Menlo councilwoman alleges violation of open-meeting law on child-care issue Menlo councilwoman alleges violation of open-meeting law on child-care issue (March 02, 2005)

A Menlo Park City Council member is claiming that a task force appointed by the council to look at options for a child care center violated California's open meeting law, which requires that the public be notified in advance of meetings and that minutes be made public.

Councilwoman Kelly Fergusson said Monday she is raising the issue because she wanted to see task force minutes prior to a council meeting on March 8, when the council may consider contracts for remodeling the child care center.

She said there are no minutes of task force meetings.

City Attorney Bill McClure acknowledged Monday that there was a technical violation of the law in that the public was not informed of the task force meetings 72 hours ahead of time. The task force was not required to keep minutes, he said.

Mr. McClure said the public has a 90-day window following a meeting to complain about this violation, and since the task force meetings were held in 2003, this window is closed.

In April 2004, a council majority -- Lee Duboc, Mickie Winkler and Nicholas Jellins -- voted in favor of a task force recommendation to remodel a former police station in the Civic Center, rather than build a new child care center.

Ms. Fergusson said that in her election campaign last fall she supported the building of a new child care center.

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