AMITY ELUDES CIVIC OFFICES COUNCIL DECLINES TO DISCUSS FRICTION.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

VALENCIA - Members of the Santa Clarita City Council avoided discussing the communication problems that have plagued them during a five-hour team building seminar Tuesday.

Several members said they did not want to air their disagreements in public.

``I feel a special bond with each of these guys, and wouldn't want to do anything to hurt them,'' said Councilman Frank Ferry.

In the past week, tensions between City Council members and city staffers have boiled over, amplified by allegations of secret meetings and back-door deals.

Councilwoman Jo Anne Darcy said last week that the council needs to do a better job of following the chain of command, where the city manager brings issues to the full council, who are all equals.

Ferry also said last week that council members must keep their colleagues informed of their personal agendas and work together rather than against one another.

Neither issue was discussed in detail.

The council members generally gave themselves high marks for their work since April.

At the Feb. 13 City Council meeting, Darcy and Ferry criticized Mayor Laurene Weste and Councilman Cameron Smyth for meeting with officials from Browning Ferris Industries, who have offered to give the city Elsmere Canyon in return for the city's $10 million trash-hauling franchise, instead of directing the company to City Manager George Caravalho.

``It is important that we argue, or debate, in a manner that we don't feel put upon at the end of it,'' said Councilman Bob Kellar. ``All council members should be afforded the right to speak and complete their thought.''

Weste has interrupted Ferry several times during the last several meetings.

Caravalho urged the council members to make more of an effort to discuss policy issues with him.

``Some council members are better than others at this,'' he said. ``I would prefer that these issues be brought to me first. That's what I'm here for.''

Weste and Smyth said they acted properly. Both voted, along with Councilman Bob Kellar, to explore BFI's proposal. Ferry and Darcy voted to award the franchise to the city's current haulers, Santa Clarita/Blue Barrel Disposal and Atlas Disposal Co.

Although the role of the mayor was on the agenda to be discussed during the seminar, it was also not discussed in detail.

The retreat, scheduled several months ago, is a follow-up to a three- day session held in July and is designed to tie up any loose ends and resolve any outstanding issues.

The city paid $2,463 for the seminar, facilitated by two consultants from Sentient Systems Inc., and held at the Hyatt Valencia. The five-hour seminar included dinner.

Many City Hall observers expected current members of the council to get along better than some of their predecessors did. All are self-proclaimed Republicans, though the seats are nonpartisan, and each was supported by Santa Clarita's business base.