Last week, we reported the City Council would likely approve a new City Attorney’s contract, and pass its Peace Resolution concerning the current war in the middle-east, and islamophobia and antisemitism locally.
Both were approved at the Council’s Feb. 20 meeting. However, considerable discussion was had over the appointment of the new City Attorney. Corvallis doesn’t actually hire a City Attorney, they contract with an outside law firm, and the principals at their longtime provider firm are retiring, hence the need for new lawyers, and a new contract.
However, one of the new contract’s provisions rankled some of the Councilors, it reads, “communications between our office [the new City Attorney} and the city must be authorized by the city manager.”
The old firm billed by retainer, the new one will be billing hourly, and City staff have advised the Council that the cost increase is both unknowable at this time, and probably going to be significant. The new contract says the policy is an effort to save attorney fees.
The agreement’s terms offer some exceptions, but they’re limited.
For instance, a Councilor or the Mayor can talk with the City Attorney during a City Council meeting. If they want to talk with the Attorney outside of that, they’ll need a majority vote from the Council.
The only other exception has to do with seeking counsel about the performance of the City Manager and other sensitive personnel – and those communications are restricted to less than an hour monthly per elected official.
In the end however, the Council arrived at the consensus that they would simply “try” the new contract out for awhile without making any changes, and approved it.
Ellis Wins Temporary Injunction Against the City
In a decision that probably isn’t too surprising, Judge Ann L. Aiken has granted a temporary injunction against the City in its attempt to expel Charlyn Ellis from her seat on the City Council. At this point, attorney’s representing the City are essentially arguing that Ellis speaks as an officer of the City in her role as an elected Councilor, which then, by extension, limits her free speech rights.
The temporary injunction may telegraph how the court is leaning in this case.
Ellis is asking for a ruling that would permanently end the City’s quest to oust her from office – and she is also seeking to invalidate the charter section the City is saying she violated, and attorney’s fees.
Further proceedings are slated for May 2.
How We Got Here
Ellis, in addition to being a City Councilor, is the Chair of the City’s Climate Action Advisory Board, or CAAB. The city employee that once supported the CAAB, left for other employment last April and was never replaced. Boards like these typically have a mix of community volunteers and electeds like City Councilor Ellis, and they often need support from paid staff to identify opportunities and challenges, and to keep the board in compliance with public meeting laws – they often compile agendas, keep minutes and post publicly available meeting videos.
Ellis, looking to remedy the need for help at the CAAB, initiated a conversation with her fellow CAAB members about asking the City Council to direct City Manager Mark Shepard to seek a replacement for the departed staffer, first by posting the job, and then by keeping the City Council updated about progress. One CAAB member so moved, another seconded, and the motion passed.
At the time, more than one Board member expressed their sense that senior City staff doesn’t view CAAB, and by extension, the climate, as a priority.
Five days later, on Sept. 18, Ellis took the matter to the City Council, though her motion never came to a vote, given the City Attorney advised that directing the City Manager to make a hire would violate the City’s Charter. The Council instead approved a motion directing the City Manager to assure CAAB had the City support required for monthly meetings.
Wait, What Does that Have to do with Seeking to Expel Ellis?
Well, someone approached a member of the City Council’s Leadership Committee to complain that Ellis’s actions violated the City Charter. We’ve asked all the members of the Leadership Committee to identify the complainant – all of them responded to us, but none named the complainant. Further, they were unwilling to disclose who it was that directed the City Attorney to draft a resolution expelling Ellis.
Here’s the Charter section the complainant, and/or Leadership Committee claims Ellis violated.
Section 23(f) of the City Charter says, “Neither the Mayor nor any member of the Council shall in any manner, directly or indirectly, by suggestion or otherwise, attempt to influence or coerce the Manager in the making of any appointment or removal of any officer or employee or in the purchase of supplies; or attempt to exact any promise relative to any appointment from any candidate for Manager, or discuss, directly or indirectly, with the Manager the matter of specific appointments to any City office or employment. A violation of the foregoing provisions of this section shall forfeit the office of the offender. Nothing in this section shall be construed, however, as prohibiting the Council, while in open session, from discussing with or suggesting to the Manager, fully and freely, anything pertaining to the City affairs or the interests of the City.”
In short, the Leadership Committee scheduled the Due Process Hearing to consider if Ellis has forfeited her seat on the Council.
Here’s Who’s on the Leadership Committee
The Leadership Committee’s members at the time the Ellis matter was put on the agenda were Mayor Charles Maughan, City Manager Mark Shepard, City Attorney James Brewer, former City Council President Tracey Yee, and City Council Vice President Hyatt Lytle.
Yee has since stepped down, and been replaced by the new City Council President, Paul Schaffer, who is on record as being against expelling Ellis.
Two Opinions We’ve Run at The Advocate
We ran an opinion letter issued by 17 former Corvallis City Councilors, one of whom went on to become Mayor – they believe the current Council has no grounds to proceed against Ellis. Click here to read their letter.
We also issued our own editorial calling for the matter to be dropped, and advocating for publicly available recordings of future Leadership Committee meetings. Click here to read our editorial.
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