City of Santa Rosa  
City Charter Review Committee  
Regular Meeting Minutes - Draft  
Wednesday, January 19, 2022  
5:00 PM  
1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL  
Chair Cisco called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.  
17 -  
Present  
Chair Patti Cisco, Committee Member Lisa Badenfort, Committee  
Member Scott Bartley, Committee Member Christine Byrne,  
Committee Member Dan Condron, Committee Member Abigail  
Cunningham, Committee Member Ana Diaz, Committee Member  
Jazmin Gudino, Committee Member Jen Klose , Committee Member  
Brian Ling, Committee Member Chris Mazzia, Committee Member  
Evette Minor, Committee Member Ernesto Olivares, Committee  
Member Logan Pitts, Committee Member Jocelyn Villalobos,  
Committee Member Mark Walsh, and Committee Member Karen  
Weeks  
4 -  
Absent  
Committee Member Adriana Arrizon, Committee Member Annie  
Barbour, Committee Member Danny Martinez, and Committee  
Member Ron Miller  
Committee Member Barbour joined the meeting at 5:09 p.m.  
Committee Member Martinez joined the meeting at 5:20 p.m.  
2. PUBLIC COMMENTS ON NON-AGENDA MATTERS  
Joe Leadem spoke asking the Committee to consider amending the  
Charter to lower the signature requirements for referendums and  
initiatives, expressed it would be more democratic, lead to better  
community wide decision making, and asked for a special meeting  
for the issue to be discussed.  
3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES  
3.1  
December 15, 2021, Regular Meeting.  
Approved as submitted.  
3.2  
January 5, 2022, Regular Meeting.  
Approved as submitted.  
4. SCHEDULED ITEMS  
4.1  
EQUITY PRINCIPLES  
The principles of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging remain in the  
forefront of the Charter review process. This standing agenda item  
provides the Committee with the opportunity, at the outset of each of its  
meetings, to refine, reaffirm and recommit to its Statement of Principles.  
The Statement of Principles regarding diversity, equity, inclusion and  
belonging provides a procedural and substantive lens through which the  
Committee undertakes all of its work.  
Socorro Shiels, Diversity, Inclusion & Equal Employment Officer,  
asked the Committee if there were any changes to the principles.  
There were no changes made and Ms. Shiels stated they would be  
finalized.  
No public comments were made.  
DIRECT ELECT AT-LARGE MAYOR  
4.2  
The City Council has recommended that, among other topics, the  
Committee research and consider preparing a Charter amendment to  
establish the position of an elected at-large Mayor, a Mayor elected by  
a City-wide vote.  
Currently, the City Council is comprised of seven Council members,  
each elected by district. After each Council election, the Council itself  
selects one of its members to serve as Mayor for a two year term. The  
Mayor serves at the pleasure of the Council and can be removed from  
the Mayorship by a vote of the Council.  
Under this proposal, the City Charter would be revised to create the  
new position of at-large Mayor. The City Council would likely be  
reconfigured such that six Council members would be elected by district  
and the Mayor would be selected by the voters in a single City-wide  
vote. Under this scenario, the current seven Council districts would be  
reduced and realigned into six districts. Other configurations, however,  
may be considered, including, for example, retaining all seven district  
Council members and adding an at-large Mayor as an eighth member of  
the City Council.  
This agenda item will outline the steps entailed in moving to a directly  
elected at-large Mayor, the pros and cons of having a directly elected  
Mayor, the possible roles and responsibilities of a directly elected  
Mayor and a review of possible Council configurations.  
City Attorney Sue Gallagher and Assistant City Attorney Rob  
Jackson presented information on the current composition of the  
Council, the role and responsibilities of the Mayor and Vice Mayor, a  
proposal for an elected Mayor and answered questions from  
Council.  
Discussion ensued on concerns having a direct elected mayor could  
be detrimental to equity issues with the risk of diluting district  
elections, a direct elected mayor being in conflict with district  
elections, the changing nature of a mayor's job responsibilities,  
concerns representation will revert back to where the city was prior  
to district elections, an elected mayor possibly adding another layer  
of approval before things can get accomplished, the possibility of  
making the direct elected Mayor a non-voting member of the Council  
to balance the power on the Council, a direct elected mayor may  
affect the ability to recruit a quality person for the City Manager  
position, the merits of a rotational appointment process allowing for  
team building and collegiality, the current appointment system  
working, having someone accountable for every resident of the city,  
giving district elections a chance to get established and work before  
making a major change, the possibility of having undocumented  
residents vote in local elections, adding procedures for removal of a  
mayor for misconduct, and changing the charter to be reviewed  
every five to seven years instead of 10.  
No public comments were made.  
5. COMMITTEE CHAIR'S/CITY ATTORNEY'S REPORTS  
No reports were made.  
6. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS - NONE.  
7. WRITTEN AND/OR ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS - NONE.  
8. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS  
- At-Large Mayor with Speakers  
- Council Compensation  
- Ranked Choice Voting  
No public comments were made.  
9. ADJOURNMENT  
Chair Cisco adjourned the meeting at 7:00 p.m. The next meeting  
will be held on February 2, 2022, at 5:00 p.m.  
Approved on:  
_______________________________  
Stephanie A. Williams  
City Clerk