Consent items create conflic
By Nancy Needham nancy@theacorn.com

Mayor Andy Fox asked the other City Council members to contact city staff before meetings when they need clarification on items that are in the City Council's consent calendar. Those matters are considered to be routine and to be approved by one motion.

Fox made a point of this after Councilmember Claudia Bill-de la Peña pulled five items out of the consent calendar so she could ask the city staff questions about each of them before everyone voted.

"It doesn't serve a lot of purpose to have council discussion on items that have already been decided," Fox said.

On four of the points, including one about the city's fuel budget, Billde la Peña received answers from the staff that allowed her to join her colleagues and vote in favor of them.

A $165,000 increase in the city's fuel budget had the professional journalist asking if the city had considered increasing the use of alternative fuel sources from onethird of the city's fleet to onehalf.

City Manager Scott Mitnick explained Thousand Oaks is a county leader in using alternative fuel but that practice doesn't always bring the cost of fuel down.

"It may end up costing us more," Mitnick said.

The only consent calendar item Bill-de la Peña ended up not supporting with her vote pertained to the size of menu board signs at drive-thru restaurants.

She noted the size permitted for such signs in Thousand Oaks is now second only to the size allowed in Palmdale.

During the discussion about drive-thru signs, Councilmember Dennis Gillette said he was offended by the suggestion that people who needed larger menu board signs so they could see the print probably should not be driving. He was recalling something he had read outside of the council meeting.

"That's insulting to many of our residents," Gillette said.

That item passed with a 4-1 vote.

Fox asked that council members who were not voting for consent items just to keep their records consistent to simply state that reason and not give further explanations or elaborations.