www.montereycountyweekly.com april 25-may 1, 2024 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 19 For the second time in recent weeks, the police chief of Seaside has been appointed as acting city manager. But in an era of high turnover and a series of personnel investigations, doing two jobs at once might be the norm. As staff writer David Schmalz has reported in recent weeks, City Hall is bleeding staff. Former Human Resource Director Sandra Floyd resigned effective March 1. Assistant Public Works Director Carolyn Burke has been out since April 5. Finance Director Victor Damiani submitted his resignation on April 8. Public Works Superintendent Dave Fortune announced his retirement on April 18. And on April 18, City Council placed City Manager Jaime Fontes on administrative leave while there’s a pending investigation into Fontes. This all leaves a lot of unanswered questions about what is going on. Schmalz has been following a trail of breadcrumbs to figure it out, but personnel matters are confidential. But we can read between the lines to see a culture of intense distrust and a battle for control within City Hall. The first chapter of this story was an investigation into the city attorney, Sheri Damon, regarding complaints by some employees about her workplace behaviors. Since then, there have been other investigations. The former HR director, Floyd, wrote to Mayor Ian Oglesby in February: “The volume of complaints and the severity I am receiving are astonishing.” That employees of an organization of this size might complain, and that their employer (the City of Seaside) has a responsibility to investigate those complaints—and resolve them—is par for the course. The apparent bitterness and distrust that have emerged along with the series of investigations is unusual. It looks like a power struggle has been playing out between Damon and Fontes, the two officials appointed directly by City Council. (Worth noting: They should be on a team, not engaged in battle.) Fontes sent a searing email about Damon to members of council on March 21. “I am stating for the record that I am deeply concerned that the City Attorney’s actions over the recent months have shown a complete disregard for the strictures of the Municipal Code, the Brown Act, and her general duties to the City,” he wrote. “Instead of protecting the City from liability, Ms. Damon’s actions have invited liability.” There could have simply been a series of HR investigations that were conducted, completed and wrapped up. But instead, the series of complaints and investigations continues, implying underlying issues that remain unaddressed. Former city attorney Don Freeman was retained as special counsel, with a role of coordinating various investigations. To seek a dispassionate third-party investigator with no relationship to Seaside city staff, he asked the city’s insurer (California Joint Powers Insurance Authority) to recommend a firm. They suggested law firm Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Rudd & Romo, which has taken on the investigative role—what Fontes described as “unauthorized, politically motivated investigations.” At least one investigation involves questions of whether he appropriately hired Floyd, with whom he had worked previously in the City of Palo Alto. It’s a pretty typical thing to hire a proven colleague; it could be a reasonably typical thing to investigate and find the hiring justified and move on. But in Seaside, the investigation has multiple people hiring their own lawyers and running scared. I asked Mayor Oglesby about how to keep the city’s business moving forward while staff turnover is so high. He is generally optimistic about proceeding with big economic development projects, the annual budget (with a fiscal year beginning July 1) and also dayto-day city business. He’s also optimistic about less staff turnover in the future. “That’s the goal, yes. I would love to see that,” Oglesby says. But if regular line-level staff are caught in a power struggle between the city attorney and city manager, that’s no condition in which to advance big projects, or small ones for that matter. It’s just head-down survival mode. Sara Rubin is the Weekly’s editor. Reach her at sara@mcweekly.com. Rudderless Ship Seaside staff turnover leaves City Hall with a leadership void. By Sara Rubin No Good Deed…In Squid’s youth, Squid heard a story of a legendary money kelp plant that sprouted dollars. Squid has yet to see such a plant in real life. When Montage Health CEO Steve Packer announced last month the creation of the Montage Health Fund for Teachers, seeded with $5 million, it was presented as sort of a money tree. All K-12 teachers in Monterey County would magically receive up to $1,000 before the end of this school year, with the idea of using it toward health care costs. In his remarks on March 15, Packer did not mention that Montage is also in tense negotiations with the Municipalities, Colleges, Schools Insurance Group (MCSIG) regarding insurance policies for teachers and other public employees. But it was only a matter of time before some members of MCSIG would start questioning the money tree. Steve McDougall of the Salinas Valley Federation of Teachers union wrote to the board of Salinas Union High School District on April 21 to say: no thanks. Except he said it less politely, and raised the question of legality when it comes to an adjustment to compensation. “I refuse to accept these funds, and the District is creating exposure for itself as it shall not let a third party alter my compensation, neither positively nor negatively, sans my consent,” he wrote.(“We are shocked and dismayed,” Montage VP Kevin Causey says of the concerns.) In the money kelp story, there are no negotiations—just fast-growing green. Turns out it’s a myth. Shiny Objects…Squid’s been pleasantly surprised in recent years with how Seaside’s lower Broadway Avenue—the city’s downtown—has come to life with the infusion of new businesses and those hustling to make a buck. While Squid has consistently been a cheerleader for that success, Squid’s tentacles sometimes cringe when seeing how city officials are trying to promote the street. A so-called “Walk of Fame” to honor local residents was approved in 2022 by Seaside City Council, and has cost the city thousands of dollars. Also, it no longer exists. That’s because an attorney from Hollywood alerted the city that the concept was trademarked, so it was renamed to Seaside Stars, billed as “a unique attraction that enhances and encourages a walkable downtown.” The latest effort to brand the downtown is a new sign on the corner of Del Monte and Broadway that reads, “Welcome to Downtown Seaside, Broadway Avenue.” Even though anyone who is driving on Del Monte who could see that sign would either be driving by it, or already turning onto Broadway. The City Council approved it at a cost “not to exceed” $17,000 on April 18. But who’s counting? Squid suggests, next to the sign, that they put a fire pit to burn all the money the city is spending on clumsy attempts to brand a street that speaks for itself. the local spin SQUID FRY THE MISSION OF MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY IS TO INSPIRE INDEPENDENT THINKING AND CONSCIOUS ACTION, ETC. “The volume of complaints is astonishing.” Send Squid a tip: squid@mcweekly.com
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