Selma City Council adds emergency litigation item and recesses into closed session

At a special meeting on June 2, 2026, the Selma City Council agreed by consensus to add an emergency item related to potential litigation after a city attorney reported receiving a letter from a developers attorney, then recessed into closed session to discuss two pending lawsuits and labor negotiations.

The city attorney told the council that the letter arrived after the agenda was posted and said the correspondence raised a potential exposure to liability tied to agenda item three. "I received on Friday after the agenda was posted this letter ... from the developer attorney on item three of your open session and I just want to alert you to the threat," the city attorney said. The council consented to add the item; no formal roll-call vote on the addition was recorded in the public minutes.

The interim city clerk recorded all council members present during roll call, noting "For the record, mayor, all council members are present." The transcript lists both Mayor Pamara and Mayor Robertson as present; the transcript does not clarify distinct titles beyond the names as spoken.

In open session the council opened oral communications for public comment and reported no hands raised from remote participants, so no public comments were taken.

The council then announced it would meet in closed session under California Government Code section 54956.9 to discuss pending litigation. The items listed were Kaggalia Environmental LLC v. City of Selma (transcribed citation: "FCSCT number 23 CEC CG04734") and City of Selma v. Santion (transcribed citation: "FCSCT number 25 CEC CG 05076"). The city attorney also confirmed the recently added exposure-to-litigation item under the same code section tied to the developer attorneys correspondence.

The council additionally listed a conference with labor negotiators under Government Code section 54957.6. The agencys designated representative was named in the transcript as Margie Fowler, deputy city manager; the employee organization identified was the International Association of Firefighters Local 3716 representing fire middle management employees.

After listing those items, the council recessed into closed session; no public deliberations or outcomes from the closed session were reported in the transcript. Because the matters are scheduled for closed session under state law, no further details were disclosed in open session about the substance of the litigation or the labor negotiations.