City releases personal emails of previous council

The city has released more personal emails from current and former representatives, emails they previously refused to disclose for nearly a year.

After looking through the emails of the previous city council, a couple of correspondences are worthy of reporting, specifically one including District 5 Rep. Michiel Noe. It’s a picture of council members taken on June 26, 2012, the day they voted on the ballpark.

This picture led attorney Stephanie Townsend Allala to request the emails in the first place. The open meetings act prohibits elected officials from reaching a quorum, or unofficial vote, even online.

ABC-7 asked Rep. Cortney Niland about the photo. She said Rep. Steve Ortega’s staff had the hats ready in case the ballpark passed.

One her own emails caught ABC-7’s attention. It appears to be notes from a meeting in February about the ballpark. Council told the public the ballpark was a last minute item that needed a vote immediately. Niland stands by her word and said absolutely, the ballpark was a rushed decision.

Ortega still refuses to release any emails. In the past he’s said that as a private citizen, one needs probable cause to dig into his private property, and Townsend Allala doesn’t have one.