Council unity will be key to success

Jose Paul Corona

Four new City Council members will soon take seats at the dais.

And while some are lock-step in their vision for the city, the

truth is political and ideological differences will most likely need

to be set aside in the coming months and years for some of the

biggest issues to get resolved.

For example, while campaigning, the four listed the city’s

projected budget shortfall as their No. 1 priority.

“I think what is necessary is to get the budget under control,”

Councilman- elect Dave Sullivan said. “Times are going to be really

tough, and that reality needs to set in.”

But fresh off of her election day victory, Cathy Green says that

isn’t her biggest concern now.

“My biggest thing is to work at becoming a team,” she said.

It isn’t something that should be hard to do with the city’s

impending financial crisis, she said -- crisis is something that

tends to bring people together.

While Sullivan and Gil Coerper are expected to butt heads over

employee salaries and benefits -- which they hold opposite views on

-- they will need to agree on a budget next year and ultimately come

to an agreement on that very issue.

“On [the city employees benefit] issue we certainly have

disagreements,” Sullivan said. “[But] you can have differences on

specific issues without being disagreeable, and I think that’s the

way it’s going to be.”

While Sullivan is passionate about labor issues, he’ll have to

work with the rest of the council, said outgoing Councilwoman Shirley

Dettloff.

“Dave is going to have to put forth his beliefs, but at the end of

the day, the entire council will vote,” she said.

While Green knows that she and Sullivan might not agree on all of

the issues, she is confident that they will work well together. While

he was criticizing city staff he was also being very complimentary,

she said.

The above-board campaign was cordial and friendly, Green said. She

believes that the council will work well together.

“I tend to think we’ll work together more than we’ll pull apart,”

she said. “I don’t think people will have any idea of how bad things

are going to get.”

All of the differences of opinion will make for interesting

council meetings, Dettloff feels that the new council will do a fine

job.

“At the end of the day, when you have people that are committed,

you’ll get a council that will work well together,” Dettloff said.