Council should publicly air study sessions on cable TV

Paul Bunney

Think of that popular sound bite, forcefully spoken by Ronald

Reagan: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down these walls,” referring to the

Berlin Wall. Take this powerful statement and just change the words

to our local situation: “City Council, broadcast your study

sessions.”

The first statement was made on the stage of international

politics by the president of the greatest nation in the world, the

second by an interested Costa Mesa resident who believes in open

local government.

Earlier this month, I attended a Costa Mesa study session at City

Hall. For those who are not familiar with city workings, the council

meets monthly, in a nonvoting session, to learn about current issues

and to discuss these items among themselves and with the city staff.

This meeting is held in a conference room located behind the main

council chambers.

At these meetings, the council members mainly deal with the

background information for items that are to be put on the agenda and

considered at the next regular council meeting. They also get reports

that are provided to increase their awareness of things like awards

the city receives, city staff plans, projects and the status of these

items. Also, there is a meeting agenda that is printed in advance of

the meeting and available on the city’s Web site.

Because there is a law that whenever council members meet with

three or more in attendance (essentially a quorum for a five-member

council), the meeting is normally required to be announced and the

public permitted to attend. The study session meets this requirement

for public participation, even though the few residents who are

typically in attendance are only involved in an essentially passive

mode as spectators.

At the few study sessions that I have been able to attend in the

recent past, there has been very little resident attendance. This is

probably due to the lack of awareness of this meeting, its start time

and duration, and the lack of the ability to participate actively in

the discussions. The meeting starts at 4:30 p.m., while most people

may still be at work, on the road driving home or doing the multitude

of tasks that are required to live in our society.

This inability of most Costa Mesa residents to attend this meeting

is unfortunate because important information is often presented at

these meetings. Many times, the staff reports and other information

presented provide the details of issues that do not surface when the

subject is considered later at the regular council meetings. Also,

the discussions, comments and questions by individual council members

provide important insights into their thinking on the matters being

considered.

The agenda for the study session earlier this month was a good

example of the items that are reviewed by our City Council at a study

session.

First, there was a staff presentation on the roadway and traffic

on West 19th Street and considerable discussion about options

available to the council. Then the next item reviewed was the

problems at TeWinkle Park with the fouling of the lake and the

deterioration of the surrounding area. The costs to fix the problems

might be as much as a million dollars if all the problems are

addressed.

Then, a presentation was made by Tom Naughton of the Airport

Working Group and Jack Wagner of the Orange County Regional Airport

Authority. They explained why we were starting to see significant

low-level air traffic in areas that until recently were not exposed

to this type of intrusion. They also provided information on what to

expect in the future, and it was not good from what I heard.

The next item was the plan for the celebration of Costa Mesa’s

50th Anniversary and the projection of the costs and proposed

activities. This was followed by a report on a joint-use agreement

between the city and the school district.

As you can see, these are all issues of importance. The

information presented and discussed deserves to be made available to

the public.

Because all the council members have in the past asserted their

belief in open government, I hope they will all support the cable

television broadcast of these important public meetings. Before the

structural renovation of our City Hall was started, the council

publicly stated an interest in televising their study sessions. Now

the cables have been routed, the cameras are in place and the

microphones are installed in the study session conference room.

All we need now is the vote by the council to opening their

meetings to a bigger audience in the interest of involving as many

residents as possible in the process.

Costa Mesa has invested time and money in the cable broadcast of

council meetings, Planning Commission meetings, Redevelopment Agency

meetings, other committee meetings and special events. Now let’s use

these same city resources to maximum advantage to increase the

awareness of more of our residents to the important city issues that

are reviewed in the study session.

* PAUL BUNNEY is a Costa Mesa resident.