His text, his just-right serving of confidence, topped by his imposing size, stirred to a simmer and served reasonably hot, made Scott Wyant’s City Council campaign opener yesterday afternoon a happy scene to remember.
After two terms on the increasingly visible advisory Planning Commission, it may be superfluous, downright unnecessary, to point out the Mr. Wyant comes freshly wrapped as a rookie in electoral politics.
Who says you must have been elected to gain the appropriate insights for effective, efficient governing.
His backers say that the curiosities that peaked Mr. Wyant’s mind when he dove into the technology field as an entrepreneur, will serve him effectively if he is elected to the City Council in four months.
Here, in the first of two installments, is what Mr. Wyant told yesterday’s crowd:
I thank our hosts Diana and Jim Solomon, who have so generously allowed us to take over their home on this beautiful Southern California winter’s day. We,have been lucky enough to call Diana and Jim our friends for the last 20 years.
I want to introduce my most trusted advisor, my wife Leslie Spanier-Wyant. And give long-distance thanks to my daughter Molly and her new fiance. They’re flying in on Friday to join us for our Hanukah/Christmas brisket party.
I am proud to look around this room and see the public servants who support me. I am honored by my friends Jim Clarke, Jeff Cooper and Andy Weissman for their support, their kind words, and their belief in me as a colleague and, in Andy’s case, as a worthy successor to his chair at the dais.
I also am proud to look out in the audience and see my current and former colleagues from seven years on the Planning Commission — Chair Kevin Lachoff, Vice Chair David Voncannon, and former Commissioners Linda Frost, and John Kuechle (as represented by his wife Nan). I am proud to carry the endorsements of Commissioners Dana Sayles, Ed Ogosta, and Tony Pleskow. They recognize that I have the skills and the temperament to join the City Council and get to work the first day.
So, I’m running for Council…
and people ask me, “Why?”
They mean: Why would you want to do such a thing? Why should I vote for you?
Let’s start with the first part.
When we moved to Culver City, my daughter Molly was about this big, and my wife Leslie was just beginning her new career in employer-sponsored child care.
was working fulltime in TV production and going to grad school fulltime at UCLA. I cared about being a husband and a father, finishing my thesis, getting our shows on the air, and making our house payment.
After UCLA, I joined several early internet startups, working 16-hour days on development, interface design and documentation. I concentrated on trying to be a good husband and father, making sure the software shipped — and on making our house payment.
When Molly started school, I accepted a position at the USC School of Cinema and Television. Leslie and I volunteered at Farragut, and we began to realize that good things didn’t just “happen” in Culver City — good people were making them happen.
Teachers teaching, police officers and firefighters keeping us safe. People working to make sure the future of Culver City would be even brighter than its past. Public servants — elected officials, volunteers and professionals.
My first taste of public engagement was a task force that succeeded in calming traffic on Braddock Drive without ruining the serenity of the surrounding streets. Next, I volunteered for the Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee, representing pedestrians and casual, recreational bicyclists.
For the last seven years, I have been serving as a city Planning Commissioner, where our projects included the three exciting new developments surrounding the Metro Station, and a renaissance on West Washington. During that time, I also served on the Boards of the Ed Foundation and the Chamber of Commerce, and as Technical Chair of the IndieCade Festival of Games. Most recently I joined the Board of the Centennial Celebration.
You know what? I have enjoyed it. Almost all of it. I have enjoyed working with the concerned and committed Culver City citizens who want to make this an even better place to live. Working through our differences and varied visions to reach a better solution than we could possibly have imagined individually.
That’s why I’m running. But why should you vote for me?
Culver City is in good shape right now. With careful stewardship, we can make sure it stays that way. Not to say that we don’t have challenges — but most of the challenges we face, come from the fact that…. we live in a really, really great city.
That means more and more people want to enjoy our unparalleled public services, exemplary public schools, vibrant business climate and tranquil, homey neighborhoods. When I come back from work at night and turn towards the house, I see a street full of children on razor scooters, and parents playing catch with their kids. Those are property values. If we are careful, we can keep those values and still move forward. I think of this as “growth with heart.” Growth with heart. I believe we can accomplish that.
(To be continued)
