On April 12 Monrovians will select two of five candidates to serve on the Monrovia City Council. (Actually, two of four, since candidate Joe Espinosa has withdrawn, though his name will remain on the ballot).
I think the best choices are the two incumbents, Tom Adams and Becky Shevlin.
My reasoning is that the overriding concern for Monrovia today is the city budget, and Shevlin and Adams have the focus and experience to deal with that.
At the candidates' forum I attended this seemed to be the main issue for both of them. Both talked about the city fixing its pension system and both spoke of attempts by the state to extract even more money from local government.
That was exactly the focus I wanted to hear.
Now I'm sure the challengers don't want to blow the budget either, but the incumbents are familiar with the problem and have been wrestling with it, and however competent the challengers may be, there is always a learning period before people become effective in a new position. But the situation is critical and I don't feel there is time for on-the-job training. We already have two competent people who understand the problem and are working on it - Tom Adams and Becky Shevlin - and I think we should stick with them.
I welcome other opinions.
[UPDATE: Please see responses by clicking the Comment link to the right, below.]
- Brad Haugaard
Thank you for your support Brad. Yes, and although we are still awaiting an outcome from the State as to redevelopment and other budgetary issues and there seem to be far more questions than answers, I do believe I am prepared to take on the budget and other challenges facing Monrovia in the upcoming years.
ReplyDeleteI respectfully disagree with your assessment. I am the better candidate to address our financial crisis:1) Monrovia's #1 source or revenue is "Other Agencies" - meaning we rely on funds from state, fed, county etc. 2) Fiscal threats to these other agencies are in fact threats to Monrovia's financial well being - the greatest of which is the public health crisis. We may not want to acknowledge this fact but it exists and we would be smart to respond to, rather than, deny this situation.3) I am the only candidate that sees this relationship and has a track record of advocating realistic solutions proven to address that issue.4) The current council's track record is to exacerbate the public health crisis by implementing policy restricting access to public resources that promote health. Lastly, I'm disappointed in your reporting: You didn't call/email me. We never spoke directly or indirectly. If you watched a forum then all you witnessed were candidates responding to a very a narrow array of questions, of which, we had 1 minute to respond. In case you want to cover this subject comprehensively, I may be reached at 626 367-0637.
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