City reappoints zoning board trustees

   The Long Beach City Council unanimously reappointed three members of the Zoning Board of Appeals at its meeting on March 15, although Councilman Len Torres raised procedural concerns about the vetting process of a more recent appointee.

Three members of the board — Dr. Rocco Morelli, Michael Leonetti and Joseph Hamlet — were reappointed to three-year terms. The Zoning Board of Appeals has the authority to grant or deny applications for variances or special exceptions for plans out of compliance with local building codes.

This marks Morelli’s seventh reappointment, and he will serve as the board’s chairman. Morelli is a local dentist and was lauded by the council for his role on the board.

“Dr. Morelli conducts the hearings with dignity, authority and respect to the applicants before the board and has given hundreds of hours of his time in his capacity,” City Manager Charles Theofan said.

Leonetti, an architect, was reappointed for a fourth three-year term. Hamlet, a financial planner who was first appointed in 2009, will also go onto a three-year term.

Theofan said that in 2004, the Republican-led coalition council changed the city’s charter to give the council the authority to appoint zoning board members, which had previously been done by the city manager.

Torres, however, a former zoning board trustee who served in 2003-04, said he wanted more information about Hamlet’s credentials. While he lauded Leonetti and Morelli, Torres said he would have liked to see Hamlet’s resume before voting on the reappointment.

“Rocco Morelli and Mike Leonetti, I hold in very high regard,” Torres said. “I’ve worked with them on the zoning board. But then again we come across people we don’t know. It would have been nice to see a resume. I would like to know a little bit more about this individual’s qualifications.”

Torres said his concerns were more procedural, saying that he was not given a resume, which he would have liked to review prior to the meeting. As a former longtime administrator and teacher in both the New York City and Long Beach schools, Torres said that it was standard protocol to provide school board trustees and officials with resumes to vet potential candidates.

Theofan said that this wasn’t Hamlet’s initial appointment, and said that Torres could have called or emailed him for more information or a resume.

“I can assure you that he is of the same caliber and quality as the other two gentleman,” Theofan said of Hamlet. “How much more do you need to know for someone who has served for two years? Even these reappointments are not done in a vacuum, I do speak to the members of the Zoning Board of Appeals … if there is a particular problem with a particular member, I know about that.”

James Hodge, an acting chair of the Martin Luther King Center and former city employee, said that resumes should be made available prior to the meetings for review. “When you are presenting to your bosses, which is the City Council, you should present their resumes,” Hodge told Theofan.

Theofan said that for any initial appointments, resumes are always made available to the council, but added that he could provide those for reappointments as well, although he said it’s a “qualitative distinction.”

Council President Tom Sofield said agenda items are available on Fridays prior to the council meetings, and said that if council members have concerns, they have at least several days to contact Theofan. The information is available if requested, he said.

“If you have an issue or a concern with the appointment of a prospective board member, get in touch with the city manager and address it. Don’t wait until the meeting is two and a half hours old and say, ‘Gee, I would have liked more information about this individual.’ You had the whole weekend.”

Hodge said that when Sofield was in the minority on the council, he had often fought with other city officials when he felt certain information was being withheld.

“When [Lenny] Remo first became president of the City Council, he and I did fight a lot, and I did feel that he was withholding information,” Sofield responded. “I then asked him for information, just as I’m saying Mr. Torres should have done, and guess what? He provided me with the information.”

Torres acknowledged that he could have called, but said that he has asked in the past and has not received resumes.  

“You know something, it’s not a big problem to be able to call, that’s right,” Torres said. “But again, I’ve asked three times for resumes, and of course, you wanted me to call on Friday, and I could have called Charles [Theofan] over the weekend. But again, I would like to see resumes. I don’t think I’m asking for too much.”

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