From: Kiriko Hiroshi <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 7, 2025 9:45 AM
To: Carrie Weal <[email protected]>
Cc: [email protected]; Mark Uribe <[email protected]>; Silvia Jaquez <[email protected]>
Subject: October 7, 2025, CC Meeting, Item E, Award of Contracts for the Installation of Standby Generator at City Hall – CH-5067 (City)
Ms. Weal,
Please pass this message to the City Council.
To the Honorable Members of the Camarillo City Council, I am writing to express my deep concern regarding the public works portion of the subject project—specifically the concrete work and installation of the generator. This type of work falls squarely under the definition of a public works contract code and, as such, should have been competitively bid in accordance with the California Public Contract Code.
It appears that Cameron Mitchell may not fully understand the requirements that apply to general law cities like Camarillo. Unlike charter cities such as the City of Ventura, Camarillo is bound by the provisions of the Public Contract Code, which mandates competitive bidding to ensure transparency, fairness, and responsible use of public funds.
It is equally troubling that both the Finance Department and the City Manager’s Office allowed this project to proceed without proper adherence to these bidding requirements.
This raises serious concerns about oversight and compliance with established procurement laws.
I urge the Council to review the process by which this project is being recommended for approval by the City Manager, to ensure that future public works projects are subject to the appropriate competitive bidding procedures as required by law.
Additionally, based on the agenda, the public may not realize that this involves not just the purchase of a generator, but also its installation and associated concrete work. The subject matter on the city council agenda is therefore deceiving. In California, city council agenda subject lines should clearly and concisely describe the matter to be discussed or acted upon, adhering to transparency and the Brown Act requirements.
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The subject line is critical because it informs the public about what will be addressed in the meeting. The subject line on the October 7, 2025 City Council Agenda does not adhere to the Brown Act requirements.
Lastly, the City Manager has oversight of the City Council Agenda, and with his many years of experience, this should be a no brainer. In fact, back in 2022, the City Attorney made the same comment, when the City Council was going to approve staff send a letter to the Board of Supervisors, regarding redistricting, but the City Attorney put a halt to it, and stated that the item was on the agenda as a discussion only item. Thus, if the city council’s desire was to send a letter, the item would need to be placed on a future City Council Agenda, as an action item.
Item E. https://drive.google.com/file/d/15u2O0cL2bkXA1RZzqO6qjpk- _SNBajNT/view?usp=drivesdk
City Procurement
Policy: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CfkvQ8hqOfE9gjGDlcx5vxSjSDKkzIhE/view?usp =drivesdk
Thank you,
Kiriko