DANVILLE – Two of Mount Diablo’s loudest bike champions were stripped of their policy advisory appointments this week, concluding two years of bitter finger pointing and bullying accusations between local leaders in this otherwise idyllic suburban town of 43,000.
A majority of the Danville Town Council agreed on Tuesday to remove Al Kalin and Bruce Bilodeau from its Bicycle Advisory Commission, a group of six volunteers appointed to ensure that elected leaders followed through on promises to implement bike-friendly policies across the town’s network of trails and arterial roadways that wind through the heart of the San Ramon Valley.
There was little disagreement about the list of accomplishments Kalin and Bilodeau each spearheaded in recent years. Most notably, they spent more than a decade advocating for the construction of 67 bike turnout lanes on Mount Diablo, which was a data-driven, first-in-the-nation and award-winning initiative that led to an 80% reduction in collisions between motorists and cyclists trekking up and down the summit.
Regardless, the council voted 3-1 to prematurely cut their four-year terms on the commission in half — completely disregarding dozens of other pleas from community members who rallied behind the now-former commissioners in recent months.
Trouble started brewing last spring, when Vice Mayor Newell Arnerich and Councilmember Robert Storer began publicly accusing Kalin and Bilodeau of excessive, hostile demands that eventually eroded relationships with town staff and fellow volunteers beyond repair. In May, the council opted against a proposal to completely dissolve the volunteer body less than two years after its inception.
Arnerich asked staff last month to schedule an official public hearing to consider removing Kalin and Bilodeau.
He said the need to tame problematic behavior on the commission outweighed potential risks of losing decades of cycling expertise, especially if the newly opened seats attract applicants who were previously apprehensive to volunteer for meetings that often got bogged down by personality conflicts and policy disagreements.
“I’m not going to nitpick all of the (accusations) that I think are what would be a great fiction book,” Arnerich said during Tuesday’s council meeting, adamant that his concerns about Kalin and Bilodeau were focused solely on conduct, not competence. “Unfortunately, having a strong voice doesn’t mean that you’re being accurate.”
Kalin and Bilodeau have vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
As tensions boiled over last year, they questioned whether the council was retaliating against them for openly scrutinizing and brainstorming improvements to Danville’s past and future projects. As Danville officials repeatedly rebuffed requests for more transparent, detailed evidence supporting the controversial shake up, the former commissioners asserted that their removal from the commission was a form of “character assassination” that “vilified” their work in retaliation for being too vocal.
Now, Kalin’s concerned that this months-long feud will hamper the committee’s efforts to protect cyclists.
“Decisions about the public good should never be based on intimidation or bullying — they should be guided by the goal of improving safety for our town’s residents and visitors,” Kalin said Tuesday.
Recounting his and other commissioners’ experiences working with Danville’s elected officials, Kalin said “this pattern of behavior by the town’s leadership is not acceptable. It is damaging to the town’s reputation and the functioning of the town government.”
Mayor Renee Morgan was absent from Tuesday’s meeting, and Councilmember Karen Stepper cast the lone “no” vote against removing the two commissioners.
As Danville juggles concerns about youth zipping around on e-bikes, intersection improvements along the Iron Horse Trail and bike lane integration in its historic downtown, Morgan said Kalin and Bilodeau’s ouster from the Bicycle Advisory Commission will have harsh ripple effects on urgent policy decisions.
“(These challenges are) not unique, but the answers can be unique to Danville if you have bike commissioners that care… and that is headed by Al and Bruce,” Stepper said Tuesday evening. “You need people that know how to do this and have the compassion and passion to do it. … I am disappointed that we’re here, that we would do this in public.”
Compared to the legal steps typically required for votes regarding issues with Danville staff and employees, City Attorney Rob Ewing confirmed that the residents appointed to commission seats “serve at the pleasure of the council and may be removed by a majority of the vote.”
That explanation didn’t fly with numerous residents who personally and professionally vouched for Kalin and Bilodeau.
“I urge you, put your emotions aside and do the right thing and keep (Kalin and Bilodeau) in place,” said Gary Spinella, a Danville resident who broke six ribs when he crashed his bicycle to avoid a head-on collision with a van that had turned into his lane on South Gate Road nearly four years ago. “They have all of our best interests at heart.”
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- Danville ousts prolific advocates after bitter, months-long feud – The Mercury News
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