Council Meeting Recap: Feb. 2, 2021

All council members were present for the Tuesday, February 2 City Council meeting. Open session started at 6:00 p.m. and ended at 8:06 p.m. Here are the highlights:

Upcoming Special Council Meeting on Feb 4 to include City Council Mission, Vision, And Priorities Workshop. A special city council meeting will begin at 9 a.m. on Feb 4 to facilitate a City Council Mission, Vision, and Priorities Workshop. According to the staff report, the goal of the workshop is to establish mission and vision statements as well as a list of top priorities and aspirations for the city. Management Partners, a consulting firm for local governments, will take the input from the workshop to prepare a report that will include effective implementation strategies to reach the city’s priorities. As per the workshop agenda, the meeting will run until 4 p.m. with a lunch break to be taken around noon. We hope you can participate in this workshop so you can stay actively involved in Carson happenings.

City’s very own COVID-19 Vaccination site will open on President's Day. The city will open a COVID-19 vaccination site at Dignity Health Sports Complex this upcoming President’s Day, Feb 15. As of now, vaccinations will be offered to Carson seniors only, ages 65 and over. This news comes after the council sent out numerous letters asking for the establishment of a vaccination site in the city. A very elated Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes made the announcement thanking Dignity Health Sports who told her that the site would be able to vaccinate 1,000 people a day. Mayor Davis-Holmes admitted she did not know which vaccine the site would administer but declared that she would be the first in line to get the vaccine. Councilmember Jawane Hilton directed the City Manager to coordinate with law enforcement to provide enough security following the anti-vaccine protests at vaccination sites in communities of color.

Hawthorne City Councilmember L. David Patterson hired as Chief Deputy Treasurer. The councilmembers welcomed the city’s newest hire, the City of Hawthorne’s Councilman, and current part-time Treasurer L. David Patterson as Chief Deputy Treasurer. Patterson spent the past 7 years as the first African American elected city treasurer for city of Hawthorne and won his election for his council seat in November 2020. He is also the consultant and founder of the Patterson Group providing management consulting. “My entire professional career I have worked with finance and financial planning and investments and I am passionate for business as well,” responded Patterson to the warm welcome. “I am excited to be able to contribute in the area of my skillset, the area of my passion here in the City of Carson.”

Candidates to fill Council Vacancy may be At-Large if Appointed. Candidates seeking to apply to fill the vacancy in the city council may reside anywhere in the City of Carson, not solely in District 4. Mayor Pro Tem. Jim Dear pointed out the error in the staff report which stated that candidates are required to reside in District 4. Dear explained, “Because it is an at large seat, the appointment could be anyone in the City of Carson. If there is an election, it has to be by district.” City Attorney Sunny Soltani clarified Dear’s final point, “Pursuant to the city’s settlement agreement with Kevin Shenkman, there is a specific provision that says: going forward, elections will be held in form of a district election.” While she admitted that the settlement agreement does not specifically address special elections to fill a vacancy, Soltani pointed out the agreement generally mandates that all elections going forward be in the form of a district election. Dear’s motion to approve the formation of a 2-member Ad-Hoc Committee and to correct the staff report was approved unanimously. He clarified that a conclusion has not been reached as to whether the council will choose to appoint or hold a special election to fill the vacancy. The deadline for the council to fill the vacancy via appointment is Mar 15. All potential candidates must email their application form to cityclerk@carsonca.gov by Feb 24.

Access to Playgrounds in City Parks begins Feb 4. Playgrounds in City parks will open on Feb 4. Following a public comment inquiring about the parks, Councilmember Cedric Hicks recommended that the city move forward with immediately opening playgrounds for kids and have an item ready for the next regular council meeting to discuss the use of basketball courts. Recreation Superintendent, Tim Grieson, told C.A.T. recreation staff will be utilized sanitize the play area periodically. He added that hand sanitizer dispensers will be available at some parks, but advised that visitors bring their own sanitizer as well.

Upcoming Events:

· COVID-19 Vaccine Townhall: Feb 11, 12 p.m. – The city will hold an educational session on the available COVID-19 vaccine in tandem with UCLA Health Center. To pre-register and leave a question, visit https://carsonca.gov/registration/. For the live broadcast, visit https://carsonca.gov/vaccinetownhall/

· Food Giveaway: Feb 12, 9 a.m. @ City Hall North Parking Lot – 750 meals will be given out by the Transportation Service Bureau of the Sheriff’s Department

· Coffee with the Captain: Feb 17, 10 a.m.

· Catalytic Converter Event: Feb 20, 10 a.m. @ City Hall North Parking Lot – Police sponsored event for individuals to serialize their catalytic converters with the station.