Petition in West Covina
West Covina residents could have made up their own City Council Drinking Game if the city still aired its meetings on television. But now that the broadcasts have been pulled from TV and the Internet, the game would be a lot harder. Unless, of course, you snuck booze into the meeting, but I'm guessing it wouldn't take too long before you were escorted out of the meeting...in handcuffs.
But residents such as Fred Sykes aren't taking the issue lightly. (Not the lack of drinking game, but the decision to halt that broadcasts of the meetings.)
Sykes has organized a petition and distributed it to about 20 other residents throughout the city. He is hoping that if enough residents sign the petition (he thinks that it will be no problem getting at least 1,000 people) that it will change the council's decision to pull the plug on the televised meetings.
And just why does he think that the council will listen? "We know that they are politicians, and three of them are due to run in November. That is something that they will consider."
Irrespective of the fact that there will be (or not) an election in November, a petition is a waste of time. Unless it is an initiative petition or a recall petition, elected officials can give a hoot about resident petitions - they carry no weight. There is no one on the other end verifying if the signators are actual residents, which means, that a person living in Rancho Santa Margarita (who claims to live in WC) can sign it - it's a moot point. WC people, Save yourselves a pair of walking shoes. If you're serious, then approach it with substance (initiative or recall) or don't approach it at all.
Obviously you are not very politically astute. Politicians try to appease any potential voters, so anyone that signs a petition could very well be an adversary in their upcoming election. There will be 3 council seats up for grabs in November 2009. Voters will be reminded about any of their votes until that election sooooo, if they want to be reelected they better listen to the residents. The only reason they stopped the broadcasts is so that they could slip their pet projects in for their favorite contractors. After all, what the residents don't know the better.
Obviously you are not very politically astute. Politicians try to appease any potential voters, so anyone that signs a petition could very well be an adversary in their upcoming election. There will be 3 council seats up for grabs in November 2009. Voters will be reminded about any of their votes until that election sooooo, if they want to be reelected they better listen to the residents. The only reason they stopped the broadcasts is so that they could slip their pet projects in for their favorite contractors. After all, what the residents don't know the better.
Obviously you are not as politically astute as you pose yourself to be. The election is not until 2009. The petition is a waste of time. Obviously, the only sure way of determining if whether your methodolgy is as impactful as you'd like it to be is if the council, immediately upon receipt of your petition(s), reverses its position and votes to bring back the broadcasting. My guess is that they will return to videostreaming as the 2009 election nears and not any sooner.
Ding ding ding ding ding ding....You said the secret word "Obviously"
Sign me up! It may be futile, but you know what Edmund Burke said, "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." I don't know if stopping the broadcasts of the meetings is necessarily "evil," but to do nothing about it if you disagree with it is apathetic at best, unpatriotic at worst.
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.. I couldn't agree more! That is why I support Public Safety over television. This is a time to conserve and put our money where it is needed not so a resident running for Council can stand on his soap box and have his 5 minutes to campaign for free on the taxpayers money.
The Council Chambers are OPEN to the public and ANYONE can attend. Nothing is being hidden from anyone. This kind of talk that is so damaging to our community. What also damages our community is individuals USING residents by telling them things that are not true so they can get their vote...Do something positive.. it would be a nice change.....
I find it almost laughable that a councilwoman can do a blog but not show up for council meetings or city functions. The bloggger S. Sanderson is obviously Councilwoman Shelley Sanderson! Perhaps if our City Council had not squandered our resources on pet projects or given away valuable city land to contractors who donate heavily to their campaigns we would not be in the mess we are in now! Perhaps if you would show up more or paid the city back for the functions and Council meetings you missed you would realize this. Perhaps you could do something nice for the residents and not put our city in debt for 30 years, but then you would not get those nice campaign contributuins that you desire. Why is our Council afraid to be seen and heard by the residents?
Am I missing a few brain cells, but didn't the council recently approve budget cuts to public safety? Isn't that why the WC Fire Department is running those commercials telling the people of West Covina that the budget cuts will decrease response times? Mrs. Sanderson, I'm not going to rip you a new one over your post like "WC resident not a Councilwoman," because I know you have four little boys and you can't be everywhere all the time, but if we're going to cut completely the broadcasts, we should also cut completely the Discover West Covina newsletter -- it's a biased fluff piece that doesn't tell us anything we haven't read in the paper or seen with our own eyes. Are some of the stories admirable, like the graffiti unit making its 500th arrest? Absolutely. But, as you've said, that money could be better spent elsewhere. For me, I skim the newsletter, use it to clean up dust off the floor and throw it in the recycling bin. I bet I'm not the only one.
As a mother I do live a very busy life. Because I'm busy with my family and kids I limit my other activities, such as running for public office. If Sanderson cannot do the job she should not run for office. It was her choice.
Interesting how a subject can change. It went from cutting cable programs to missing meetings...
