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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBOARD MINUTES 04-04-23 (Special)110ENTRAL SAN MINUTES* SPECIAL BOARD MEETING Board Room Tuesday, April 4, 2023 10:00 a.m. Open Session - Board Room (Video recorded) ROLL CALL BOARD OFDIRECTORS: BARBARA D. HOCKETT President MARIAHN. LAURITZEN President Pro Tem MICHAEL R. MCGILL TAD J. PILECKI DIVISION 3 - VACANT A special meeting of the Board of Directors was called to order by President Hockett at 10:00 a.m. Secretary of the District Katie Young called roll: PRESENT. • Members: Lauritzen, McGill, Pilecki, Hockett ABSENT: Members: None PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Board, staff and audience joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD Ms. Young read a public comment received electronically from Bethallyn Black, Professor Diablo Valley College, providing a letter of support for District 3 candidate Mona Gupta. AMENDMENT TO AGENDA Ms. Young advised the Board that an issue was brought to her attention regarding a District 3 candidate, Scott Rafferty, unable to participate in person due to an illness. BOARD ACTION: Motion was made by Member Pilecki and seconded by Member Lauritzen to amend the agenda for April 4, 2023, to include a discussion item regarding allowing Mr. Rafferty to participate virtually for his interview. Motion passed by unanimous roll call vote. These summary minutes are supplemented by a corresponding video recording available on the District's website at centralsan.org. Book 71 - Page 57 CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT April 4, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes — Book 71-Page 58 VIRTUAL INTERVIEW PARTICIPATION BOARD ACTION: Motion was made by Member Pilecki and seconded by Member Lauritzen to allow the District 3 candidate interview at 1:00 p.m. for Scott Rafferty to be conducted virtually due to an illness. Discussion ensued. Member McGill stated that although at the previous Board Meeting on March 30, the Board voted that a person unable to attend an interview on April 4 would be disqualified, this circumstance of being exposed to COVID-19 is a different circumstance and he was in support of the motion. Motion passed by unanimous roll call vote. DIVISION 3 BOARD MEMBER SEAT VACANCY 1. Conduct candidate interviews for Division 3 Board Member seat vacancy President Hockett introduced Item 1 and advised that each applicant would be allotted 45 minutes to answer eight questions from the Board Members. Member McGill asked questions regarding policy, Member Lauritzen asked questions focused on the environment, Member Pilecki asked questions on finance, and President Hockett focused on personal questions. At 10:08 a.m. President Hockett welcomed Ms. Mona Gupta and advised her of the interview process. Ms. Gupta responded to questions from the Board. After the last question, Ms. Gupta stated that she believes she represents the younger people, has a different skill set than other Board Members and, with her passion and new perspectives on the future, she believes she would be a great candidate for the Board. President Hockett thanked Ms. Gupta for her interest in the Division 3 Board seat and she was dismissed. At this time, the Board took a 15-minute recess. President Hocked inquired if there were any additional public comments received during the meeting. Ms. Young responded that there were none. At 11:00 a.m. President Hockett welcomed Ms. Kathleen Odne and advised her of the interview process. Ms. Odne responded to questions from the Board. After the last question, Ms. Odne stated that she is interested in four priorities at the District including: replacing aging infrastructure, maintaining strong relationships with the employee base, developing and demonstrating value and innovation to the rate payers, and to be mindful of cyber security and the necessary investments to keep computerized systems safe. President Hockett thanked Ms. Odne for her interest in the Division 3 Board seat and she was dismissed. At this time, the Board took an hour recess for lunch. