Appointment of another Greenfield City Council member spurs a lawsuit against the city.

In less than two months, Greenfield’s District 1 has had three representatives on City Council: Angela Untalon, Luis Dominguez and Drew Tipton. Tipton, the current councilmember, was appointed to fill a vacancy, and his Sept. 12 appointment has prompted a local government watchdog (and member of the Salinas City Council) to sue the City of Greenfield.

On Oct. 27, Andrew Sandoval filed suit in Monterey County Superior Court, claiming Greenfield City Council illegally took steps to appoint Tipton – a former councilmember who lost an election to Untalon in 2022 – without proper notification to the public on an agenda, as required by the Brown Act, which establishes public meetings rules in California.

A report from the City Attorney’s office to City Council recommended “that the City Council determine a process to fill the District 1 Councilmember seat and direct staff to proceed accordingly.”

But, Sandoval’s lawsuit alleges, “The City Council… went beyond the scope of a discussion on the process by which to fill the vacancy and voted to appoint a specific individual, Drew Tipton, to the District 1 seat.”

Art Savagno, a long-time Greenfield resident and former council member, says he wants the city council to follow procedure, which to him means “anyone that would like to apply for the vacancy will have the opportunity to do it.” He adds, “I’m not interested in taking Drew Tipton off, just ‘boom,’ on purpose.”

Per the City Attorney’s report to council: “There is no legal requirement that the council use any particular method of appointment.”

City Manager Paul Wood says the council has wide discretion in the appointment process. “We didn’t do anything wrong,” Wood adds.

Council chose to look at the list of candidates who applied previously, and voted 2-1 to appoint Tipton, all on Sept. 12. (Councilmember Yanely Martinez was participating remotely and was unable to cast a vote due to technical difficulties. On Sept. 26, the council reaffirmed Tipton’s appointment 3-1, with Martinez opposing.)

It all comes during a period of change for Greenfield leadership. The city’s districting process put council colleagues Tipton and Untalon in the same district, running against each other for re-election in 2022 to represent the newly formed District 1; Untalon won, but a few months later, on May 23, announced her resignation.

Council’s process to appoint her replacement included an invitation to the public to apply, followed by interviews. Luis Dominguez was appointed on July 18, sworn in on July 25, then less than a month later, on Aug. 22, notified city officials he would be moving out of the district on Sept. 1. Tipton, appointed less than halfway through an unfilled term, will be up for re-election in 2024.

It’s the second council district to be represented by an appointee to fill a vacancy. Councilmember Ariana Rodriguez was appointed in February to replace Mayor Bob White, who was a previous councilmember.

The story has been updated. A previous version stated Tipton was appointed 3-0 votes on Sept. 12; he was appointed 2-1 votes.