Feldman, Long-Time Malibu City Manager, Will Resign May 1

MALIBU, CA — City Manager Reva Feldman will be departing her job May 1, City Attorney John Cotti announced at a Monday night City Council meeting.

As part of a settlement with the city that will soon be available to the public, Feldman is accepting a $150,000 payout on May 1, and another on August 1st if she has not found new employment by that point. Feldman has also agreed not to sue the city.

“It has been an honor to serve the residents of Malibu and to help the community that I have been part of for almost two decades,” Feldman said in a statement released by her attorney, San Francisco-based Therese Cannata. “I am so proud of how much the City has accomplished, and I am grateful for the support of the City staff, residents and councilmembers that I have had the pleasure to work with.”

It is one particular councilmember, however, who drove Feldman to announce in January that she would not finish out her contract. Through a Jan. 16 letter from her attorney, Feldman said that “unprecedented personal and professional attacks by Bruce Silverstein” made her job impossible.

“Because Ms. Feldman is under a constant attack by Mr. Silverstein, she lives in fear of retaliation - for doing her job and exercising her professional judgment in the performance of her duties,” the letter said. “For all these reasons and with great sadness, Ms. Feldman has concluded that there is no reasonable path by which she will be able to fully perform her duties as City Manager for the duration of her contract.”

Feldman alleged that Silverstein - who campaigned in the fall on the promise of investigating a woman he has publicly called “dishonest,” “duplicitous,” and “tyrannical” - acted in a “hostile, volatile, and unprofessional” manner; demanded that Feldman and her staff work long hours fulfilling various records requests; demanded all of Feldman’s phone logs, time records, and all attorney-client communications for the last five years, and posted a 100-page human resources complaint against Feldman on his social media platforms.

Silverstein has denied these allegations, saying that his demands were reasonable and Feldman went out of her way not to address them.

After the January letter, the Council sat through a number of closed sessions to figure out a path forward. Feldman, whose contract was set to expire in May 2022, initially asked for a $375,000 buyout of her remaining contract, along with benefits, in addition to a release of claims and a nondisparagement clause. In a closed session, the Council voted 5-0 to approve an agreement that will:

• Award Feldman $150,000 on May 1, and another $150,000 on August 1 if she has not secured employment by then. $150,000 of the settlement comes from the city’s insurer, the Joint Powers Insurance Authority.
• Ensure that Feldman will not sue the city
• Include a non-disparagement provision forbidding parties to discuss the “nature, basis, or resolution of alleged issues.”

Beyond Feldman’s comment in the letter, no one from the city, including Feldman and Silverstein, have provided further comment. As Cotti announced the terms of the separation on Monday, Feldman and Silverstein listened silently, their faces betraying no emotion. After the basics of the agreement were announced, the Council segued immediately and without comment into other business.

Feldman has worked for the city since 2005, and sends her daughter to Malibu schools, according to a press release sent by her attorney. She served as administrative services director and assistant city manager before she was appointed City Manager in 2016. She oversaw a number of high-profile projects during her consequential tenure, including:

• Growing the city’s General Fund reserves from $7 to 30 million
• Helping establish the city’s AA+/AAA bond rating
• The construction and renovations of City Hall, Civic Center Water Treatment Facility, Malibu Library, and the temporary skate park
• Capital improvement projects related to Legacy Park, Trancas Canyon Park, and Las Flores Creek Park

In 2019, Feldman was awarded the California City Management Foundation City Manager of the Year Award.

Yet Feldman has been a controversial figure, and divided the Council and the city into camps for and against her. Feldman’s critics allege that she is various combinations of secretive, imperious, inept, overpaid, and possibly corrupt. An affidavit released by former Councilmember Jefferson Wagner suggested that Feldman the FBI raid on his home might somehow be tied to his refusal to vote for her salary increase. On Monday night, the Council approved the use of attorneys Evan Jenness and George Newhouse to investigate these allegations, and appropriated $50,000 from the General Fund Undesignated Reserve to keep the two men on retainer.

Silverstein received the most votes of any candidate in the 2020 elections, propelled in part by a promise to investigate, and potentially fire, Feldman. In the following months, he refused to meet with Feldman unless their meetings were agendized and recorded, which Feldman refused. Silverstein sent Feldman so many often belligerent emails that she eventually wrote a last-minute agenda item asking the Council to limit staff time to one hour per week per councilmember for items not on the work plan.

Just five days after the Council voted 3-2 in favor, she sent the letter announcing her possible resignation.

Feldman initially said she would not leave until the city found a replacement. No replacement has been announced, but the City Council “will provide further information as it becomes available on who will be serving as interim City Manager while the City commences its search for a permanent City Manager,” according to Cannata.

Related coverage:

Feldman May Resign, Citing 'Constant Attacks' From Silverstein | Malibu, CA Patch

Malibu Council Votes To Move Forward On Investigations | Malibu, CA Patch

Christi Hogin Stepping Down As City Attorney | Malibu, CA Patch

Malibu Councilmember Alleges City Hall Corruption | Malibu, CA Patch