Changes Possible for 2014 Central Elections

By Dave Freneaux

    The committee to study Districts and Term Limits met last week for the first time.  The video of this meeting can be seen on CentralSpeaks.com by clicking on the CentralSpeaksTV icon at the top of any page.  Council Member Wayne Messina Chairs the committee and it is composed of members appointed by the five Council Members and Mayor Watts.  In this preliminary meeting each committee member shared their thoughts and responded to questions and comments from the chair and the handful of other citizens in attendance.  The tenor of the meeting seemed to favor dividing Central into five districts in order to give each citizen, regardless of where they lived in the City, a Council Member living in that District and specifically dedicated to the concerns of that area of the city.  The alternative view of the issue was also shared, pointing out that Council Members elected "at large" by all of the voters may be more likely to consider the needs of the entire City as opposed to one district.

   During the 2010 municipal elections three Council Members, Tony LoBue, Wayne Messina and Ralph Washington, campaigned in favor of Districts.  Council Member Aaron Moak remains committed to "at large" elections because he feels Districting can be divisive and with "at large" elections every citizen has access to five Council Members, any of whom should feel the need to hear any citizen's concerns.  Council Member Louis DeJohn favored Divisions over Districts when asked during the election.  Divisions assign each elected Council Member to an area of the City, but the elections are "at large".  In recent months Mr. DeJohn has heard many citizens speak in favor of Districts and states that he could support Districts if a vote were taken today.

     The concept of Term Limits was also discussed, with concerns being raised that the concept may not be supportable by law under the Lawrason Act.  Term limits could only be enacted by a vote of the people, while a change to Districts can be made by the City Council.  The committee members were charged by the Chair to gather research in the areas of Term Limits, At Large Representation, and Districts and to bring that information to the next meeting, expected to be in early March.