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Commission discusses appointing outside counsel for code-enforcement cases after attorney conflict
Summary
The city attorney declared a conflict on code-enforcement matters; commissioners discussed three potential outside counsel candidates and requested hourly rates and availability. A motion to appoint was seconded but no recorded vote appears in the transcript.
The mayor told the commission that the city attorney, Tina Wayland Smith, is conflicted out of pending code-enforcement proceedings and the commission discussed appointing outside counsel to handle those matters.
"We were informed by Tina Wayland Smith, our attorney, that she's conflicted out of our, code enforcement proceedings," the mayor said. The commission named potential firms and lawyers — Mark Chico (Chico Law Firm) and Ryan Marquette at Bond, Schenick, and King — and asked staff to obtain hourly rates, experience statements and availability for the engagements.
A commissioner moved the appointment and Keith (S5) seconded the motion, but the meeting transcript does not record a final roll-call vote or an explicit approval. Commissioners indicated they will review submitted rates and return with a recommended hire or further direction at a subsequent meeting.
The discussion was procedural: commissioners framed the item as a necessary administrative step to ensure independent legal representation in code-enforcement hearings while avoiding a conflict by the regular city attorney.
