Tuesday night’s City Council meeting was so long I tapped out at 10:00 PM because at that point the City Council had only gotten through two regular agenda items. And apparently they had met at 5:00 PM and the regular meeting was supposed to start at 7:00 PM but ended up starting at 7:30 PM.
I don’t know what can be done to help make these meetings more efficient but right now it’s still broken. Even with the time clock and the public comment limits, it’s just too damn long. Not only that there were important items that were heard that I simply could not stay up for including the mental health response vote which sounded like there was some drama around but it all happened after 10:00 PM when most people should be asleep or settling down for bed, not having to wait up all night long to listen to a City Council meeting.
I have not watched the meeting yet after 10:00 PM but from what it sounds the mental health response proposal hit some push back from, of all people, Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft who has been seemingly very eager to get an alternative response in place for mental health and similar calls for service.
According to this report it was a 5-0 vote but mentioned that Vice Mayor Malia Vella also appeared to be against the proposal:
Malia Vella, unlike some City Councilpeople with Twitter account coughtonydaysogcough, does engage and pushed back against this narrative:
Which just goes to show you that our biases cut every which way that even progressives will find other progressives lacking and — in this case — assume bad intent when they don’t automatically leap and start rubberstamping their pet issues.
I suppose I should watch the video but it will be interesting to view it with this framing contextualizing the discussion.
Blogging Bayport Alameda 
I wouldn’t call “Cassandra D’Alameda” a progressive without knowing anything else. Could be a puppet account working subterfuge. Could also be a member of “Transform Alameda” who has an axe to grind against Malia, the most progressive member on council. Malia, who is always very thoughtful and considerate, is having this thoughtfulness and consideration getting used against her. Wild.
Comment by You're The Puppet — September 23, 2021 @ 6:51 am
As a first-time “attendee” I was also confused because I clicked through to the Zoom link at 7 p.m. and saw “This meeting has not been started yet” and since I’m a newb didn’t know it was closed session. I thought it was the wrong link and/or the meeting was not going to be streamed. (I did just leave it open though and eventually got in.)
Would be helpful if we had been let in to an actual Zoom call with a screenshare saying “We’re in closed session”, but I guess it’s safer to not start the Zoom until open session, so as not to risk accidental unmutings/hot mics.
Comment by cinalameda — September 23, 2021 @ 11:10 am
cinalameda: This exactly why when I am viewing only I use the streaming option rather than Zoom. Zoom is necessary only when you want to do public comment.
Separate note: I was surprised to see the tweeter above critiquing “those” who say public comment is ineffective. I have never heard that, weird that anyone would say it regarding local politics. These electeds can be persuaded. The emails we send are persuasive – and they hit the members in advance so they can form the debate to a degree. And on the night of the meeting, the live voice of constituents makes a big difference.
Comment by Gaylon Parsons — September 23, 2021 @ 12:16 pm
IMHO, I thought the combination of the speakers including testimony about the Family Services Agency’s (FSA) long and close ties to the community, and the further clarification of the proposal by the FSA executive director and by Deputy Fire Chief Jeff Del Bono convinced council and myself into the YES column. As someone who was a clinical social worker serving Chinese American clients, I can attest to the fact that nearly all of my clients had had interactions with police — since during crises the police were the only choice for families who needed to protect themselves and their loved ones.
Comment by Serena Chen — September 23, 2021 @ 3:03 pm
Who says public comment isn’t persuasive? That’s a straw man argument. Also it takes a lot of nerve to call yourself “Cassandra” (see Greek mythology) when you are so fully fully wrong on this.
Comment by broken saint — September 23, 2021 @ 8:19 pm