| Publisher's preface: Controversy over a now-budgeted $2.35 million El Dorado Park artificial turf soccer field is no longer about gopher holes and recreation. Without audible objection from any Council incumbents, including 5th dist. Councilwoman Stacy Mungo, the City Council included the project as a line item in City Hall's FY21 budget (8-0 budget adoption vote, Sept. 2020, LBREPORT.com coverage here.) City staff put the project out to bid; city staff will review the bids received and recommend a bidder it considers most qualified for City Council voted approval. At that point, a Council majority, with or without Councilwoman Mungo's approval, could stop the spending item or approve it. The $2.3+ million is citywide taxpayer money. The issue now is the failure of city staff and Councilwoman Mungo's office to provide timely public access to public records about the project that the public has a right to see and LBREPORT.com has a right to report. Until those records are produced, LBREPORT.com recommends LB taxpayers remain skeptical of statements by city staff and Councilwoman Mungo defending the project and the expenditure.
(Oct. 28, 2020, 8:35 a.m.) -- On September 17, 2020, LBREPORT.com submitted the following request under the CA Public Records Act (CA Gov't Code section 6250 et seq.) to the City of Long Beach, seeking: All records (including texts, emails, memos, communications, correspondence and the like)) from July 1, 2019 to the present that concern, refer or relate to an increase of $850,000 ($1.5 mil to $2.375 mil) in the sum budgeted in FY21 for an El Dorado Park artificial turf soccer field. Said records are requested from the Department of Public Works, Department of Financial Management, Dept of Parks, Recreation and Marine and Councilwoman Stacy Mungo. The records requested from Councilwoman Mungo include all communications and/or correspondence involving constituents and/or other third parties to or from Mungo and/or her staff regarding the El Dorado Park artificial turf field (July 1, 2019 to the present.). This request includes all records on personal devices within the scope of City of San Jose v. Superior Court [Ed. note: The $850,000 increase is accurate, but a typo slipped into our text; the budgeted sum is $2.35 mil not $2.375 mil.] On Oct. 1, the City's Records Center responded: In response to PRA # C008667-091720 received on September 17, 2020, the City of Long Beach has determined that responsive records exist and will be disclosed. City staff is working on compiling and reviewing the appropriate documents and will produce them promptly within a reasonable time frame. Staff will notify you upon producing records if portions of documents will be withheld from disclosure due to exemptions in accordance with law... {Scroll down for further.] |
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Having received no records as of Monday Oct. 26, LBREPORT.com contacted Assistant City Attorney Mike Mais about the matter. Mr. Mais followed-up and indicated by email (Oct. 26) that he had reached out to the City’s PRA facilitator in the City Manager’s Office who was "informed by CD 5 (Councilwoman Mungo’s office) that they have no records responsive to your request." Mr. Mais also indicated he was awaiting a Parks/Rec Dept. response to that portion of our request.
Developing.
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