Show Us Your Correspondence, Madame Mayor

Cynthia:

Per my phone call of a few minutes ago:

At the Tuesday January 27th Council meeting, you held up a file of correspondence you received from the public regarding downtown problems that you used to justify the downtown ordinance package you introduced and passed.

I was told by staff worker Anna Brooks today that this correspondence was not in the agenda packet and only available through public view through you. This, according to advice from the City Clerk. I left you a message requesting to see copies of this packet of correspondence, which was clearly directly relevant in your formation of the Downtown Ordinance package.

Since the concerns were addressed to you as Mayor and/or Councilmember, these documents are public record. Though Anna called them "private", I don't think that's accurate. Particularly after you held them up at City Council as instrumental in forming your opinion and directly relevant to the Council debate you had that night.

Please make available for public view the entire packet you held up at City Council, as well as any other documents addressed to you as Mayor or City Councilmember on the subject of "downtown problems" concerning the public behaviors at issue on the evening agenda item.

I am seeking to view all other e-mails and correspondence you have re: agenda item #29 "Downtown and Business District Improvement Measures". This should include the minutes of any meetings and any correspondence on the subject whether with the Downtown Management Corporation, the Downtown Association, its Legislative and Social Committee, the Santa Cruz Neighbors, the Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Task Force (or whatever the committee is that meets regularly out of public view with Councilmembers Coonerty and Robinson on this subject) or any other groups you have had communications with.

Please make available as much of this correspondence as soon as you can. I'm assuming you intend to push through this measure at the next Council meeting. It will be helpful for those of us who you've previously kept in the dark to have all the information we can, particularly that you selectively shared with other group

This should include all prior drafts of these proposed laws, as well as minutes, e-mails, and any other documents--whether written, visual, or audio--that relate to this subject.

I remind you that I requested information on these ordinances more than a week before the Council meeting and you did not respond. The City Attorney likewise refused to provide information, though he was obviously intimately involved with this process.

Had you and other city officials engaged in a more open process originally, this request would probably not be necessary.

Thanks,

Robert Norse
(831-423-4833)

P.S. I would also like to see copies of Monthly Camping Incident and Homeless Shelter Attendance Reports from 1/1/08 through the present. Please let me know when they will be available for viewing as well.