From: Casey Eva
To: Alex Stillman; Kimberley White; Meredith Matthews; Stacy Atkins-Salazar; Sarah Schaefer Cc: City Manager"s Office
Subject: Planning Commission interviews
Date: Monday, March 24, 2025 6:30:47 PM
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Dear Mayor, Vice Mayor, and Councilmembers,
Thank you to Councilmember Matthews for suggesting to interview Planning Commissioner candidate Sheldon Heath. Kudos to you all for agreeing since interviewing Mr. Heath would indeed provide consistency to this new reappointment process in regards to term expiration.
However, to ensure fairness and avoid any perception of bias, I strongly urge the Council to interview all four Planning Commission candidates equally. This includes the three applicants currently serving on the Commission.
Mr. Sheldon Heath: Mr. Heath's application highlights his 27-year residency in Arcata and 15 years of dedicated service on the Parks and Recreation Committee (including six years as Chair), demonstrating a clear commitment to our City. Mr. Heath deserves to be interviewed fairly and as part of an equitable process.
Mr. Matt Simmons:During the January 28, 2025 Planning Commission meeting (approximately 17 minutes in), Commissioner Lehman mentioned that Commissioner Simmons had recently purchased a home in Eureka. Given Mr. Simmons' role as a consulting staff climate attorney for EPIC, this move raises legitimate questions about his current presence and in-person engagement with residents in Arcata.
While the Arcata Municipal Code allows two “non-resident” Planning Commissioners if they live or work in the Arcata Planning Area, this language was written prior to the prevalence of remote communication, such as routine emails and standard virtual meetings. Two questions remain unanswered: how much of Mr. Simmons’ work is done remotely from his new home in Eureka and how often does he visit Arcata for work? The concern is that a commissioner residing outside of Arcata, who primarily works remotely from home, may have a diminished understanding of the evolving needs and desires of current and future Arcatans, due to potentially limited time spent within the City.
A fair interview process would give Mr. Simmons the opportunity to help dispel this growing concern about a potential dominance in remote work, and allow him to explain how he intends to continue effectively representing the needs of Arcata, despite now living in Eureka. The public deserves this clarity.
Just as the Council ultimately reevaluated its reappointment of Commissioner Mayer, I respectfully request that you:
1) Again equally interview and approach all four applicants with an open mind. 2) Specifically, please ask Commissioner Simmons to explain the percentage of his work accomplished remotely, and how often he travels to Arcata for inperson work.
Transparency on this matter is important to the public. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration on this matter and for your dedicated service to the City of Arcata.