City to Discuss Application Process, Brown Act, Bird Poop

By Martin Henderson

The short-handed City Council of Lake Forest will meet tonight, 7 p.m., not only to discuss regular business, but to wrap its hands around the application process to choose the fifth member of their team. 

Peter Herzog's resignation last month has created an empty seat on the dais, and the council intends to have it filled by Dec. 14; failure to do so would require the City hold a special election to choose Herzog's replacement, an event that would cost the City between $166,000 and $189,000 depending on the number of voters. 

Much of the discussion figures to center on what the council wants answered by prospective applicants as part of the vetting process. In the last meeting, Mayor Pro Tem Kathryn McCullough indicated she wanted a process that was "so transparent if they have a pimple it will be in their paperwork." She made clear her concern about cronyism in the selection process. 

Herzog resigned amid his claims of cronyism by fellow councilmen, particularly in the appointment of planning commissioners over the past 10 months.

Other items to be discussed include consideration of an ordinance that would prohibit feeding wildlife in public places, which was drawn from the fowl population at Village Pond Park. Basically, feeding the ducks and geese has created a messy situation there for the park and for residents in the neighborhood. 

Another discussion point will be the possible banning of electronic devices during council meetings. At one point, there was talk of providing instruments such as iPads to council members as a means of limiting paper waste, but when new councilman Adam Nick used his personal device to check information about distribution of a liquor license during a meeting, it constituted a Brown Act violation; that's the reason for discussion on that item.  

The council meets at 7 p.m. at City Hall.