IMPORTANT CITYWIDE ALLIANCE FORUM - There are two issues currently facing Neighborhood Councils that have long range implications for the Citywide System of Neighborhood Councils. The first is the state of (or lack thereof) NC elections. The second is the on-going process of re-mapping the 15 City Council Districts throughout the City.
The Citywide Alliance of Neighborhood Councils will meet in a forum next Saturday, January 21st, at 9:30 am in the Faculty Lounge at Los Angeles City College, as we have many times over the past decade or more, to try to focus some attention on these critically important processes. Stakeholders from all of the NC’s are encouraged to attend. Details are at our website www.allncs.org.
THE NC ELECTION MESS-Solving the elections mess is particularly significant to the long term health of Neighborhood Councils.
The City Clerk was given the responsibility (by ordinance) to conduct elections in a more streamlined and consistent manner with the goal of actually increasing participation in the process. The reality has been one of delays and deferrals with little or no resources going toward outreach to stakeholders.
Now, the funding for the Clerk to handle the elections has been eliminated from the City Budget. How does that work? Obviously, it doesn’t. Deputy Mayor Larry Frank will be at the forum to address the question from the administration’s point of view. We have also invited BongHwan Kim, DONE’s General Manager, to discuss how DONE will approach the elections, now that the City Council is in the process of approving an ordinance to transfer responsibility for the elections back to the Department.
Any assessment of the elections process has to be undertaken with the intent to increase representation on the Boards and build participation within the overall system. NC’s themselves have the most to gain from increased stakeholder involvement and they are best positioned to conduct their own outreach. This is a critical time for NCs to step up and demonstrate that they can, with the department’s help, re-energize the Citywide NC system.
PROTECTING YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD BOUNDARIES-While elections are near and dear to NC Board Members, the process of redrawing the City Council District boundaries every 10 years is the single most openly political process that impacts the very livelihood of each and every member of the Council. That’s what makes it such a fascinating civics lesson.
Ten years ago, the NC system was still in its infancy and didn’t have much to say as the City Council District lines were being drawn. The situation is different now. While the boundaries of NC’s are drawn to far different criteria than the City Council districts, there should be a significant effort to match Council Districts to NC boundaries where that can readily happen. The only way that will happen is if the NCs make a strong showing in the process.
Michael Trujillo from the City’s Redistricting Commission (and a political consultant who makes his living dealing with these kinds of issues) and Councilwoman Jan Perry will both address the forum next Saturday about the process of drawing the new lines.
Board members and stakeholders from each of the City’s are encouraged to attend. The forum is open to everyone. Hope to see you there.
(Bill Christopher was President of the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners during the certification of most of LA’s Neighborhood Councils.) -cw
Tags: Citywide Alliance, neighborhood councils, redistricting, neighborhood council elections, Larry Frank, BongHwan Kim, Jan Perry, Michael Trujillo
CityWatch
Vol 10 Issue 4
Pub: Jan 13, 2012