnson has resigned, we as council can move forward in hiring an interim city manager to begin the hiring process of a city manager. This is of the highest importance as we have several key positions that need to be filled in order to continue maintaining the city. I truly appreciate staff and all their hard work in multiple positions.”
Please check back later for any updates to this report.
Kwame Reed was honored by the Antioch Chamber of Commerce, presented with a plaque by board member Mike McGill and was joined by chamber and city leaders during the State of Business luncheon on Oct. 25, 2022. Herald file photo.
By Allen D. Payton
On Friday afternoon, Antioch Mayor Lamar Thorpe issued a statement of support for new Acting City Manager Kwame Reed, the City’s Economic Development Director, who was appointed to the temporary position that morning. In addition, the Antioch Chamber of Commerce also issued a statement of support for Reed. He was appointed on a 4-0 vote of the city council during a special, closed session meeting. (See related article)
In the post on his official Facebook page Thorpe wrote, “Earlier today, the City Council appointed Kwame Reed as the city’s acting city manager until further notice.
Mr. Reed has been with the city of Antioch for close to 5 years in the role of Economic Development Director. He has a public sector career that spans more than 28 years. For most of his career, he has worked for cities in Eastern Contra Costa County. He has a degree in City and Regional Planning from Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo.
I want to personally thank outgoing acting city manager, Forrest Ebbs for stepping up to hold the ship steady while the city navigated some unexpected changes.
Congratulations on Mr. Ebbs’ recent appointment as Deputy City Manager for the City of Modesto.
I want to assure Antioch residents, our city employees, and partners that the City’s leadership remains focused and UNITED on our top priority of increasing our overall quality of life and ensuring public safety. Antioch’s government continues to be open for business and working for the people.
I have personally been briefed by all of our department heads and they continue to assure me that they are committed to this mission and that they will continue moving forward with clarity, and a focus on delivering key services.”
On the Chamber’s Facebook page was posted the “Antioch Chamber of Commerce Official Statement regarding appointment of Kwame Reed as city’s acting city manager:
Earlier today, the City Council appointed Kwame Reed as the city’s acting city manager.
‘On behalf of the Antioch Chamber of Commerce Organization, I’d like to congratulate the City of Antioch on the outstanding appointment of Kwame Reed as the Cities Acting- City Manager. There is no doubt in my mind that Kwame’s tireless work on behalf of Antioch’s Enterprise & Commerce Community is unmatched and that he is ready to take on this important Leadership role during such a critical transition period for the City of Antioch,’ said Daniel Sohn, President/ CEO for the Antioch Chamber of Commerce.
Last year, the Antioch Chamber presented Mr. Reed with an award for his results-oriented work on behalf of Antioch businesses in his capacity as Antioch’s Director of Economic Development.” (See related article)
Reed began is additional duties on Friday afternoon, as Ebbs returned to his position as the City’s Community Development Director and was heading out for a two week vacation before ending his time with Antioch on July 14.
Will discuss 18 other agenda items during special meeting next Tuesday
“There are some big shoes to fill.” – Reed said of the departing Forrest Ebbs
Kwame Reed. Source: City of Antioch
By Allen D. Payton
During Friday morning’s special Antioch City Council closed session meeting on a 4-0 vote Economic Development Director Kwame Reed was appointed acting city manager to replace Community Development Director Forrest Ebbs. He has held the position since March but announced last week he’s taking a new position as a Deputy City Manager with Modesto.
During the open session portion of the meeting, Assistant City Attorney Rachel Hundley reported out of closed session about the vote for Reed’s appointment. He fills the position held by City Manager Con Johnson who was placed on paid administrative leave March 17. Following the council’s closed session during their June 13th meeting, City Attorney Thomas L. Smith merely reported out regarding the item entitled “Public Employee Performance Evaluation and Potential Action – City Manager”, that they had given him direction. That is expected to be an offer to Johnson to resign or face termination.
