Good ol’ conventional wisdom
Costa Mesa City Hall on Monday provided ample reason why the
hackneyed “conventional wisdom” is often far from the truth.
The conventional wisdom had Councilman Gary Monahan elevated to
the mayor’s seat by the end of the meeting. His experience, coupled
with an expected grouping of him, Councilman Chris Steel and newcomer
Allan Mansoor, seemed to ensure Monahan would lead the city in 2003.
Or not.
It turned out that a phone call or two from now Mayor Karen
Robinson to her colleagues was the magic bullet. And, after Steel was
elected to vice mayor, suddenly Monahan was completely out of the
leadership picture.
It will be interesting to see where this unexpected turn of events
leads. Perhaps it is the start of a better working relationship on
the dais, at least among Robinson, Steel and Councilwoman Libby Cowan
-- who supported Steel’s mayoral nomination of Robinson.
Robinson and Steel, certainly, cannot claim any feelings of being
“outsiders.”
Much will fall on Monahan’s shoulders, as well, just not as he
expected. Instead of leading the council, it is up to him to put
aside the political, though polite, slap and work with his
colleagues.
The challenge for Robinson and Steel is to step up their
leadership of the city -- above and beyond what they have done during
their first two years in office.
The issues facing the council -- the Westside, redevelopment and
housing, among them -- haven’t changed, just the face of the council.
Could Newport Beach Councilman Steve Bromberg be sweating a little
more than expected? His assumed posting as mayor is scheduled for
Tuesday.
WITHER GREENLIGHT?
In one of its early campaign mailers, the Greenlight committee
quoted lines from this column, saying:
“Given the safe bet that the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce,
along with a number of development interests, will back [Tod]
Ridgeway, [Gary] Adams and other candidates running against the
Greenlight ticket, Newport Beach residents will have the most
clear-cut council decision in recent elections. The can essentially
vote one way or another on the city’s future.”
With Dick Nichols carrying Greenlight’s banner into City Hall, it
seems fairly clear that voters weren’t as enthusiastically for slow
growth as earlier votes had suggested. And having come out on the
short end of that decision, it’s no surprise that Greenlight’s
leaders have backed away from the spotlight since Nov. 5.
But, if they continue their silence, their advocacy for a more
restrained city is at risk.
Expect to hear from them soon, in one form or another.
* S.J. CAHN is the managing editor. He can be reached at (949)
574-4233 or by e-mail at s.j.cahn@latimes.com.
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