“Insanely Disrespectful”: Redding Council Deadlocks on Planning Commission Appointments

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Redding Planning Commissioners Brandi Greene and Aaron Hatch are scheduled to end their four-year terms on April 30. Hatch is a financial planner who, until recently, sat on the Board of the Shasta Land Trust. Greene is an environmental scientist who also owns Burnsini Vineyard in Cottonwood.

Last night, April 1, Mayor Jack Munns tried to convince a mostly-resistant Council in hopes of approving two candidates to replace Greene and Hatch on the seven-person Planning Commission come May. He was unsuccessful. In a series of gridlocked votes, the Council failed to appoint either of Munns’ choices, including builder and developer Joshua Johnson and former Beverly Hills police officer Blake Nance. 

Council member Erin Resner was one of two Council members who opposed Munns’ proposed candidates. She prefaced her comments by reminding the public that she originally appointed both Hatch and Greene but she didn’t push for the Council to reappoint them, instead focusing on what they represent to her: diversity of thought.  

“It is our job as members of the council,” Resner said, “to make sure that when we appoint people to commissions…they represent the balance of our community so that everybody’s voice can be heard. When we operate in a silo we only hear our own voices and the things we want to hear rather than someone else giving us a different perspective.”

It was for this reason, she said, that she could not support Munns’ appointments, which would result in a majority of the Commission being made up of realtors and developers. She suggested the Mayor bring back other applicants who could provide similar diversity to what Hatch and Greene have brought to the Commission in past, namely an emphasis on environmental issues, including protecting parks and green spaces.

Council member Paul Dhanuka also opposed Munns’ suggested appointments for the Commission saying that diversity of opinions and backgrounds also matters to him, along with experience. He also emphasized the need to repair past harm and unify the community.

“We need to heal the fractures in our community rather than increase them,” Dhanuka said, indicating that he believed existing community issues were exacerbated last year when Council member and former Mayor Tenessa Audette attempted to remove Hatch from the Planning Commission mid-term.

“I would like you to consider fairness in this process,” Dhanuka said. “The Golden Rule applies here. How would we want to be treated? Short of serious misconduct, we need to respect somebody who wants to continue for a second term rather than unceremoniously showing them the door.” 

Insisting that he has no issues or concerns with the appointments of Johnson and Nance otherwise, Dhanuka went so far as to say he would be willing to select them for Planning Commission at a later date when he’s selected to be Mayor by his peers. 

Audette’s response to Resner’s and Dhanuka’s dissent on the appointments was less compromising. In a series of provocative and sometimes false statements, Audette accused the rest of the Council of being “insanely disrespectful” to Munns by not approving his choices for the Planning Commission.

“What brings healing,” she lectured, “is that we don’t disrupt and interrupt and say ‘we have to do it this way because these are our friends’. This is the Mayor’s decision… and he doesn’t actually have to take our advice on this one.”

That’s not true. Under City law, the Mayor does have to consider fellow Council members’ input. While mayors are tasked with suggesting who should be appointed to the Planning Commission, the selection must be confirmed by a majority vote of the Council.

Positing that “usually nobody objects” to mayoral suggestions for appointments, Audette also claimed that it’s “rare for a Commissioner to hold two back-to-back terms”. In actuality, two current Planning Commissioners – Luke Miner and Michelle Goedert – are both currently serving their second consecutive terms. 

Audette’s emphasis on following norms and traditions belies her own vote history on the Council, which has included participating in a significant disruption to the established tradition for mayoral ascension.

In December 2023, shortly after being elected, Audette voted to make herself the Mayor, bypassing the traditional order which would have placed former Council member Mark Mezzano in the role. It was Munns who nominated Audette for mayor at the time. He told other Council members that he was doing what he felt was right, even if it broke with tradition.

The vote to make Audette mayor last year, was also supported by a third former Council member, Julie Winter. Audette, Munns and Winter are all affiliated with Bethel Church, a local megachurch with a theology that espouses seeking influence over governmental affairs. The vote to make Audette mayor in 2023 led former Council member Michael Dacquisto to christen the three the “Bethel Juggernaut”, a term which continues to be brought up regularly in public comment.

Amidst all the rancor, Council member Mike Littau said relatively little, choosing to abstain from voting on the topic entirely, because, he said, it “felt political.”

Without three affirmative votes for either candidate, no further action was taken by the Council. City Manager Barry Tippin told Shasta Scout today that the City Attorney is still reviewing whether the lack of new appointments means the two current Commissioners will step down on April 30, or continue to hold their roles until new Commissioners are appointed by a majority of the Council. 

In comments to Shasta Scout after the meeting Hatch and Greene both emphasized, much like Rensner and Dhanuka, that they think whomever is chosen by the Council to fill their seats should provide a reasonable expression of the diverse voices of Redding, including those concerned about the environment and conservation.

While both still wish to continue in their roles, Greene said she and Hatch both knew their reappointments weren’t on the agenda yesterday and had accepted that.

“That was not one of the options available”, Green said. “Period. We purely showed up to support asking for better representation on the Planning Commission.”

Recalling Audette’s decision last year not to reappoint Planning Commissioners Cameron Middleton and Marcus Partin, Greene said it should be unsurprising that conflict over appointments is continuing to arise.

In the coming months, the Planning Commission will play a role in recommending for or against a Riverfront Specific Plan update that’s been more than a year in the making.

Like Hatch and Greene, Middleton and Partin had both expressed concern about development at the Redding riverfront, something Audette strongly supports. Her preferred appointees for the role at that time, Johnson and Bethel Media CEO David Stine were both voted in by a majority that included Munns and Winter. Stine resigned shortly after being selected and Johnson stepped down a few months later to pick up a short-term appointment to the City Council. Like Audette, Johnson has also expressed support development of Redding’s prime riverfront land.

In a statement to Shasta Scout today, Johnson said he is honored to be considered for the Planning Commission.

“Our city is at a pivotal moment”, Johnson wrote by text, “and I believe thoughtful, balanced leadership is essential to guiding responsible growth while preserving the character of our community.”

Nance did not respond to a request for comment.

Disclosure: Annelise Pierce is a former member of Bethel Church.

4.2.25 6:20 pm: We have updated the story to correct a reference to public comment.

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