News Update: In the thick of it

Digging into the discord at the Ojai City Council

First, I want to say thank you to my new subscribers. I’m grateful for your support and am excited about the work ahead.

Onward to City Council!

Over the past week, I’ve conducted hours of interviews and waded through innumerable city staff reports, legal briefs, and meeting videos. I’m happy to report that all five Ojai City Council members have agreed to speak with me for the forthcoming Ojai City Council, WTF?! series, as have multiple former city officials. I expect that the first chapter of this series will be complete within the next two weeks.

From left to right: City Attorney Matthew Summers, former City Manager James Vega, Councilman Andrew Whitman, Councilwoman Rachel Lang, Mayor Betsy Stix, Councilwoman Suza Francina and Councilwoman Leslie Rule.

In reporting this story, I’ve come to appreciate that 2023 hosted two concurrent political crises in Ojai: one at the Ojai Unified School District, and one at the Ojai City Council. Both crises, in my view, are rooted in the City’s la…