At Friday morning’s meeting during open session, Mayor Lamar Thorpe then requested a motion to adjourn the 18 items to a special meeting at 6:00 p.m. next Tuesday, June 27 before the regular meeting that begins at 7:00 p.m. The motion passed 3-0 with Mayor Pro Tem Tamisha Torres-Walker and District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock absent. Torres-Walker attended the closed session but as previously reported could not attend the open session due to previous commitments and Ogorchock is out of town at a League of Cities conference.
Reed has been in his current position with the City of Antioch since July 2, 2018 after working for both the City of Brentwood for almost 14 years as an Economic Development Senior Analyst and two years as an Associate Planner for the City of Oakley. Prior to that position, he worked for two years as a planner for the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission which operates the ACE Train. Reed has a bachelor’s degree in City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
He has been married for 26 years and is the father of two boys and a daughter.
When reached for comment Reed said, “I’m very excited for the opportunity. I’ve been around for a while. I’ve seen how things work. It’s a wonderful opportunity. It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be tough. There are some issues that will be handled. I look forward to working with the entire council and getting community support, again, and the entire staff. I have good relationships with everyone and look forward to strengthening those and supporting them, as well.”
“Forrest has done a great job. I’m really going to miss him,” he shared about outgoing. “There are some big shoes to fill. We all wish him well. But when he announced he’s moving on, it was ‘wow’. We’re going to lose a good bit of knowledge when he departs.”
Immediately prior to the open session, District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica and Thorpe had a brief conversation in the back room behind the dais, with Hundley, which people in attendance at the meeting saw.
Asked about it Barbanica said, “Lamar was going to discuss an item about rent control but what I was telling him was there were only three of us there and that I had a conflict of interest, as I couldn’t vote on it, before as it could have a direct effect on my business.” The councilman is a real estate broker and property manager in Antioch.
“Any item that has come up regarding tenants, rent, etc. I’ve brought up with the city attorney about any potential conflict of interest,” he explained. “Because this meeting was going to be postponed, I didn’t have time to consult the city attorney and I couldn’t do that 30 seconds before the meeting. I told them I was going to recuse myself and Rachel agreed, and we’ll vet this out further before Tuesday night.”
The special Friday morning meeting adjourned at 10:35 a.m.
In addition to an acting city manager, as reported by Thorpe at last week’s council meeting, the City currently has 87 vacancies, including the assistant city manager, 17 unfilled positions in the police department plus 35 officers on paid administrative leave pending the two investigations, an acting public works director, and soon an acting community development director on July 15 following Ebbs’ departure.
City of Antioch 2023-25 General Fund Expenditures by department. Source: City of Antioch
Includes projected deficits of $10.2 million in 2023-24 and $15.4 million in 2024-25; also approves $226.6 million 5-Year Capital Improvement Program budget
By Allen D. Payton
During their meeting on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, the Antioch City Council adopted a $237.5 million annual budget for Fiscal Year 2023-24 and $226.2 million budget for Fiscal Year 2024-25 with $10.2 and $15.4 million deficits, respectively. The council also unanimously approved the $226.6 million 5-Year Capital Improvement Program budget and spending up to $2.1 million for police dispatch and records management software upgrade over five years.
City of Antioch 2023-25 General Fund Tax Revenue by Source.
Approves Two-Year Budget
The council approved the two-year budget for Fiscal Years 2023-25 using less than $3 million from Budget Stabilization funds for the General Fund, according to Finance Director Dawn Merchant. The 2023-24 Fiscal Year Operating Budget projects a total $10.2 million deficit with $227,370,716 in revenue, including$91,854,602 to the General Fund and $237,524,285 in expenditures, including $92,698,366 from the General Fund. In Fiscal Year 2024-25 the deficit is projected to be $16 million with $210,736,707 in revenue, including$97,314,672 in the General Fund and total expenditures of $226,163,010, including $100,314,672 from the General Fund. (See below)
Over half of the General Fund pays for police, including $50,741,523 in FY 2023-24 and $54,670,183 in FY 2024-25.
