What Major Factor Prompted Me to Run for City Council?
I love community service and I particularly love Woodland Hills! For both my husband and me, it was love-at-first-sight when we drove through the old gates of Woodland Hills 18 years ago. My life plan was to return to school when my youngest child entered school and earn my Ph.D. in order to teach college. During the past 20 years of raising children, though, my outlook has changed. I now feel like I will make a more valuable contribution to the world by offering my volunteer time and service for causes to which I am strongly committed. Due to the ages of my children, up to this point much of that commitment has been to school activities. I have also been working for the City, on the Planning Commission. After discussing it with my husband and children, this seemed like a good time for me to get more involved in our great city and see what I have to offer to its future.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
What Strength and Perspective Do I Bring to the Council?
During my time with the Planning Commission I have worked with many different Commissioners, included five different chairs. I have had good working relationships with each of them and have learned what a great resource our city has in dits citizens. I have learned to see difficult City problems from many points of view and have learned by observation the value of building consensus. I am committed to this principle. I believe that decisions that bring people together are the best decisions in communities like ours. I am not afraid to speak my mind, but I don’t mind it if someone doesn’t agree with me. I am very willing to listen to their point of view.
During my time with the Planning Commission I have worked with many different Commissioners, included five different chairs. I have had good working relationships with each of them and have learned what a great resource our city has in dits citizens. I have learned to see difficult City problems from many points of view and have learned by observation the value of building consensus. I am committed to this principle. I believe that decisions that bring people together are the best decisions in communities like ours. I am not afraid to speak my mind, but I don’t mind it if someone doesn’t agree with me. I am very willing to listen to their point of view.
What Are the Two Most Important Duties of a City Councilmember?
1) Good communication with the constituents: It’s easy to get busy and start to think that everyone agrees with you. Having open and rigorous communication with a large voter base is essential to continuing understanding of what the voters want. On the other hand, City problems are often more complex than citizens sometimes understand. It’s a good idea to communicate as much as you can to your voters so that they understand how difficult decisions are made. I always want to be approachable.
2) Being willing (and excited!) to learn as much as I can about challenges facing the City and all the options open to us for good solutions: This includes finding experts who can help, listening to constituents who may know more than I do, and working with other City Councilmembers to find solutions that (most) everyone can be comfortable with.
1) Good communication with the constituents: It’s easy to get busy and start to think that everyone agrees with you. Having open and rigorous communication with a large voter base is essential to continuing understanding of what the voters want. On the other hand, City problems are often more complex than citizens sometimes understand. It’s a good idea to communicate as much as you can to your voters so that they understand how difficult decisions are made. I always want to be approachable.
2) Being willing (and excited!) to learn as much as I can about challenges facing the City and all the options open to us for good solutions: This includes finding experts who can help, listening to constituents who may know more than I do, and working with other City Councilmembers to find solutions that (most) everyone can be comfortable with.
What Are the Two Most Challenging Issues Facing Our City?
I believe that the two most challenging issues are managing growth (or the lack thereof) and providing adequate services, including water and decent roads. These challenges have remained fairly constant over time, and I don’t anticipate their changing soon. We must ensure that the quality of life that we enjoy in our city remains whether we are enjoying rapid growth or whether we are not growing much at all. Most people moved to Woodland Hills because of the natural beauty and the large, spacious feeling. These resources must be preserved. Additionally, we must ensure adequate delivery of safe water supplies. This is a challenge because we need to determine how much money we are willing to spend in order to enjoy what level of service. That same dilemma applies to our roads – both the construction and maintenance, and also the snow removal.
I believe that the two most challenging issues are managing growth (or the lack thereof) and providing adequate services, including water and decent roads. These challenges have remained fairly constant over time, and I don’t anticipate their changing soon. We must ensure that the quality of life that we enjoy in our city remains whether we are enjoying rapid growth or whether we are not growing much at all. Most people moved to Woodland Hills because of the natural beauty and the large, spacious feeling. These resources must be preserved. Additionally, we must ensure adequate delivery of safe water supplies. This is a challenge because we need to determine how much money we are willing to spend in order to enjoy what level of service. That same dilemma applies to our roads – both the construction and maintenance, and also the snow removal.
How Will I Encourage Citizen Involvement?
