City of Carson Tuesday, January 20, 2015 City Council Meeting
There are many things on the January 20, 2015 City Council Agenda that cause concern. But first I would like to address an issue from the December 16, 2014 City Council Agenda Closed Session Item No. 2. Conference with legal council – existing litigation.
Jonathan Chaney vs City of Carson, Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. BC560923
Below are some shocking excerpts taken from the case:
Plaintiff began working at the center on or about February 17, 2014. On or about February 19, 2014, Plaintiff was accosted by a Center patron, Louis Rivera (“Rivera”). Rivera used offensive racial slurs against Plaintiff (“nigger” and “little boy”), and physically assaulted Plaintiff (the “Assault”). Plaintiff immediately reported the racial harassment, Assault and unsafe/hostile work environment to supervisory personnel Michael Whittiker (“Whittiker”), CARSON’s Veteran’s Park Site Manager and the head of CARSON’s Department of Parks & Recreation.
On or about April 30, 2014, Defendant CARSON subjected Plaintiff to an illegal and retaliatory meeting (the “Meeting”). The Meeting was attended by CARSON Councilman Elito Santaring; City Attorney Bill Winder; Superintendent of Parks & Recreation, Cedric Hicks (“Mr. Hicks”); Mr. Whittiker, and others. Defendant CARSON did not even pretend to investigate Plaintiff’s complaints. Instead,
Councilman Santarina began the Meeting by announcing that he was there “on behalf of Mr. Rivera” and revealed that he had know Rivera since they were “little boys”
At the end of the Meeting, Plaintiff was terminated. Plaintiff is informed, believes, and thereon alleges that he was terminated in retaliation for his complaint of racial harassment, racial discrimination, the Assault, and an unsafe and hostile work environment.
Link to Superior Court of the State of California Case Documents Filed on October 17, 2014
This brings us to January 20, 2015 City Council Agenda to Item No. 31.
Consideration of Ordinance NO. 15-1548, Repealing Carson Municipal Code Article II, Chapter 1, Section 2110 related to city administrative orders and directives to staff
As it stands city council must instruct the city manager and the city manager address the appropriate employee. With what has been going on with regards to the employees; the hiring of an unqualified city manager, the firing of employees reported to be selected by Councilman Elito Santarina, and the secretive way the reorganization has been developed. To allow city council to interact with city employees would eliminate the safety guards put into place to prevent anything like the case described above Jonathan Chaney vs City of Carson from happening.
If this item passes it will open the flood gates of employees being mistreated and misdirected by our elected officials?
Agenda item No. 32
Consider a resolution prohibiting the use of city funds to advertise in or subscribe to the Daily Breeze and to encourage Carson residents and businesses to consider not advertising in or subscribing to the Daily Breeze.
In the attached letter the city sent to the Daily Breeze in September 2014 regarding the Daily Breeze article Torrance man, 23, dies in solo crash on 405.
The City of Carson’s complaint is it is outside the boundaries of the city.
Link to letter from the City of Carson to the Daily Breeze
December 2014 Daily Breeze article Carson man admits to drowning fellow transient
In a letter from the city referencing this article the cities complaint is the article states the man is a Carson resident even though he has no permanent address.
Link to letter from the City of Carson to the Daily Breeze
City of Carson Boundary Issues
The city also has problems keeping up with the boundaries of Carson, the mayor keeps saying Price Transfer is in Carson, yet Price Transfer states they are in Rancho Dominguez. On October 29, 2014 at the State of the City Address Jim Dear talks about an event at Price Transfer in the city of Carson, on the attached flyer for that event it also states the event will be held at Price Transfer (Automobilia) is located at 2790 East Del Amo Blvd., Carson, CA 90810. Both the California Secretary of State and Price Transfer shows that address to be in Rancho Dominguez.
Link to flyer: Jim Dear’s 10th Anniversary
Jim Dear also stats Little Brothers Bakery, LLC is in Carson when they claim to be in Gardena. On page one of the attached staff report their address is shown to be at 320 W. Alondra Boulevard in the City of Carson. However, on the last page of the attached resolution the address is listed to be 320 West Alondra Boulevard, Gardena, CA 90248. Both the California Secretary of State and Little Brother’s Bakery, LLC shows that address to be in Gardena.
Could it be the Daily Breeze will not follow the unethical lead of city hall? A perfect example is when city hall reported the Joint Planning and Environmental Commission’s Public Hearing for the OXY Draft Environmental Impact Report as a fence issue. When residents asked the media if they were covering the Oxy issue they said they were only called out for the fence issue, as such only the fence issue was reported.
On the other hand, could it be they are trying to prevent Carson residents from getting the facts of what is going on here in Carson? Like the story: Tesoro seeks to bring Carson, Wilmington refineries together
Where our own Associate Planner Saied Naaseh expressed concerns on the plans Jim Dear and the oil industry have for Carson.
Excerpts taken from article:
In an October letter to AQMD officials, Carson Associate Planner Saied Naaseh said that rather than improve emissions, the project will more likely increase them, and that the agency’s study should also address how community aesthetics and nearby residential areas could be harmed, among other concerns.
“The proposed project is intensifying the existing operations by proposing new equipment, tanks, pipes, etc., and is proposed to generate additional emissions despite eliminating an FCCU unit,” Naaseh wrote. “The project should strive to reduce emissions, not increase them.”
The letter also argues that the city of Carson – not the AQMD – should be the lead agency of the environmental review, and that Tesoro will need to obtain city permits before beginning construction.
The city withdrew its request to be the lead agency in December, but City Manager Nelson Hernandez refused to comment on the matter. Community members have submitted two letters to the AQMD expressing concern about proposed increased deliveries of highly flammable liquid petroleum gas to the refinery.
Link to CBE Fact Sheet P66 and Tesoro BP Dirty Crude Projects Jan 2015 Update FINAL
What about the article Carson Mayor Jim Dear credits himself with transforming city in State of the City address, which included the following excerpts:
Carson Mayor Jim Dear argued during his annual State of the City address that he has transformed the city in the past decade from a crime-ridden community that outsiders avoided to a bustling center of commerce and new housing.
“We’ve spent money in the right ways,” Dear said. “The image of our city is so important. Like politics, it has nothing to do with the truth. It has to do with perceptions.”
Or could it be to stop us from seeing this article Political drama erupts already in Carson with election two months away where it is revealed Jim Dear does not have teaching credentials he is only a certified substitute teacher. Or that it is alleged he illegally included a quote endorsing him from former City Clerk Helen Kawagoe. This article also included the mayor will be listed on the ballot as an election clerk based on volunteering at an election polling site. Maybe he didn’t want us to know the city received a letter from his attorneys, the Sutton Law Firm in San Francisco, threatening to sue if his terms were not accepted.
There are many other items on tonight’s agenda that we did not get to cover so I am including a link.
FIRST AMENDMENT
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances. It was adopted on December 15, 1791, as one of the ten amendments that constitute the Bill of Rights.
As was clearly indicated by the Daily Breeze, Mayor Jim Dear has tried to prevent all Carson city employees from speaking with the Daily Breeze with the exception of the City Manager. Jim Dear continues to suppress any news from the City of Carson that might be printed by the Daily Breeze unless it shows “HIM” in a good light. Jim Dear is an egotistical raving pompous and seems to have the temperament of Caligulous! Working for the City of Carson MUST be like working for a tyrant.