Begin televising both meetings immediately and then let this “Ad-hoc committee” iron out the rest of the other avenues to make Santa Ana city government more open, such as internet, podcasts, e-notification, etc.

But I did not crawl out from under a rock the morning I moved here.

in 1984 I served on the Executive Board of the West Hollywood Incorporation Committee. A group of people about the size of Michele’s cabal got together, took an area of unincorporated Los Angeles County and created a city. All legal and proper like. This often-maligned city is a booming metropolis of 39,000 residents. What’s that, 12% the size of Santa Ana? And what, about 100 years younger?

From the beginning, that beginning being in 1984, the newly minted city council, every one an amateur who never held public office, felt it important to broadcast every council meeting on cable. I bet more than one was more than merely nervous.

At the time, the city was operating from a single temporary rented office with rented furniture. It was almost as if they were operating from the trunk of the interim city manager’s car. There was not a full staff. There were no department heads. The phone number to “city hall” didn’t exist. and you had to know someone to know how to get ahold of anyone.

No one had confidence that this city would survive. Well, no one except the group who conspired to make a city and the voters who wanted greater control of their government. But the rank amateurs who ran the city knew this much: If their business was conducted in the open so the citizens could see what they do and how they do it, with the warts and the silly laws, the city would thrive. And it has. Quite well, thank you very much.

The smoke and blue mirrors erected by the Santa Ana mayor-for-life, some council members, some staff, and any number of apologists stretch the limits of credulity. It’s pure, unadulterated crap. The vacuum created by their dead air and hidden meetings inevitably leads to all manner of conspiracy theories. It always works that way. Unfortunately, in the case of Santa Ana, the theories appear to be the reality.

Begin televising both meetings immediately and then let this “Ad-hoc committee” iron out the rest of the other avenues to make Santa Ana city government more open, such as internet, podcasts, e-notification, etc.

Public input to the political process, what a concept!

The public may speak on agendized items when they are being discussed, however if they want to speak on non-agendized items they must wait until the end of the meeting. They must wait until all other business is done and then speak. At times that means they are they until late in the evening just to be heard. By moving public comments to the beginning of the meeting you are allowing them to be heard and then go home at a reasonable hour.

I have no idea why the particular 3 in question were picked. Since this is Sal’s proposal it is only logical that he be one of the 3 members and Claudia has looked into this issue in the past and can bring her knowledge of those past discussions to the table as well. Vince is very level headed and intelligent and he is a very good choice for this committee in my humble opinion.