I love the idea of citizen involvement. I do recognize, however, that one of the reasons for a representative form of government is so that a few people, whose judgment voters trust, can spend the time to really research and understand City issues. Some people vote for their representatives and then trust that they will be represented. A lack of large attendance at City Council meetings is not necessarily a sign of apathy. Sometimes it demonstrates trust and satisfaction with the direction the City is headed. However, sometimes a lack of participation demonstrates a sense of frustration and disenfranchisement. This is why it is so important to be approachable and accessible. Our new City website is a good start in the dissemination of information to citizens. It’s still a work in progress, but I like the direction it’s headed. Someone has suggested adding the ability to collect citizen input quickly through this venue. I am quite intrigued by this potential. What a great way to gauge the mood of our City! I would also like to have more information available regarding the agendas that are posted for City meetings. Sometimes the items listed are so vague, that if you don’t already know what is being considered, the agenda is not a useful tool. Actually, I have come to realize that some of the agendas I have posted for Planning Commission meetings have been guilty of this very thing. This is a problem that I will work on resolving whether or not I am elected to the City Council. We could also use – and I will encourage and support – holding regular Town Hall-type meetings. I envision 2-4 each year. These would differ from Public Hearings in that we would not be addressing very narrow items, but could consider a large scope of City issues, and there would be more give-and-take interaction between citizens and the Mayor and Council. I think the information gathered at these meetings would be invaluable to me as a Councilmember. Additionally, we have at least one current City Councilman who is very good at communicating with a large e-mail group. I would like to follow this example. I will also make my e-mail address readily accessible. (And, of course, my phone number is in the book!)
I love the idea of citizen involvement. I do recognize, however, that one of the reasons for a representative form of government is so that a few people, whose judgment voters trust, can spend the time to really research and understand City issues. Some people vote for their representatives and then trust that they will be represented. A lack of large attendance at City Council meetings is not necessarily a sign of apathy. Sometimes it demonstrates trust and satisfaction with the direction the City is headed. However, sometimes a lack of participation demonstrates a sense of frustration and disenfranchisement. This is why it is so important to be approachable and accessible. Our new City website is a good start in the dissemination of information to citizens. It’s still a work in progress, but I like the direction it’s headed. Someone has suggested adding the ability to collect citizen input quickly through this venue. I am quite intrigued by this potential. What a great way to gauge the mood of our City! I would also like to have more information available regarding the agendas that are posted for City meetings. Sometimes the items listed are so vague, that if you don’t already know what is being considered, the agenda is not a useful tool. Actually, I have come to realize that some of the agendas I have posted for Planning Commission meetings have been guilty of this very thing. This is a problem that I will work on resolving whether or not I am elected to the City Council. We could also use – and I will encourage and support – holding regular Town Hall-type meetings. I envision 2-4 each year. These would differ from Public Hearings in that we would not be addressing very narrow items, but could consider a large scope of City issues, and there would be more give-and-take interaction between citizens and the Mayor and Council. I think the information gathered at these meetings would be invaluable to me as a Councilmember. Additionally, we have at least one current City Councilman who is very good at communicating with a large e-mail group. I would like to follow this example. I will also make my e-mail address readily accessible. (And, of course, my phone number is in the book!)
The City’s Water System Seems to Be a Constant Source of Concern; How Will I Address this Problem?
First of all, I need to find out what the real situation is. I have heard that we are in dire straits and also that we are in pretty good shape. It’s easy to get scared about our water system, because it is so vital and we have to rely on the expertise and knowledge of others about what shape it is in since we can’t see it with our own eyes. I have a feeling that the truth of our situation lies somewhere between those who would have us believe that calamity is just over the horizon and those who think we should not worry because things will all work out. We can fix our water system. It may take a while (longer than some citizens might want), and it may cost some money (more than some citizens might want), but we can find a solution that we can all live with. Our water system is old, and using it is like driving an old car. You keep it maintained as well as you can and improve whatever you can as soon as you can afford it. If you do a good maintenance job, then you may have an occasional break-down or crisis, but those are very rare. Since I know that we cannot afford to buy a new “car” right now, this would be my approach.
First of all, I need to find out what the real situation is. I have heard that we are in dire straits and also that we are in pretty good shape. It’s easy to get scared about our water system, because it is so vital and we have to rely on the expertise and knowledge of others about what shape it is in since we can’t see it with our own eyes. I have a feeling that the truth of our situation lies somewhere between those who would have us believe that calamity is just over the horizon and those who think we should not worry because things will all work out. We can fix our water system. It may take a while (longer than some citizens might want), and it may cost some money (more than some citizens might want), but we can find a solution that we can all live with. Our water system is old, and using it is like driving an old car. You keep it maintained as well as you can and improve whatever you can as soon as you can afford it. If you do a good maintenance job, then you may have an occasional break-down or crisis, but those are very rare. Since I know that we cannot afford to buy a new “car” right now, this would be my approach.
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