Source: City of Antioch
Approves 5-Year Capital Improvement Program Budget
The council also unanimously approved the $226.6 million 5-Year Capital Improvement Program Budget with the largest amount of $69 million to be spent on the Brackish Water Desalination Plant. The budget also includes $55.4 million for Roadway Improvements, $47.1 million on the City’s water system, $21.6 million on Community Facilities, $16.4 million on Parks and Trails, $12 million on the Wastewater and Storm Drain System and $4.4 million on Traffic Signals.
Approve $2.1 million for Police Department Software Upgrade
The council approved a five-year contract not to exceed $2,123,744 to develop and maintain a Police Computer Aided Dispatch (“CAD”) and Records Management System (“RMS”) from June 1, 2023, to July 1, 2028, authorizing the Acting City Manager to execute a purchasing agreement with Sunridge Systems.
Mayor Pro Tem Tamisha Torres-Walker was the only council member to speak on the item.
“Increased police response times is literally a matter of life and death in this community,” she said “Three minutes versus 10 minutes when you have a loved one bleeding out in the street… response times matter. Until we can create this other world, this utopia where we don’t need these systems, we need to make them work. Our police department is way behind 21st Century Policing. I definitely support this, and I can make the motion,” which she then did.
Seconded by District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica, the motion was adopted on a 5-0 vote.
Ebbs’ last day is July 14, will leave City without manager, assistant manager, community development director
Forrest Ebbs. Source: City of Antioch
By Allen D. Payton
Acting Antioch City Manager Forrest Ebbs announced to the city council and staff, on Thursday, June 14, 2023, that he will be leaving for a new position with the City of Modesto as a Deputy City Manager. His last day will be July 14. With the expected departure of City Manager Con Johnson who has been on paid leave since middle of March, following council’s direction to the city attorney during their closed session this past Tuesday night, that will leave Antioch without a city manager, assistant manager and community development director, which Ebbs retained as his official title during the brief time as acting city manager.
It has been “a little over eight years as Community Development Director,” Ebbs said when reached for comment.
Asked about the accomplishments during his time in the position he spoke of the three divisions in the department saying, “the Building Division has grown to be more appropriate for a city of our size. We have gone to an online submittal process for building permits. We just launched it.”
“In Planning, we’ve created many new opportunities for housing and ways to revitalize commercial corridors,” Forbes shared. He oversaw the entitlement process of all projects in the new home Sand Creek Focus Area, except for Kaiser during his tenure.
“In Code Enforcement we’ve grown from four budgeted positions to 18 to better serve the community,” he added.
Asked about how long he’d been considering a new position, Ebbs said, “Throughout my career I’ve looked for opportunities to try out new challenges. But this is something I’ve been pursuing for a couple years.”
Asked if the current acting position helped prepare him for his new one Ebbs replied, “I’ve learned a lot in the last three months and I’m appreciative of the council for having the confidence allowing me to do that.”
He will be one of two deputy city managers for the city with a population of a little over 200,000. Modesto’s official motto, which can be seen on an archway sign at the intersection of 9th and I Streets is “Water, Wealth, Contentment, Health”.
Asked when he started the process with Modesto, Ebbs said, “It’s been a typical recruitment process. I applied to them a couple months ago. It was a competitive national recruitment.”
Asked about his replacement in Antioch he shared, “The city council will make a decision on the acting city manager in the next couple weeks. I will be presenting some names to them and they will ultimately make the decision of how they want to proceed with an acting city manager.”
Asked about an acting Community Development Director he said, “I’ll be looking internally to backfill that position. The reality is the department staff have stepped up so it’s not going to be much of a transition.”
Ebbs is married with three children – the oldest is 19 and a freshman in college, another, age 16 is in high school and a 12-year-old in middle school.
“It was a family decision,” he shared.
They live in Lodi so his commute will be shorter.
“It’s the same distance but it’s a quicker drive,” Ebbs added.
Mayor Thorpe’s post on his official Instagram page showing he was in Mexico on Sunday, May 28, 2023 with the comment in both Spanish and the partially redacted English translation. Herald redaction.