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT April 4, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes — Book 71-Page 59 The meeting reconvened at 1:00 p.m. and President Hockett inquired if there were any additional public comments received during the meeting. Ms. Young responded that there were none. Shortly thereafter, President Hockett welcomed Mr. Scott Rafferty and advised him of the interview process. Member McGill noted that Mr. Rafferty had alerted him that he wasn't feeling great but wanted to proceed with the interview in order to not be disqualified. Mr. Rafferty responded to questions from the Board. Throughout the interview, he emphasized his commitment to and experience with various civil rights causes. After the last question, Mr. Rafferty stated that he brings skillset diversity being a lawyer and is an avid numbers cruncher, the fact that assesses public policy issues with numbers and sees those as both strong skills to bring to the Board and he has a demonstrated commitment to social justice and diversity issues. President Hockett thanked Mr. Rafferty for his interest in the Division 3 Board seat and he was dismissed. At this time, the Board took a 15-minute recess. The meeting reconvened at 2:00 p.m., President Hockett inquired if there were any additional public comments received during the meeting. Ms. Young read two public comments received electronically from Claire Carter, resident of Rossmoor, and Shirley Krohn, resident of Walnut Creek, expressing their support for the candidacy of Florence Wedington for a seat on the Board of Directors. After the public comments were read into the record, President Hockett welcomed Ms. Florence Wedington and advised her of the interview process. Ms. Wedington responded to questions from the Board, in addition to several follow-up questions posed regarding any potential conflict of interest due to her employment with a sister agency. After the last question, Ms. Wedington thanked the Board for the opportunity to interview and stated that she is a big supporter of Central San and believes it is a well -run District. Secondly, she believes she is a great candidate because she has strong relationships within the Division 3 area, with councilmembers, the Golden Rain Foundation, Rossmoor and other residents, and has extensive experience in the industry. She stated that she understands Central San's processes and is aware there are big decisions to be made in the near future for infrastructure and with her industry background she could hit the ground running. President Hockett thanked Ms. Wedington for her interest in the Division 3 Board seat and she was dismissed. After the final interview, the Board took a 10-minute recess. At approximately 2:45 p.m., President Hockett provided an overview of the next step in the process and each available option; she opened the floor for each Board Member to provide their feedback on the candidate interviews. Member McGill suggested the Board try to appoint a new member today. President Hockett stated the Board hold a discussion regarding the candidates prior CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT April 4, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes — Book 71-Page 60 to placing a motion on table. The Board Members provided their individual opinions of the candidates and provided their top choices. Member Lauritzen defined her selection criteria which included the areas of personal values -environmental commitment, diversity and inclusion, and experience. As it pertained to environmental commitment, her top candidates were Mona Gupta and Florence Wedington; Scott Rafferty for diversity, and finally Kathleen Odne based on experience. Member McGill provided both positive and negative opinions on the four candidates, and reasons of non-support for three of the candidates. He stated Mona Gupta was his number one choice. Member Pilecki stated each candidate impressed him in different ways and spoke of the skills each would bring to the Board. He stated Kathleen Odne was his first choice, Florence Wedington as a second viable candidate, and shared his concerns regarding the other two candidates. Member Lauritzen revisited her selection, and stated agreement with Member McGill as this appointment being a passing of the baton and reaffirmed her order of selection as Mona Gupta as her first choice, followed by Ms. Wedington, Mr. Rafferty, and Ms. Odne. In response to President Hockett's question to confirm his preference, Member McGill responded it was Ms. Gupta. President Hockett stated that given the deliberation, her candidate would be Mona Gupta as she has the potential to learn and grow in the industry. BOARD ACTION: Motion was made by Member McGill and seconded by Member Lauritzen to appoint Mona Gupta as the Division 3 Board Member. Member Pilecki advised that he normally would vote no, as Ms. Gupta was not his top candidate, but would prefer the vote be unanimous so he would vote with his fellow Board Members. Motion passed by unanimous roll call vote. ANNOUNCEMENTS None. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT April 4, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes — Book 71-Page 61 ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 3:09 p.m. Barbara D. Hockett President of the Board of Directors Central Contra Costa Sanitary District County of Contra Costa, State of California COUNTERSIGNED: r• KatWe YoLtN Se,cretarryW the Pstrict Central Contra Costa Sanitary District County of Contra Costa, State of California