FYI - I went through a pregnancy as Mayor of WC and NEVER missed a meeting. Two days prior to the delivery of my son, I was at a City Council meeting. It's a job and just like any job, sometimes you get sick. I have missed two meetings in 5 years.
One meeting I attended after a serious injury. I take my position very seriously and enjoy what I do. But enough about me;
The situation of budget cuts is due to the economy. Anyone that is breathing knows what is going on around us.
Future cuts may be necessary due to what is happening in our world. Banks are having financial trouble, businesses are closing. In our community some of the largest sales tax generators are down in sales 10 to 20 %. Real estate forclosures are high and these are some of the reasons communities are having budget issues...
If we do not make these type of cuts, then the cuts to Public safety would be greater.
On the subject of projects; Development is an asset to WC. The developments that have been brought to this community by the Council are generating additional tax dollars for the city.... the claims made otherwise are just preposterous... without balanced development then we really would be in a mess!
Ms. Sanderson, Obviously math is not your strongest subject. Your blog entry is just another example of disinformation put forward by this Council. After all, we need to keep the McIntyres rich don't we.
Another mother; I realize this is what you really want people to believe, however the facts speak for themselves....
Since I have been on Council, we have done "ONE" Redevelopment project with the McIntyre's and it was the Nissan/Grove project. Interesting fact: this project generates over $600,000.00 in NEW sales tax revenue for West Covina compared to the previous project on that site.
I think that math is very good....
Since Ms.Sanderson is directing her messages directly at me I must comment. First of all the petition sounds like a good idea, having the meetings on television, since many people cannot attend the meeting at City Hall. Secondly, why are you afraid of what the people have to say? Having the meetings on-line and on cable promotes open government. I know you and your fellow cronies don't want that.
Dear Mother:
The system is rather expensive. What other programs do you propose the city cut so that the online broadcasts can continue? I know why the Tribune supports it and it has little to do with concerns for open government: they don't have enough reporters to cover all the cities so its more economical for them. Reporters who should be out in field talking to real people are instead relegated to sitting in their office watching the meetings online. Here's an idea, why doesn't the Tribune, being the very civic minded institution it is, agree to help subsidize the broadcasts for all of the cities. I think that would be a wonderful gesture. (Hello?...Hello?...Is anyone there???)
There has been a great misunderstanding regarding one of the two PSA's being sponsored by the WCFA on local cable television. First, we are proud to be sponsoring a Pool Safety/Drowning prevention PSA to help remind us to always be diligent with our children in and around pools! Let me assure you that our second "Budget" PSA is not targeted towards anyone or the City of West Covina. Pointing fingers is counterproductive, and this commercial has been misrepresented and misinterpreted by many who wish to use this message for some personal gain. If you listen to the message, it addresses a simple theory. Budget woes are resulting in cuts. Cuts are resulting in decreased staffing which can have a potential effect on operations and service. West Covina Firefighters support our City Council and knowing the many challenges they face, we applaud their efforts, contributions, and commitment to finding solutions. As always, we will strive to provide the very best service and will always be ready and willing to respond to do our duty for the citizens of our community.
However, facing potential future cuts of revenue by the State of California, along with the current reduction, we feel it is necessary to remind our citizens of the importance of returning our staffing to previous levels as soon as it is possible. Again, we are not pointing any fingers, but rather, reminding everyone of the current financial crisis we face in our state and how it affects the fire service. It is our true desire, goal and hope that we will be able to restore our staffing to previous levels and will work with all of our City Council and staff, in any way necessary, to find solutions.
I don't have a problem with the cable broadcasts. I have been on council for 8 years and of those 8 years, the meetings have in fact been televised. However, necessary cuts have been made across the board...
Lets not mislead the public into thinking anyone wants to hide.... and again point out, the meetings are open to anyone...
Do you want us to implement a tax increase to cover the cost of cable? This council has not raised taxes to the community, and I have not supported these type of taxes. I voted no on the 911 tax because I believe people are stretched thin enough.
However, if that is what the majority of residents want to do to support the cable program, then this can happen.
Can't we all just get along?
Why not return to putting meetings on the internet with a volunteer production staff. Perhaps a retired senior (or group, or hobbyist) could take this up as a cause. Another is perhaps local students from MSAC or the highschools interested in video production could do this for college/hs credit?
Tom S,
That is a fantastic idea! Why didn't anyone think of that before? I had the idea of just setting up a vid camera in the back of the room and posting it on YouTube. Your idea is way better.
Another thought is what happened to the video and audio equpiment in the council chambers? Did the City own it or the cable co.?
Bottom line, if the Council wants to have the meetings broadcast they would find a way. The Discover West Covina magazine costs at least 4 times the amount to produce than the televising does. Why can't they do both, just scale them both back to fit in the budget constraints.
i support are city council. job well done!
I to support councilwoman selley sanderson for here hard work along with the rest of council.it not easy to sit up there and take a unfair beating. if you think you can do a better job then run for city council and see how easy it is.