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The Woodside Town Council faced heat from the public at its July 28 meeting, with members divided over holding Mayor Pro Tempore Paul Goeld accountable for divulging confidential information to then-Town Manager Jason Ledbetter.
Ledbetter accused Goeld of sharing information with him from a closed session meeting, which is a violation of the state’s open meeting law, known as the Brown Act. The allegation was sustained in an investigation into a number of allegations against town officials in Ledbetter’s whistleblower report.
A dozen members of the public voiced their concerns about Goeld remaining on the council for the rest of his term and called for the town to reprimand him. Some asked for both Mayor Brian Dombkowski and Goeld to resign and many asked for the council to reopen the investigation into Ledbetter’s allegations.
In February, Ledbetter publicly released his 14-page report detailing allegations that included disclosing closed session meeting discussions, making racist and sexist comments, and delaying action on low-income housing projects. Goeld, Dombkowski, Councilmember Jenn Wall and Town Attorney Jean Savaree were named in the report.
Out of the 11 allegations, the only one sustained in the town’s independent investigation was Goeld revealing closed session information to Ledbetter about his hiring. Ledbetter said Goeld shared details about Wall advocating for a female town manager candidate and using alleged “gender bias claims” during the confidential meeting.
Other allegations made against Goeld included making sexist and racist comments toward Councilmembers Hassan Aburish and Jenn Wall, and attempting to postpone progress on building low-income housing on High Road. Investigators found there was insufficient evidence to prove those claims.
Before the council was presented with a report on the investigation from the town’s external counsel, Rick Bolanos, Goeld gave a public apology as he recused himself from the meeting.
“I agree my disclosure was inappropriate, and I regret that lapse of judgment,” Goeld said. “It is my hope that this sincere acknowledgement of my accountability and this apology are acceptable, and that no further action will be necessary.”
Bolanos, who works for San Francisco-based law firm Liebert Cassidy Whitmore, was appointed by the town’s liability insurance carrier to represent Woodside concerning Ledbetter’s allegations. He said in his report that due to “threatened litigation the council has been advised not to comment publicly about Ledbetter’s employment or the town’s investigation into his claims.”
Bolanos added that the council had received Goeld’s apology and accepted his recommendation that additional training be conducted concerning the town’s code of ethics and conduct.
The community members who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting said they were dissatisfied by the report, unhappy about lack of ethical behavior from the council and the lack of accountability among council members. Others, including Wall, complained that the agenda’s description of the discussion was “purposely vague,” and staff did not provide a written report, giving the council and residents no time to process or prepare a comment.
On the meeting agenda, it was listed as one of the final items of the evening under “Oral Report From Legal Counsel: Personnel investigation: Richard Bolanos, Partner, Liebert, Cassidy Whitmore.”
“Besides the claims against Councilmember Wall, I was frankly not surprised by any of the allegations,” said former Councilmember Ned Fluet, who called for the council to adopt a resolution on censure and to not hand the mayoral seat to Goeld during the annual rotation in December.
In a separate discussion at the start of the meeting, Goeld took a stand in support of a group of local cyclists advocating for better enforcement and safety measures on Skyline Boulevard following the death of East Palo Alto cyclist Jakob Solovski in a head-on collision with a speeding car. A reporter from KTVU was present for that portion of the meeting.
“I did not appreciate Mr. Goeld grandstanding on the death of a bicyclist, taking advantage of the opportunity that there was a television (reporter) in the room,” said Woodside resident Lexi Reese. “It felt to me a blatant play on the public sympathy to talk about how vocal an advocate he is for cycling … It seemed too staged.”
Fluet added that he was also “profoundly disgusted” by Goeld’s actions to “try to diminish his own ethical violations.”
After hearing an hour of public comment, all council members except for Wall were silent.
“I’m stunned that my fellow council members have no further comment,” said Wall. “I’m absolutely speechless to hear all of that public comment from residents and to say nothing”
Councilmember Dick Brown explained that he had no response due to the council’s comments being on the record, which could potentially affect the town’s credibility in threatened litigation. Wall’s comment appeared to encourage Aburish and Dombkowski to address the public.
“I share a lot of the same thoughts and feelings as many of you about accountability of public figures and the importance of transparency … I absolutely agree that things need to be taken seriously,” Aburish said.
“I apologize for any statements that I’ve ever made that were insensitive in any way or hurtful,” said Dombkowski. “ I hope I have not made those statements but if anything is perceived that way, it is completely against who I am and the actions that I take to be better for the town.”
In response to the public’s demands, Wall’s motion to hold a hearing to consider whether a censure, a reprimand or other remedies should be taken by the council against Goeld failed in a tie vote, with Dombkowski and Brown opposed.
“It is shameful that the town is the object of so much suspicion,” said longtime Woodside resident Steve Lubin. “It is the council’s responsibility to open this investigation to public input and to shed more light on what has and is occurring.”
