EAST PALO ALTO
CITY COUNCIL
STAFF REPORT
DATE: October 18, 2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
VIA: Patrick Heisinger, Interim City Manager
BY: Azalea Renfield, Assistant to the City Manager
SUBJECT: Informational Report on Police Chief Recruitment Recommendation
Receive report.
Alignment with City Council Strategic Plan
This recommendation is primarily aligned with:
Priority No. 1: Enhance Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Priority No. 6: Create a Healthy and Safe Community
Background
On October 2, 2018, the City Council adopted Resolution 5034 (Attachment 1), defining the selection process for the Chief of Police.
On November 5, 2021, Albert Pardini announced his pending retirement as the Chief of Police.
On February 1, 2022, City Council authorized the City Manager to enter into an agreement with Koff & Associates to provide recruitment services for the positions of City Manager and Police Chief.
On September 20, 2022, staff returned to City Council to request for the Police Chief’s formal recruitment process (see staff report on 9/20/2022), that each council member appoint a community member to serve on the Five-Member Community Interview Panel and to direct the Interim City Manager to publish a future informational report complete with each Council member's appointee. Staff also recommended that each Councilmember forward their nominee via email to Azalea Renfield, Assistant to the City Manager, by Friday, September 30th.
Analysis
On September 30, 2022, City Council members identified their appointees that would serve on the Five-Member Committee Interview Panel.
The appointees are as follows:
City Council's Appointee for Five-Member Community Interview Panel
Councilmember Appointee
Ruben Abrica (Mayor) Ms. Francisca Guzman
Lisa Gauthier (Vice Mayor) Pastor Paul Baines
Regina Wallace-Jones Mr. Olatunde Sobomehin
Carlos Romero Ms. Kenia Najar
Antonio Lopez Mr. Larry Moody
Next Steps
The Police Chief recruitment is underway and is expected to close on October 21, 2022. It is expected that Community Interview Panel will participate in the process in late November or early December.
Fiscal Impact
None
Public Notice
The public was provided notice of this agenda item by posting the City Council agenda on the City’s official bulletin board outside City Hall and making the agenda and report available at the City’s website and at the San Mateo County Library located at 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto.
Environmental
The action being considered by the City Council is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is not a “project” pursuant to 15378(b)(4) because it is a fiscal activity which does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant impact on the environment.
The action being considered does not constitute a “Project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to CEQA Guideline section 15378 (b)(5), in that it is a government administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect changes in the environment.
Awarding this contract is not a project under The California Environmental Quality Act (Section 21000, et. seq. of the California Public Resources Code, hereafter CEQA) because the action has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
Attachments
A. Reso 5034 Selection Process for Future Chiefs of Police