Posts message on his official Instagram account with vulgar translation; claims it was mistranslated, later adds his intended meaning of “Don’t mess around”; but Hispanic college board president says phrase is “almost…intimidation”; 6/1/23 UPDATE: Thorpe says he informed Torres-Walker he would be out of town for Tuesday night’s meeting
By Allen D. Payton
While facing the limiting of his powers by three of his fellow councilmembers, on Sunday, while in Ensenada, Mexico, Antioch Mayor Lamar Thorpe posted a photo of himself with a vulgar message on his official Instagram account. It reads, “antioch_mayor No chingen” which translated into English means “antioch_mayor Don’t give a f—“. The post comes three days after the agenda was made public for Tuesday night’s special council meeting, called by District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica at the end of last week’s meeting, and supported by Mayor Pro Tem Tamisha Torres-Walker and District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock. The two items would both weaken one of the two powers of the mayor, to set meeting agendas, and completely change the position from being directly elected for four years to an annually rotated position among all five council members. (See related articles here and here)
He was sent questions via email late Monday night asking what he was referring to in his Instagram post on Sunday and specifically, “Why don’t you ‘give a f – – -‘?”
The mayor was asked if he is upset about what the three council members are attempting to do to weaken one of the powers of the mayor regarding setting meeting agendas and switching to an annually rotated instead of a directly elected mayor.
Thorpe was also asked, “as an elected representative, do you think it’s appropriate to use that kind of language in Spanish or English, especially on one of your official social media accounts?”
He was also asked about the trip and it’s timing: “Why are you in Mexico? How long have you had this trip planned? When did you book your flight? Or did you drive there and if so, when did you leave Antioch? If it was planned before last Tuesday night, why didn’t you mention that during the council meeting when Councilman Barbanica called for the special meeting for this Tuesday night, May 30 and it received the support from two other council members? Or will you be back from Mexico in time to attend the meeting?”
Finally, he was asked if he has anything else to share about the Instagram post or the two items on the special council meeting agenda.
Barbanica Didn’t Know Thorpe Would Miss Meeting
When asked about Thorpe being in Mexico, Barbanica said, “Had I known at the time when I called for the meeting that he was going to be out of town I would have moved it to another time. I would have loved to have everybody there. But at the time I didn’t know he was going to be out of town.”
Thorpe Claims Mistranslation by Instagram But Won’t See What He Meant
In response to the questions, Thorpe wrote the following via email Tuesday morning:
“So that I’m clear, if I had a public statement to make I’d make it. Right now, I have no statement regarding an issue that’s a non starter. I don’t send subliminal messages. You’re suggesting I’m on vacation not because it’s Memorial Day weekend (one of the busiest travel weekends in the nation) but instead because of a special meeting…after 6 years in elected office, I’ve never sent a ‘subliminal message’ as you’re suggesting.”
Thorpe then made the same claim of mistranslation about another post on his official Instagram page showing him standing in front of a painting of multi-colored wings.
“In case you wanted more examples of Meta broken translator: ‘Pintate de colores y buela como superman’ is also translated incorrectly,” he wrote.
That translated on his Instagram account to “Paint colors and grumble like Superman”.
He later provided his own translation of “Get outta here”.
More Questions Go Unanswered
Thorpe was pressed further asking him to explain what he meant since he claims it’s not intended to be a subliminal message and it’s been mistranslated. He was also asked, “if, as you claim, the Meta translator is broken and it’s an incorrect translation, what is the correct translation of ‘no chingen’?”
He was informed that the word in Spanish appears to be misspelled as the word found on SpeakLatino.com is “chinguen” which is conjugated from the word chingar meaning either: 1. to importune, disturb; 2. to have sex (offensive); or 3. to frequently have wine or drinks (colloquial)
Thorpe was then asked, if “no chinguen” is what he meant to write and if so, which of those meanings did he intend by his post. “Did you mean you don’t want to be disturbed? Or that you’re not drinking? Since that’s supposedly colloquial, and if the latter meaning is what you intended, wouldn’t a better word to use be ‘no beben’?”
He was also asked, “If ‘don’t give a f—-‘ is not what you intended to write, but is translated that way, why haven’t you yet corrected or deleted the comment or post?”
