Cupertino remains tight-lipped on why City Manager Pamela Wu has placed on paid administrative leave last week.
The council voted 3-2 in a Friday closed session in favor of Wu’s leae “ensure the city can continue to operate smoothly and maintain organizational stability while allowing a fair internal review process to move forward in a constructive and focused manner,” according to the city. Councilmembers Kitty Moore and Ray Wang, along with Mayor Liang Chao voted for the action.
In a Monday statement to this news organization, Chao did not provide a reason for the council’s decision stating she is, “limited by the confidentiality of personnel matters and an active investigation.”
Wu, who was appointed city manager in August of 2022, said she was not apart of the session and did not know about the council’s decision until after the meeting.
“I am confused and shocked,” Wu said. “There’s not a whole lot of information that has been shared with me. I don’t know how to make sense of this decision.”
In the meantime, Deputy City Manager Tina Kapoor will serve as acting city manager. Cupertino has had three previous city managers and had three interim city managers since 2018.
The May 2 session follows multiple closed session meetings on April 2 and April 29 regarding Wu’s performance. All the meetings had similar ominous topics, with the April meetings labeling “public employee performance evaluation, city manager” as the topic.
The May 2 special closed session also included a “public employee performance evaluation” of the city manager and added “discipline” to the topic line.
Chao said her decision to agendize the closed-session evaluations was driven by “performance concerns” the city observed from Wu since the beginning of this year.
“My focus remains on making sure we have the leadership capacity needed to deliver quality services, follow council direction, and communicate effectively both internally and with the public,” Chao said.
Before coming to Cupertino, Wu worked for the City of San Bruno as a Community and Economic Development director. Previously, Wu also worked for the City of Gilroy and Santa Clara County as a Senior Planner.
Some residents wrote letters in support of Wu in connection with the May 2 closed-door session.
“I am appalled at the treatment of our very competent city manager, Pamela Wu,” Cupertino Jean Bedford stated in a May 1 letter to the city. “Residents I have talked to respect her professionalism and her accomplishments in the last two and a half years.”
Jim Lee, in a letter to the City Council, said he believes the city manager dragged her feet on some key items such as the renovation of the existing city hall and scheduling construction works projects.
Staff writer George Avalos contributed to this story. Check back for updates.
