A band of Morro Bay residents seeking to recall Morro Bay mayor Jamie Irons circulated a glossy page-sized flyer calling for residents to sign a petition to place his recall on the ballot next year. The flyer was heavily weighted by misleading statements, misinformation, erroneous and, in some cases, blatantly false claims.
The obvious strategy by the anonymous recallers — no names of recall proponents are found on the flyer — is to entice undecided residents to fall for the fabrications without questioning them.
But once Irons and his allies get to challenging the content of the flyer, it is unlikely to fly and is a long shot in helping recallers make much headway toward getting the whopping 1,754 qualified signatures they need to put the recall proposition on the ballot next year.
Flyer: Mayor Irons wasted $8 million of your taxpayer dollars by demanding the Coastal Commission deny our own planned sewer treatment plant project. (Sewer treatment? Is that close to sewage treatment?)
Facts: Irons didn't demand anything. Before the Commission considered Morro Bay's plan for a new sewage treatment plant on January 10, 2013, the Morro Bay City Council (Mayor Irons and Council Members Christine Johnson and Noah Smukler) voted in open session to withdraw the previous Council's application for a coastal development permit to upgrade the old, existing plant on the shore of Estero Bay. Why? Because the Coastal Commission staff, in three reports to the city, said the old plant could not be replaced with a new plant because the area it is in must be used for visitor-serving purposes under the Coastal Act — and not for industrial facilities, such as sewage plants. Besides, it is in a flood zone, making it vulnerable to a destruction.
Flyer: Mary "Schallenberger" of the Coastal Commission is quoted as saying: "What I heard from the Mayor is, 'Please save us from ourselves. Deny our own project (in red color on the flyer)...which I hear in my words. 'Will you please take the blame for denying something'...because you'd rather have the Coastal Commission take the heat for denial (in red)." — Coastal Commissioner Schallenger on 1/10/2013, upon hearing Mayor Jamie Irons' demand to deny Morro Bay's sewer treatment project.
Facts: Her name is misspelled — it is Shallenberger. She now is Commission Chair. Mayor Irons didn't demand anything. The Council withdrew the application to upgrade the existing sewage plant. Here is what the Commission report for the January 10, 2013 meeting said:
First, in the time since the Staff recommendation was distributed, one of the project's co-applicants (the City of Morro Bay) has passed a resolution supporting staff's recommendation for denial of the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) project, and the other co-applicant (the Cayucos Sanitary District (CSD)) has withdrawn its application.
Irons delivered the message to the Commission last January 10, but it was a message from the Council, not him alone. Shallenger could not be reached to verify her quote in the flyer.
Flyer: Mayor Irons scuttled a $34M project. His sewer will cost $90 — $160 million! (in red). THE TRIBUNE "Project could cost as much as $160 million"
Facts: Mayor Irons didn't scuttle anything. As mayor, he lacks the power to scuttle anything. The new Council — Irons, Christine Johnson, and Smukler, elected in the primary election on June 5 of last year — abandoned the course on which the past Councils had put the city since 2007, which was going nowhere and had wasted millions in city funds.
The new Council majority hired a new sewage plant (now called a wastewater reclamation facility or WRF) planner, John Rickenbach, who promised recommendations for a new site on which to build a plant. His early reports have listed seven preferred sites, with the cost of all but one of the projects in the $90 million to $110 million range. And one estimate at $160 million. And the site for that project is the California Men's Colony off of Highway 1 near Cuesta Community College, which the planner has rated last in preference. Rickenbach emphasized in an interview that the prices are very tentative and far from final. He is expected to present his final recommendations for a site and more refined cost estimates at the Council's meeting on Tuesday, December 10.
As far as Irons scuttling a $34 million project, the new Council abandoned it in hiring Rickenbach to plan a wholly-new project because the $34 (actually $34.5) million project proposed by Montgomery Watson Harza (MWH) (a) provided for NO means to produce tertiary, disinfected wastewater that Morro Bay is required by state agencies to provide, badly needs, and could be used throughout the community, including homes, and (b) was intended in an upgrade of the present sewage plant, which the Coastal Commission has made abundantly clear would violate the Coastal Act and the city's own Local Coastal Plan.