The mayor was asked what “Pintate de colores y buela como superman” translates to in English. Google Translator shows the meaning to be, “Paint yourself colors and ox like superman”.
Thorpe was asked again, if he will return in time for tonight’s council meeting and if not, when did he plan his trip and if planned before last Tuesday night’s meeting, why didn’t he mention it when Councilman Barbanica called for the special meeting to be scheduled for tonight.
Because of a concern that Thorpe intentionally misses certain meetings and the Public Comments portion of meetings he was reminded of being an hour late to the May 9th council meeting for which he missed the Public Comments period. Thorpe was asked if it was true that he was in the mayor’s office upstairs inside City Hall taking his online DUI class at the time.
Thorpe Continues to Refuse to Say What He Meant
The mayor replied, “Again, the issue is a none starter [sic]. So, I can’t ‘send’ a message, directly or indirectly, about something that does not impact the role of the elected mayor.”
One Last Attempt to Get Answers
Thorpe was then sent additional and some of the same questions once more asking, “since what you wrote in Spanish is clearly not understood by most of your constituents and you claim it was mistranslated how can they know it has nothing to do with your role as the elected mayor? What did you intend to write in Spanish that you claim was mistranslated into English? Did you check the translation before finalizing your post?”
He was informed that the SpanishDictionary.com shows the phrase he posted means “don’t f—” with a related phrase of “No chinguen conmigo o se van a arrepentir. – Don’t f— with me, or you’ll regret it.”
Thorpe was also informed that someone whose family is from Mexico and spends a lot of time there said it could mean, “I don’t care” or it’s a warning meaning “don’t mess with me”, “don’t say anything on this” or “you better let this go”.
He was then asked if one of those were the meaning he intended to send.
Thorpe was also asked to support his claim of mistranslation to provide the correct translation of his other post of him standing in front of a painting of angel wings and mentioning Superman. He was also asked now that he’s aware of the vulgar “mistranslation”, as he claims, why he hadn’t deleted the comment.
Again, the mayor was asked, “when did you plan your trip to Mexico? Did you just go for the weekend? Will you be back in town in time for tonight’s meeting? If not, is the trip to avoid attending tonight’s council meeting? Finally, again, if you planned the trip before last Tuesday night, why didn’t you mention it during the council meeting?”
He was also asked again about his hour-long absence at the beginning of the May 9th meeting, where he was, what he was doing and why.
Screenshot of the edit and redacted English translation of Thorpe’s Instagram post on Wed., May 20, 2023 at about 4:45 p.m. Herald redaction
Translation of Thorpe’s Post Changed, Finally Provides His Intended Meaning
Redacted change in translation to Thorpe’s Instagram post on Wed., May 30, 2023 at about 2:00 p.m. Herald redaction
At about 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, the translation to English of Thorpe’s post was changed to read simply, “Don’t f—.”
Thorpe was asked if he had changed the translation or if the system had done that.
He responded, “I changed ‘chingen’ to ‘chinguen’. You said I misspelled it so I changed it. How it translates I don’t control.” Then Thorpe wrote, “Let me see if I can manually fix it.”
He was then asked once more what he meant by his post.
As of about 4:45 p.m. his post had been edited but still read, “No chingen” and translated to “Don’t give a f—-”.
Thorpe then wrote, “Looks like there’s a translate area in settings but can’t figure out how to turn off. I already told you the meaning in a previous email— don’t mess around.”
“Can’t fix but added my translation at the bottom on both posts,” he added.
The final version of his post now includes the words, “Don’t mess around.”
Thorpe was asked again when he had planned his trip, if he is back in town and if he will be attending the meeting. The mayor did not respond.
Screenshot of Thorpe’s translation to his Instagram post on Wednesday afternoon, May 30, 2023.
Hispanic College Board President Says Phrase is “Almost…Intimidation”
Asked the meaning of the phrase Thorpe posted, Contra Costa Community College Board President Fernando Sandoval, who represents Antioch, said the meaning of the phrase is “don’t f— with me”.
“It’s almost a level of intimidation, especially being posted on there,” he added.
