Who’s in Charge?

According to residents who attended the city’s Strategic Workshop on Dec. 15, it wasn’t a meeting to determine priorities as advertised. The priorities, plans and strategies had previously been outlined by city employees. A consultant, Sherry Lund of Sherry Lund Associates, received $20,000-plus to moderate the meeting.

A dozen residents attended. Several remarked afterward about the room arrangement, which had all chairs facing Lund as if she were a star performer. Lund instead was the mouthpiece for city staff members who, along with council members, were seated with their backs to the audience.

Residents spoke during public comments before the workshop began, with some saying the workshop should include input from the public. Staff members apparently disagreed, as they had predetermined the format as well as the content.

The Saddleback Valley News reporter posted the six outlined goals on the OC Register Website, http://www.ocregister.com/articles/city-2259826 and asked readers to choose the most important one. Following are the categories and scores as of Dec. 20 with 45 readers responding: safety/emergency preparedness 13%, economic development 16%, public relations and communication 7 %, enhancing beauty of the city 9%, traffic flow and infrastructure 51%, green leadership 4%.

Those attending the meeting assessed it as nonproductive and wasteful. Rather than having the council set the agenda and determine goals on the basis of what residents want, the process was driven by city employees who then looped in the council majority. The city’s top administrators neither live in Mission Viejo nor do they answer to the residents.

Staff members continue coining phrases that sound palatable but have an entirely different meaning. For example, staff members (aided by Councilman Frank Ury) targeted the retail center at La Paz and Marguerite as an area in need of “upgrading.” Some residents agreed, saying the 30-year-old buildings could use a facelift. Ury invited the Urban Land Institute to conduct a “study,” which concluded the entire center should be razed and rebuilt with affordable apartments on top. Let the residents beware of endorsing any staff-driven idea.

Councilwoman Cathy Schlicht suggested during the meeting that economic development should have a lower priority than taking care of the infrastructure. Councilwoman Trish Kelley disagreed. Kelley’s promotion of economic development during the past two years has consisted of contracting with an economic development consultant who charged a retainer fee but brought in no new businesses. Whether or not the city “could” benefit isn’t the point. City employees are neither suited for nor competent at economic development.