Flyer: Mayor Irons WASTED $400,000+ (in red) of your taxpayer dollars with his bungled firing of our City Manager and City Attorney. Mayor Irons threw out their forty-two years of city knowledge with no plan of succession and without any cause.
"(The City Attorney) has worked at the city since 1997 and apparently enjoyed the confidence of the city councils he's served over the years. That changed for no clear reasons with a new majority on the council this year, composed of Irons, Christine Johnson, and Noah Smukler." — The Tribune, November 13, 2013.
Facts: The $400,000 figure must be feigned, if not explained. Former City Attorney Rob Schultz signed an agreement two weeks ago, giving him a reported $163,235 in separation benefits. City Manager Andrea Leuker may be following in his footsteps out of City Hall, and she is expected to be paid a similar amount. That is a total of about $330,000. The City has paid an attorney to negotiate the separation agreement and another to serve as interim city counsel, but their total salaries don't add up to $70,000.
But was the separation money wasted? The reasons for the requested separation can and are being debated. But fact is the City will wind up saving money because (a) those hired to replace Schultz and Leuker will earn less as new employees and (b) the city is planning on replacing Schultz with a part-time attorney from a law firm on an as-needed basis.
Contrary to what the flyer says, the City does have a plan for succession, and is already conducting a search for a permanent city attorney. How Irons "bungled" the separation (no "firing" has been proven) is incomprehensible because (a) the departure of Schultz seems to have gone smoothly and (b) it took three votes — not Irons' power as mayor — to do it, so Irons, Christine Johnson, and Smukler did whatever was done in closed and open session to make it happen. Therefore, those responsible are those three Council members, who some recallers have considered recalling. Former Council member Bill Peirce said at one Council meeting that "we didn't feel we had the resources to take Christine and Noah with him (Irons)."
Flyer: Mayor Irons is WASTING thousands (in red) hiring FOUR lawyers (in red) to replace the one he FIRED (in red) who knows every Morro Bay issue inside and out. Just as power plant closure negotiations loom, Mayor Irons FIRED (in red) our experts! What's the payoff for trading the one person who knows everything about the power plant for inexperienced hourly-wage outsiders?
Facts: The City has hired a part-time attorney to negotiate a settlement with Schultz and may do the same with Leuker, and a temporary attorney to serve as city counsel. That adds up two attorneys, not four, and those two will be succeeded by one person to serve as city counsel permanently. The flyer was right about one thing: Schultz was "the one person who knows everything about the power plant" — at least, that's the impression he bestowed. But there are others on the city staff who know a great deal about the power plant, and expert consultants who could serve the City during the upcoming closure of the plant are likely to outperform any attorney in a any city or county. Besides, Irons worked at the plant and is a fount of knowledge that the city can draw upon.
— Morro Bay cannot afford Mayor Irons. $100 HIGHER sewer bills. (all in red). Mayor Jamie Irons' "cost effective" waste water treatment plant will cost $90-$160 million ($23,000 per household) just to build. Your bill will increase $100 per month or more. (all in red) FACTS ABOUT RECALL
— Recalls are democratic. Signing the petition gives everyone a chance to vote.
— Your signature is confidential and protected by law. (Elections Code No. 18650, 18109)
— A recall will cost less than $1,000 (Source: Morro Bay City Clerk)
A RECALL ELECTION IS NECESSARY TO REMOVE MAYOR IRONS IN JUNE (all in red)
He's burning through millions of dollars — including our emergency reserves — at a furious rate. The losses won't stop until he leaves office. He will be removed in June by a successful recall, or in December upon losing his regular re-election bid. We can't afford six extra months of Jamie Irons.
Let Voters Decide. Sign the Petition. Call (phone number)
Facts: So not signing the petition removes the right to vote? That's the clear implication, as absurd as it is. And why blame Irons when it took three votes to do all the things that are deplored? There are no final figures on the cost of a new sewage plant (see above) so the claim that it will produce higher sewer bills and how much higher is pure fabrication. A stand alone recall won't, as alleged, cost less than $1,000. It will cost about $56,000 out of city coffers, the city clerk has reported. A recall election is not needed to remove Irons. He is expected to stand for re-election at the regular June 3, 2014, primary election, so he could be defeated and removed then — without a costly stand-alone recall. If defeated in the primary election, he will serve until the victor is seated in December. That's how the Elections Code works. Do they want to change that too?
