2005 CHARTER REVIEW COMMITTEE

The 2005 Charter Review Committee met on February 16, 2006, at 7:11 p.m. with Chairman Leary presiding. Members present were Mr. Christiansen, Mrs. Greenwood, Dr. Miller, Mr. Jones, and Mr. Scheller. Mrs. Malone and Mrs. Merritt were absent. Mrs. McDowell was also present.

AGENDA ADDITIONS/DELETIONS

Dr. Miller moved for approval of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Jones and unanimously carried.

Discussion of 1988 Consent Decree with City Solicitor and Invited Parties

Chairman Leary noted that Deputy City Solicitor Pepper and current and former members of the NAACP had been invited to provide members with information regarding the 1988 Consent Decree of the NAACP. He advised members that, unfortunately, Mr. Pepper was sick and unable to attend this meeting.

As requested by Mr. Leary, others present introduced themselves, as follows: Mr. Leon Lewis, President of the Central Delaware Branch of the NAACP; Dr. Margaret McKay, expert witness and research assistant for NAACP suit against the City; and Mr. Cecil Wilson, Past President of the NAACP and plaintiff of the suit against the City.

Having such a relative part in the current City Charter, Mr. Lewis questioned why National representation of the NAACP had not been invited to attend. Concurring, Mr. Wilson stated that he had received a telephone call from the City requesting the telephone number for Mr. Lewis; however, he was not aware of the reasoning for the City’s wanting the number. He also stated that he was not specifically invited and felt that he and City Solicitor Rodriguez should certainly be a part of any discussion regarding the 1988 Consent Decree.

Responding, Mr. Leary explained that the intention of this agenda item was to provide members background information only. Mr. Wilson felt that all parties should be participants in setting the stage for understanding this matter. He suggested that rather than a telephone call, the President of the NAACP should have officially been invited by the committee by letter, not by telephone. He also felt that an official letter of invitation should have been sent to himself, as the plaintiff, as well as Dr. McKay and any other involved parties with the 1988 Consent Decree.

Considering the absence of the President of the National NAACP, and others that Mr. Lewis and Dr. McKay may identify as being pertinent to any discussion regarding the 1988 Consent Decree, it was Mr. Christiansen’s opinion that the matter should be tabled, the committee apologize for the oversight, as has been done by the Chair, and that the issue be rescheduled until all pertinent parties are available to allow further discussion.

Mr. Christiansen moved to table the matter, allowing the Chair and City Clerk to meet with Mr. Lewis, Mr. Wilson, and Dr. McKay after adjournment, to determine all pertinent parties to be included in the discussion. The motion was seconded by Mr. Scheller.

Referring to the Regular Council Meeting Minutes of March 22, 2004, Mr. Wilson noted that the late Councilman Pitts had given specific details regarding the process for discussing the City Charter as it relates to the 1988 Consent Decree and those that minimally should be inclusive of any discussions. He read excerpts of the minutes, as follows:

“Mr. Pitts felt that there could be objections from the NAACP for any changes. He advised members that any changes to the Consent Decree would require the City to contact the National Office of the NAACP. He stated that previous discussions with the National Office indicate that now is not the time for any changes to be made to the Consent Decree; however, there could be a possibility for consideration of changes to be made in the year 2010.”

“Mr. Pitts explained that before contacting the National Office of the NAACP, the first point of contact would be with the Local Chapter of the NAACP, then the State Chapter. An agreement would need to be reached with the Local and State Chapters before contacting the National Office. He reminded members that the City was previously advised that the Local Chapter would consider the possibility of reviewing the matter for the year 2010.”

“Mr. Pitts stated that the City of Dover was not the only municipality affected by action of the NAACP and that it was a national problem. As a result, the Decrees were issued state by state. In order to make changes, not only is consent required at the local level but the entire national agenda must be considered.”

Mr. Scheller stated his feeling that the statement made by Councilman Pitts was relative to there being discussion of change; however, he explained that members of the Charter Review Committee were merely interested in having an historical retrospect of the lawsuit that resulted in the 1988 Consent Decree.

Regardless of the committee’s intentions, Mr. Leary explained his concurrence with Mr. Christiansen and felt that there should not be any discussion regarding this matter until representatives of the NAACP are satisfied with the inclusion of all pertinent parties.

On a call for the question by Mr. Christiansen, the motion to table this matter for a future meeting was unanimously carried.

On behalf of the Committee, Mr. Leary relayed his sincere apologies for the informality of the invitation to attend being offensive or not considered as an official invitation to attend the meeting.

Setting of Future Meeting Dates and Topics for Discussion

Mr. Leary noted that the City Council is expecting a Report of the Committee during the month of March 2006, and requested that members provide him with their thoughts as to what should be included. He would then schedule a meeting to finalize the report. Mr. Leary noted that the next regular meeting is scheduled for March 16^th and suggested that members discuss the draft report to be submitted to Council at that time.

Mrs. Greenwood stated that during the last public hearing, there were several who spoke who indicated that they were going to submit ideas and thoughts. To date, she has not received copies of these statements and requested that all members be provided with copies as soon as possible. Mr. Leary assured members that the City Clerk’s Office will forward copies of this information to all members.

Mr. Christiansen suggested that members schedule a meeting for March 15^th for the discussion regarding the 1988 Consent Decree, assuring that an approved list of guests of representatives of the NAACP and other pertinent individuals are officially invited to attend. Responding to Mrs. McDowell, Mr. Christiansen suggested that Mr. Lewis be contacted to obtain the list of representatives of the NAACP that should be officially invited. Members also requested that City Solicitor Rodriguez be in attendance at this meeting.

Mr. Christiansen indicated that he had written letters sometime between 1983 and 1984 regarding district voting and form of government, which is when Dr. McKay got involved with the issue. He requested that staff attempt to locate those letters and provide copies to members to provide more understanding.

Some members felt that the letter to the NAACP should include specific topics that should be discussed at the meeting, provide a time limit for their presentation, and request that background material be provided in advance to facilitate the committee’s deliberation.

There being no objections and no further business, Mr. Leary declared the meeting adjourned.

Meeting Adjourned at 7:40 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Thomas J. Leary, Chairman

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