Coalition forms to address citizens’ concerns
by Wehtahnah Tucker, Coast News
ENCINITAS — In a standing-room-only meeting, a new group took shape that aims to address the concerns of residents that many feel are ignored by the city. The Encinitas Taxpayers Association and other individuals coordinated the issue-driven meeting.
“I was overwhelmed by how many people were there,” Kevin Cummins said
. “That just goes to show how much of the populace is realizing there is a need to take a Monday night off to go help the city.”
The general consensus was to put policies in front of the council and then in front of the people when the council ignores the concerns of residents. “If the council wants to be involved in the democratic process then we support that,” Cummins said. However, the group discussed ways to get initiatives on the ballot for a direct vote of the people. Rachelle Collier, a Leucadia resident, attended the meeting and was hopeful about creating a process of accessing local government
“I think it’s a good idea that we hold City Council accountable,” she said. “The council is there to represent the people not the special interests,” Collier said. “I think we need to take the next step as a community.”
Ed Wagner, the president of the association, said the first meeting in the coalition building process was a success. “I was pleased not only with the size of the turnout but the enthusiasm people showed for a new movement and ways to get City Hall working,” he said.
“It’s really a broad coalition of citizens that are not happy with the way things are going at City Hall,” Wagner said after the meeting. In fact, a show of hands revealed that while most attendees were from either Leucadia or Cardiff-by-the-Sea, all five of the city’s communities were well represented.
“At the core of this is good government; transparency, trust and integrity,” Wagner said. “All the other issues stem from a lack of a transparent government.” Wagner said the group was solution-oriented, with a goal to create “transparent processes to deal with issues.”
One of the numerous topics discussed was pension reform. Charlie McDermott, a Leucadia resident, painted a grim picture of the city’s financial liability of the retirement system. “I think first there needs to be citywide awareness of the scope and magnitude and immediacy of the problem,” McDermott said. “The City Council needs to take action as soon as possible. This is not business as usual going forward,” he said. With a stronger, more unified voice at City Hall, the group hopes to implement changes that will benefit the city as a whole. “There was a strong consensus to move forward,” Wagner said. After the organizers review the feedback surveys, Wagner said another meeting would be scheduled. “It’s going to be a much larger forum next time given the fact that interest was so high at the meeting and we did very little to really get the word out.”
For information on the organization, e-mail [email protected].
