The St. Paul City Council convened a special meeting Friday to appoint a seventh member for the next four months who will fill the Ward 4 seat vacated by Mitra Jalali.
But after about three minutes, following an awkward exchange between a council member, a member of the city attorney’s office and the council president, the six elected officials abruptly exited the council chamber without appointing anyone.
The quiet blow-up of sorts follows a tortured appointment process that has called into question the ability of the council to complete basic tasks, like filling an open seat.
Still, the stakes are high. The new appointee could cast potentially tie-breaking votes in issues ranging from rent control and public safety to city budget matters.
The council interviewed four finalists last week — artist and community organizer Sean Lim, art conservator and neighborhood advocate Lisa Clare Nelson, nonprofit consultant Melissa Martinez-Sones and clean energy advocate Matt Privratsky — with the stated intent of choosing the interim Ward 4 council member on March 26.
Council President Rebecca Noecker sponsored a draft resolution that kept the name of the chosen person blank for the council to fill in together, but she was unable to attend Wednesday’s meeting and instead took bereavement leave.
In Noecker’s absence on Wednesday, Council Member Saura Jost motioned to amend the draft resolution and add Privratsky as the council choice, a decision that was approved 3-2 after strong criticism about the process from Council Member Nelsie Yang and Vice President HwaJeong Kim, who chaired the meeting.
It would take four votes to undo Jost’s amendment — an unlikely outcome — and as of Wednesday evening, Privratsky appeared primed to be appointed as the interim council member. The resolution was scheduled to be finalized Friday.
Amendment ‘did not meet that standard’
Instead, Noecker opened Friday’s meeting by saying it’s been her goal to maintain a transparent appointment process worthy of the public’s trust, and “unfortunately this week, actions were taken that did not meet that standard and did not reflect well on (this) council.”
“That action was a surprise to several council members,” added Noecker, noting one of the four finalists had withdrawn their name from consideration as a direct result. In an email to a reporter on Friday, Martinez-Sones confirmed she had withdrawn herself from the process.
Noecker then motioned to withdraw the draft resolution she had previously introduced, and said the appointment process will be revisited next Wednesday.
“It’s my understanding that … I would be the sponsor of this item,” said Council Member Saura Jost, cutting in.
A representative of the city attorney’s office told Jost she was mistaken and had already been told otherwise, and Noecker then closed the meeting abruptly, saying: “This item is being withdrawn and this meeting is adjourned.”
Jalali stepped down from city employment on March 8.
Under the city charter, the council is expected to appoint a council member to fill a vacancy within 30 days, which would presumably be April 7. If they fail to do so, the mayor then has 10 days under the charter to appoint “a qualified voter of the ward,” which would presumably be April 17.
The interim appointee will serve through the Aug. 12 election, when voters in the Ward 4 neighborhoods of Hamline-Midway, Merriam Park, St. Anthony Park and portions of Macalester-Groveland and Como will choose Jalali’s official successor through 2028. Several residents have come forward as likely candidates in that election.
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