If you're like me you've been following the excellent articles by Martin Henderson which give us many details about the people running to replace Hamilton on the City Council. If you haven't already done so, you should read these articles. Here are the links -
Find out what's happening in Lake Forestfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Find out what's happening in Lake Forestfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Henderson gave us really good material on 4 of the candidates, so I decided to do some comparison shopping along dimensions I consider important.
TAKING SPECIAL INTEREST MONEY
Rationale: When you take $$$ from someone else you owe them something in return. When it's a developer or a company seeking a city contract, it's a quid pro quo situation. In such cases, people put their own financial interests over the interests of the City. People will tell you "I don't consider the fact they gave me money when I vote" but they are lying. 100% of the times people vote for the companies or people who gave them money.
Analysis: Only Tom Cagley, David Glick, and Stan Yombo agreed not to take special interest money. Tom Cagley did even better in 2014 when he ran and showed us he didn't take any special interest money. Mark Tettemer was on the Council previously and his campaign took thousands of dollars from developers and companies with city contracts.
Advantage: Cagley, Glick, Yombo
EXPERIENCE
Rationale: City government is an entity unto itself. It's not like the private sector, or even State and Federal sectors. To be able to be effective, one has to have a handle on how government works (and especially how it doesn't work).
Analysis: The only people with any real experience with the City and City government are Tom Cagley and Mark Tettemer. Cagley has been very involved for the past 5 years. His attendance record at Council meetings and City events exceeds that of some Council members. Tettemer was on the Council from 2004 to 2012, but since 2012 he rarely attended meetings or events.
Advantage: Cagley.
KNOWLEDGE OF THE CITY
Rationale: The bottom line for anyone on the Council is making life better for everyone in the City. The more you know the city, the better able you are to make those judgments.
Analysis: Tom Cagley, David Glick, Stan Yombo, and Mark Tettemer have the best knowledge of the city. I think Cagley and Yombo are more in touch with what's happening now and certainly more active.
Advantage: Cagley and Yombo.
LEADERSHIP ABILITY
Rationale: The person who sits on the Council represents the City. His/her actions reflect on all of us.
Analysis: Tom Cagley is a former Colonel, so his credentials are obvious. Tettemer did a decent job as a Council member, disregarding his votes for developers and the fact that he accomplished very little in his 8 years. Stan Yombo has been a great presence for the Kiwanis and for the Chamber.
Advantage: Cagley, Tettemer, Yombo.
SUMMARY
Only one person's name appears under every category - Tom Cagley.
