Jim Bernstein asks, >"My question: did the switch to four year terms net better government, a better functioning city council, more focus on long term rather than short term outcomes? Did it make Minneapolis a better governed city?"
NO, NO, and NO to the first three questions! And a last NO, it did not make Minneapolis a better governed city. Four-year terms made it a much more badly governed city. Minneapolis is just now starting to get a responsive City Council as the Members prepare for the next election. An example is the over building of multi-unit rental at a time when the Council was being yelled at for putting large subsidies into such buildings because there was an over abundance. Now suddenly affordable homeownership is more attractive, but where was the Council when the Neighborhood NRP reps and the Hennepin County Commissioners combined to create an affordable homeownership program? They were killing it for multi-unit, that is what they were doing. Remember when the Council fought neighborhoods about locating that multi-unit housing and continued to illegally stuff "Supportive Housing" into neighborhoods and approved any multi-unit "affordable housing" a non-profit or developer brought forward? Now the Council Members are giving lip service to how important it is to listen to neighborhood residents. (Of course that is only for neighborhoods where large numbers of voters turn out and contribute money, poor neighborhoods still do not get listened to.) The total distain for the neighborhoods and NRP has been modified from the just elected kill the NRP and who cares what the neighborhoods want rhetoric of just elected Council Members. One last thing on two-year terms. I do NOT remember the degree of ownership of a council member by special interests that are evident now. When resident voters had to be faced every two years it was much more difficult for "special friends" to buy a council member. It also was not as good of an investment for the "special friend" because the residents might just kick them out in a year. The price and value of a CM was less and the risk for the Council Member much greater. So economics being what they are Council Members seemed to be more honest and responsive. Questions: Do we need a referendum to change it back to two years? Can we change the Mayor's term to two years, since it is a weak mayor system anyway? Second note: This morning I looked at a ward map of what we in Minneapolis have lived with for the last ten years. Everyone should do the same. What is all the garbage about some wards being longer, or not rectangular, being thrown out by the redistricting and no new elections crowd? Has one of those people bothered to look at the gerrymandered wards from the last redistricting time after the 90's census? Look at the six ward, or the ninth, or Zerby's ward. Those wards are so cut up they are clearly gerrymandered. Look at the sixth ward. It looks like two suitcases joined by a stick in the middle around the eighth ward, or possibly a DD bra. Rectangular? This was clearly an attempt to play political games. The questioned new redistricting map looks like a clean orderly thing by contrast. People need to look at the boundaries we are presently using until the next election. They are about as biased and fraudulent as one can get if the present criteria of ward boundaries is used. Rectangle my left betootie! Jim Graham, Ventura Village >"The people are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty. - Thomas Jefferson >"We must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. - Thomas Jefferson REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
