The next Council meeting is Tuesday. It starts at 6:30 and you can come by or watch and participate live using Facebook (Click Here). Before discussing the agenda I want to review what’s been happening -
ACHIEVEMENT
Last month I gave a comparison of the current Council vs last year’s Council in terms of introducing positive and innovative changes to meet the challenges facing the City (Click Here). I reported that in the first two months the 2018 Council initiated nearly two dozen projects. Here's my summary -
“Most of these were in the area of improving the way government works (e.g., written reports on committee activity, invigorated strategic planning), better communication (e.g., FB-Live, HOA Council, Mayor's Minute), public safety (e.g., new seminar on child exploitation, updating active shooter protocols), and quality of life (e.g., search for a local animal shelter, advisory committees). Most of these initiatives turned out to be productive and successful.”
In the corresponding time, the 2019 Council didn’t initiate a single project. The important word here is "initiate". The current Council is doing what is put in front of them by the City Manager, but not a single person has put forward a single idea that would address the challenges facing the City. Did we do such a great job last year that there is nothing new that needs to be done?
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Now, going into the third month, judging from the current agenda, the Council will remain in their “Do NOTHING” mode. There is not a single new project or initiative on the agenda. Everything being discussed is either the normal operating of the City or dates back to projects initiated last year.
In 2018 I sat down with the City Manager at the start of the year and we identified nearly 100 projects that needed to be initiated in one way or another. It was simply too much to do so we narrowed the list down to about 50,, more than half of which we achieved and the rest the City is still working on. But 50 others, less important but still needed, were put aside.
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The simple fact is that we live in an ever changing world and those changes come quickly and often profoundly. Government can no longer sit back and do what was done before.
ACTIVITIES
Even more revealing than the fact that the new Council has initiated nothing, this time I compared the first two months in terms of city events, seminars, workshops, etc. I excluded City Council and Commission meetings and Community Services programs (e.g., excursions), but did include Chamber of Commerce ribbon cuttings, SCORE seminars, and city events (e.g., Snowfest). Here are the results-
In 2018 we conducted 27 events (Click Here and Here), including an internet predator workshop, seminars on homelessness, Hotel industry round table, etc. In the first two months of the new Council, the City held 12 events (e.g., Breakfast with Santa, Northpole Calling, Candlelight Walk) (Click Here and Here).
SUMMARY
The new Council has initiated no new projects to date and the City is engaged in fewer than half as many workshops, seminars, ribbon cuttings, etc. It's fair to ask "Why?" There are several reasons and I'll tackle that in another article. Tomorrow we'll look at the agenda.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Jim Gardner was on the Lake Forest City Council from 2014 to 2018 and Mayor in 2018. Under his leadership the City became the first debt free city in the U.S. with a population over 25,000 people and the first city to live broadcast City Council meetings that allowed residents to participate online. Dr. Gardner is one of the organizing members of the Lake Forest Community Action Network. You can check him out on LinkedIn and/or Facebook and you can share your thoughts about the City at Lake Forest Town Square on Facebook