Thorpe Said He Informed Torres-Walker He Would be Out of Town During Special Meeting
6/1/23 UPDATE: After returning from Mexico, Thorpe said he had informed Torres-Walker after the meeting on Tuesday, May 23 that he would be out of town, this week and would not be attending this past Tuesday night’s meeting, and asked her to inform Barbanica.
Change in how mayor is chosen requires vote of people, would result in redistricting to five council districts
First ever special meeting called by three council members not the mayorset for Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.
By Allen D. Payton
At the request of District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica, with the support of Mayor Pro Tem Tamisha Torres-Walker and District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock at the end of Tuesday night’s meeting, the Antioch City Council will have an unprecedented special meeting next Tuesday, May 30 at 7:00 p.m. to discuss two matters. It will be the first not called by the mayor. (See related article and May 30th agenda)
The first item, specifically requested by Barbanica at the end of the Tuesday, May 23rd council meeting, is a discussion on a proposed agenda setting process for future city council meetings. Currently the mayor sets the agenda with input from the city manager, and placing requests by other council members when he chooses. That is supposed to be done within six months of the request based on the council policy adopted during former Mayor Wade Harper’s term. However, it hasn’t always been followed.
Barbanica said he and Torres-Walker held two meetings on the matter and developed a seven-point plan which they will present during the meeting.
Proposed Switch to Rotated Mayor
The second matter for discussion, also proposed by Barbanica, is the consideration of a process to transition the city from four to five election districts and to change the process from designating the mayor from being elected directly, citywide for a four-year term to a mayor serving a one-year term on a rotating basis, as is currently done for the position of mayor pro tem.
Asked if the second proposal was his, Barbanica said, “I called for the special meeting on the one item. Afterwards, I was thinking about it and I added the second item about switching to a rotated mayor.”
“I called Tamisha to ask her thoughts about it and she said, ‘yes, let’s add it,’” he continued. “I called (City Attorney) Thomas (Smith). He got a third person to agree, and I spoke to him later in the afternoon so, he said we’re going to place it on the agenda.”
“We just agreed to place it on the agenda. No one has approved anything at this point,” Barbanica stated. “It would have to go to the voters, of course.”
“I initially brought this to her (Torres-Walker) on Saturday afternoon when I was sharing with her about the need for the EOC,” the councilman shared. “We came to an agreement on that. We also spoke about the MRAP. What I proposed is, we need to replace it, anyways, let’s get rid of it, but not now. Then why don’t we bring in a police department-based vehicle. The police department wanted it anyway. I reached out to the department, and they said we’re 100 percent on board.”
“I’m very appreciative of the time she and I spent discussing ideas. This was hours that we spent going over things,” Barbanica continued. “We came up with the seven-point plan together. We bounced ideas off each other.”
“She initially reached out to me to talk about the agenda. That turned into conversations about the EOC, the MRAP and how the agenda was put together,” he explained. “I was appreciative that we spent hours on this, together.”
“I don’t want to take full credit for this. It’s something we worked together on. She was very receptive to my ideas. It was a back-and-forth thing,” Barbanica wanted to make clear.
“This was very much a collaborative effort with both of us being willing to compromise,” he added.
If approved at a future council meeting switching to a rotated mayor would require a vote by the public and the city undergoing another redistricting process for future council elections with three seats up one year and the other two seats two years later. That’s how the process is handled in most of the 19 cities in Contra Costa County. Besides Antioch, only Richmond, San Ramon, Martinez and Brentwood have directly elected mayors.
“We’re consulting an elections attorney, right now to make sure we understand the process and determine the next steps if the council majority agrees we want to look into it further,” Barbanica added.
Powers and Duties of the Mayor
The mayor has only two powers that the other city council members don’t, which are to set council meeting agendas and nominate council members and residents to committees, commissions and boards. The appointments still require the support of at least two other council members. The mayor also gets to sign ordinances, resolutions and proclamations and represent the City at the monthly county Mayor’s Conference.
Attempts to reach Torres-Walker for comment on this were unsuccessful prior to publication time. Please check later for any updates to this report.
