Civic Life head on administrative leave
Amanda Garcia-Snell is the first director under charter reform
Amanda Garcia-Snell, who proposed to replace the city’s “partnership” with neighborhood associations with public engagement standards set by the city administrator, has been placed on administrative leave today.
“I can confirm Amanda Garcia-Snell is on paid leave,” wrote city Communications Manager Carrie Belding today. “We can’t provide additional details regarding the employee’s leave status.”
She was hired in January, 2025, and had the title of First Engagement Officer.
Garcia-Snell announced in March that new standards for neighborhood associations and coalitions would be adopted by July 1. That timeframe was extended to sometime before the end of the year, and now perhaps for longer.
Todd Zarnitz, president of the District 4 Coalition and the most outspoken critic of the proposed changes, said he didn’t know what to make of Garcia-Snell’s status.
The issue to him is, “We can’t have the neighborhood system run by administrative rules that can be changed by fiat.”
3...2...1....Huge severance payment......
Todd had a very big lift going through several years of council records to uncover this attempt to move authority away from the council to the city administrator. He deserves recognition for being unafraid to manage the facts and blow the whistle.