Brooklyn Park City Council member promises action after being censured

Brooklyn Park City Council Member Maria Tran has pledged to take action after she was censured last week, saying she will announce her moves in the coming days.

Tran made the promise June 10 during the council meeting’s open comment period. She was not present when the remaining members voted 5-0 to publicly censure her for violating the city’s Respectful Workplace policy and the elected officials’ Code of Conduct.

“The action the city council is taking tonight [June 10] is beneath the dignity of this great city,” Tran said, reading from a statement. “This vote seeks to shift blame for other people’s failures, and it will divide us further.

“I will have more to say in coming days, the action I will be announcing and accountability to come.”

Tran is the second Brooklyn Park City Council member to be censured this year. In April, Boyd Morson was censured a second time for violating the same policies.

In January, a city employee filed a complaint against Tran, accusing the West District councilwoman of creating a hostile work environment and violating city policies by openly disparaging the staff member’s performance. An independent investigator substantiated the complaint.

In a subsequent closed-door meeting, the council agreed to issue Tran a letter of reprimand. Mayor Hollies Winston said he thought she agreed to the punishment.

“We were under agreement that Tran had an understanding why the allegations were brought, why a letter of reprimand was necessary because we don’t publicly attack employees,” Winston said at last week’s City Council meeting.

He said the council directed the city attorney to draft the letter.

But when Tran objected to the reprimand at a council meeting May 28, members moved to censure her. The meeting then erupted in chaos and was adjourned early.

“If I need to find justice, I can go to court,” Tran said at the meeting. “I have a case.”

Last week, City Council members used one of the few tools they have to hold Tran accountable and protect city staff.

“I think that the people you see sitting in front of you right now are willing to engage in the messy to protect our city and to protect our city staff from behavior that is unkind, unsafe, and occasionally illegal,” Council Member Christian Eriksen said. “We are not going to shy away from that.”

Tran will still be allowed to attend council meetings and represent her constituents. But she can’t serve on city committees, boards or commissions until further notice, according to the resolution. She also won’t be able to represent Brooklyn Park at city-sponsored events or get funding to attend conferences on behalf of the city.

And all future communication, including emails and social media posts, must be “professional and not belligerent, impertinent, abusive or disparaging,” the resolution states.

Tran, whose term ends in 2026, said she will continue to serve on the fractured council.

“The vote to censor me will not improve our water, expand our parks, generate more equality for our underserved community, fix our roads or reduce or property taxes,” Tran said in her statement last week. “This vote seeks to shift blame for other people’s failures and it will divide us further.”