[img]1307|left|Ms. Sahli-Wells||no_popup[/img]One reason Meghan Sahli-Wells, environmentalist and all-around community activist, was elected to the City Council 11 months ago was the daily sunburst of constantly recycling enthusiasm that she brings to each project she dives into – arms fully extended.
At yesterday’s late afternoon periodic meeting between liaison delegates from the City Council and the School Board – so each gets to know the other side’s personalities and issues – it was hard to tell that one of her signature campaign goals was on the agenda:
Consolidated city elections so that School Board and City Council candidates are voted on at the same time.
Ms. Sahli-Wells came away also excited about recycling at Culver City schools, another favorite pursuit, targeting unspent food for donations to charities, the state of the onetime agreement by the Redevelopment Agency to send $1.2 million annually to the School District, and a potential new tutoring program.
The meeting in the Dan Patacchia Room at City Hall matched Vice Mayor Jeff Cooper and Ms. Sahli-Wells on one side, Prof. Patricia Siever and Karlo Silbiger from the School Board on the other.
They didn’t institute any new policies and propose any major shifts, but they may have demystified some traditional thinking by their counterparts.
For Ms. Sahli-Wells, this was her third liaison meeting, her second with Ms. Siever and Mr. Silbiger.
Dealing with two proud and separate entities – accent on separate – welding together the every other November School Board election and the every other April City Council election is one of the community’s longest shots.
From taking her concept around the city, she knows that she will have to commit to a lengthy slog before she makes progress, much less achieves her objective.
She didn’t have to look far for disagreement – her colleague Mr. Cooper promptly opposed the merger of elections.
Ms. Sahli-Wells’s optimism was buoyed by the recollection that when the city of Santa Monica merged Council and School Board elections, voter turnout soared to 80 percent.
“If you are just coming at this from a voter turnout perspective,” she said, “it just makes sense to have them at the same time, like November. If you are looking at it economically, the city itself could run it less expensively than we would in a general election since the County has to operate those.
“Our elections are cheaper.”
City elections cost about $80,000 and School Board elections are in the $120,000 range.
Even though there was not consensus for her viewpoint, Ms. Sahli-Wells felt encouraged after the discussion.
“Because while we were talking about this,” she said, “I saw (Supt.) Dave LaRose’s ears perk up. He was, ‘Oh, yeah, okay, let’s look into this.’
“Right now, this is just an idea. Next, I am looking for research, for more information.”
Tonight’s Attraction
Mr. LaRose’s ears may or may not perk up this evening at 7 at the Julian Dixon Library when he leads a group of very young children in the regular Tuesday night reading program.
Dressed as one of Dr. Seuss’s favorite storybook characters, the positioning of Mr. LaRose’s ears will not be available to adult members of the audience.
