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The appointment of Paul Emery as Anaheim’s official City Manager — confirmed in closed session at 4:00 on July 7 but not publicly announced until nine hours later, on July 8, at the end of the contentious council meeting on the Disney’s vote, added another troubling note to the city politics.
Emery’s role during the Angel’s stadium negotiations had left a lasting impression on me. When I attended that Council meeting, I had been convinced that he was a representative of Art Moreno when this conversation took place between Emery and Mayor Tait:
“We’ve had 50 acres for 17 years that’s been undeveloped. Are we going to have another 150 acres for 20 years that’s undeveloped?” Emery asked, referring to the undeveloped Stadium District land. “We have an economic engine, sir. With all due respect, we have an economic engine.”
He was sitting next to Charles Black, who I also thought was another Angels representative, in the area where guests or expert speakers sit. When I later realized that he was a member of the city staff, I got convinced that our city politics were indeed quite intoxicated. His opinion above was clearly not an unbiased, objective, professional opinion.
We have elected council members to discuss and make policy decisions on our behalf, not city bureaucrats. The quoted statement by Emery is a dark reminder of the power of politicians pursuing a questionable agenda, one that does not benefit the city as a whole but powerful interests disguised under the misleading term of “economic engines”.
At that time, Emery was probably under the pressure of council members Murray and Brandman to carry on their agenda. He may have been under the same type of pressure when again another far-reaching item, the Disney Protection Act, was put in the city council agenda at the last minute notice after a major holiday, like the Angel’s negotiation proposals.
The motivations of the council members promoting the negotiation, 
offering exceedingly favorable terms to Art Moreno, were exposed when it was discovered that the negotiations had overlooked relevant information and utilized inappropriate reports. One of them was replicating analysis of sport economies that did not match the characteristics of our local market. The negotiations’ debate proved the importance of questioning policies that have far-reaching and relevant consequences.
His confirmation as a permanent City Manager is perceived as a reward, not because he has shown that he has had the city’s interests in his decisions, but for his performance supporting the mentioned council members’ agenda. No selection process was conducted to fill the City Manager position as other cities had recently done in Orange County. Garden Grove and Santa Ana conducted a national open search, even with community input in their selection of the City Manager. Anaheim did not.
I’ve developed a greeting ritual with Mr Emery, I salute him each time I speak at the council meetings. I give him the benefits of the doubt due to the pressures of his job. Likewise I hope that he has developed a better understanding of the residents’ reasons questioning the economic engines’ fallacy. I hope that we will not have to wait until the next election cycle to have a fair City Manager. One that respects the will of the residents expressed in the composition of the council members but also on the authority vested on the Mayor. One that facilitates an informed discussion on the decisive aspects of our city.
Nice post.
The man would not be in charge if he were not a perfectly reliable water boy for the Kleptocracy. Hoping that fairness will “evolve” here is a complete waste of valuable hope, Ricardo.
The City Manager’s job is not his reward. Hiring him permanently is a gift the Kleptocracy gave itself. It means more scams are in the pipeline. Watch out for the Karcher-purchased property next.
Do you have a form of Tourette Syndrome? Every other word out of your mouth is “Kleptocracy!” or “Pringlecorps!”
I would suggest that that’s because nearly every fucked up thing that happens in this county is the doing of the kleptocracy aka Pringlecorps.
No, it’s “PringleCorp®.” Please get it right.
Pringlecorps, it’s like the Hitlerjugend except the flags have dollar signs.
For some reason an image of Jordan Brandman out camping in short shorts just popped into my head. A real Leni Riefenstahl moment.
I need a drink.
You’ve got a bad case of lovin you?
Ricardo, as always you have presented the facts in a logical and very gentlemanly fashion. Nicely done, sir.
Doctor, Doctor, what part of the theories do you dispute?
Are the decisions of the City Council based on sound business practices, following reasoned and informed due diligence, in a wholly transparent process that takes into account the views of the public?
Or do you merely object to our tying what looks like attempts to defraud the taxpayers of the honest services due us, to the specific former-Mayor-turned-lobbyist and his puppet show?
How about we let YOU decide what to call this. Are 3 of 5 leaders, enabled by City Staff taking actions so lacking in professionalism that would end their careers in the private sector, simply too stupid to manage their way out of paper bags? Or are they fully aware of the misrepresentation of facts in support of specific predetermined outcomes, and thus in on the scam?
You tell US what this is. Good governance would NOT be one of the options on the screen today. Thanks for playing.
So, Ricardo — it’s been almost two years! Any verdict in yet on your question?
The verdict is out : Emery was completely embedded , in an open relationship, with the Disney-Pringle machine. No surprise after all.
It is disappointing though that my district council member, Steve Faessel, is still so aligned with the SOAR/Resort interests. I expected him to at least abstain in the decision to remove Emery.
Faessel’s vote was a political mistake and really sort of dumb. He telegraphed his allegiance to the Smash n’ Grab Club when his vote didn’t even matter.
I disagree. I think that they needed it to be 4-3 to reinforce their (false) contention that the termination was capricious and unjust.
Here’s a question for you, though. How did that closed session agenda come together? Presumably Tait tells Emery (or maybe Andal as Clerk) that he wants to agendize termination of the CM, appointment of an Interim CM, etc. How does the prospective lawsuit get onto the agenda? Does Emery quickly have his lawyer contact Pelletier and she contacts Andal?
Or does he just say “I’m still the City Manager; I control the agenda” and put his threatened lawsuit on there himself, so that the first time Tait knows it’s coming is when the agenda comes out? Wouldn’t that be more his style?