LOOK!!! One* of the council members is having a community meeting on the Strong Mayor initiative. It's coming back to us next March or November to keep, amend or repeal.
Councilmember Danny Wan invites District 2 residents to a community forum on the "Strong Mayor" form of City government on Wednesday, Nov. 12th, 7:30 pm at Crocker Highlands School 525 Midcrest Road (at Longridge).
To be discussed: * Ideally, how should a "Strong Mayor" form of government be structured? (Editor wonders: Why does anyone assume we still want a Strong Mayor system? Is that the only discussion allowed?)
* How should the existing "Measure X" be modified before being submitted to the voters? (Editor wonders: There was no provision in the original Measure X that allowed it to be modified before it went to the voters. For instance, Measure X stated bluntly that city council raises were to be approved by the voters. The council's proposed changes take this power away from the voters.)
* The recommendations from the Limited Charter Review Committee will be presented, as well as suggestions from various Councilmembers. Recommendations printed at: http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/attachments/2920.pdf (Editor wonders whose syntax this is? Editor also notes that evidently the council and clerk decided not to include the minority report, a really big mistake, since the majority of the members of the "Limited Charter Review Committee" were handpicked by Mayor Jerry Brown to give him and other mayoral hopefuls what they wanted.) (And to screw the little people.)
The City Council will be debating this issue at the Nov. 18 City Council meeting, and making a final decision at the Council meeting of Dec. 2. To be decided: whether a "Strong Mayor" ballot measure should go on the March or the November election, and what provisions should be included in the Measure. (Editor is in great distress over above syntax. Will all members of the Oakland bureaucracy please learn to simplify their sentences and say, "The city council will discuss this issue...and make..." )
* Council member Desley Brooks reported that she has already held a community meeting on this issue. Larry? Ignacio? Henry? Jean? Jane? Jerry?
The web address listed above is already dead.
Posted by: Randy on November 11, 2003 01:35 AMRandy is correct. Thanks City Clerk Ceda Floyd!
And thanks to Danny Wan's office for checking on the link, which OaklandNews should not have to do. We
will call and complain, but that should not stop the rest of you. Danny's number is 238-7002.
Hello there, I'm one of Danny Wan's assistants. Thank you for your call to our office. I have checked the link and the link is functioning properly. The url on your website was slightly incorrect as "www" was added as a prefix to "clerkwebsvr1". The url that was sent out on our notice is:
http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/attachments/2920.pdf
Posted by: Chris on November 12, 2003 11:59 AMMy bad, I goofed it all up, my face a mask of shame.
Jeannette
PS Thanks, Chris, for sending the correction.
I'm not sure changing the government structure yet again is the real issue. I was a proponent of "Strong Mayor" in 1996, when Measure F was placed before the voters.
But the problems of Oakland's government can't be solved by structure. I'm 100 percent certain of that. I don't have to focus on what's going on in City Hall; the information flows to me without effort. Morale is terrible. People are unhappy. And it seems that almost no one likes Jerry Brown.
I think what's needed down there is just to make the employees feel better about what they're doing. Give them encouragement, recognition, honesty, and support. Right now, City Hall sounds like a terrible pool of jealous people who spend their time trying to figure out how to back-stab each other.
No change in structure is going to take that away.
Posted by: Zennie on November 14, 2003 12:40 AM*This discussion has been closed. No more comments may be added.*