Is it worth the effort? Lots of people say yes, and now is the time. Citizens for a New Charter is a group that is well versed with supporting candidates and, in many cases, actually being one. At last count, the group has forty current/former elected officials or appointed commissioners on its supporter list. That list also includes two of the three candidates currently running for the City Council.
Look Who Is Backing Reform
The list also includes endorsements by such diverse groups as the Culver City Democratic Club, the Culver City Chamber of Commerce and the School Board. The Citizens for a New Charter pretty much covers the political, demographic and geographic spectrums of the city, not to mention personality types. Thoughtful and trusting, quiet and introspective, brainy and brash — you’ll find it all in this group.
Citizens for a New Charter has been trying to find out what the electorate’s thinking, a neighborly market research if you will. In this town, one often finds only one degree, or even zero degree, of separation between oneself and a possible voter. I discovered one of the group’s writers had been talking to our architect, a local businessman and resident. Who knew they were acquainted?
The Citizens for a New Charter cares enough about Culver City to attempt the implausible, to engage its friends and neighbors into thinking about how to bring Culver City into the twenty-first century. They know it doesn’t happen by accident.
It requires, as the ten members of the Charter Review Committee know, more than a year’s worth of time and intense study of documents voluminous enough to fill a couple of file cabinets. They weighed and balanced each option and opinion, so it will work for our City and for you. The Committee was unanimous in its support for the new charter.
The Citizens for a New Charter is filled with optimists. They are our plumbers, homemakers, mechanics, social workers, entertainers, realtors, accountants, engineers, architects, educators, attorneys and doctors. They recognize that while this is an exciting time for the city. They also know deep down that the city can do even better. The road map for that better future is the new charter.
Who has time for this? Isn’t this just for policy wonks or political junkies? Well, if you think it’s time to really change the way government does its business in Culver City, Citizens for a New Charter has good news. Take the future of the city into your own hands.
The new charter will bring an orderly chain of command to our city government, creating a system where department heads would report to a professional City Manager rather than to a part-time City Council. This is the familiar model used by most businesses, non-profits and other cities.
The new charter addresses ethic issues, while the current charter does not. This is just as important for our city as it is for Sacramento and Washington, D.C.
The Clerk and the Treasurer will be selected, rather than elected, as they are now. This is especially important to ensure that the Treasurer is a professional finance position dealing with all of the city’s funds and financial reporting.
The new charter is more flexible, making it more efficient and cost-effective over time. The current charter is often unclear and restrictive.
Ms. Alexander is the City Treasurer.
