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San Mateo County, CA November 4, 2003 Election
Smart Voter

Open Government

By Terry D. Nagel

Candidate for Member, City Council; City of Burlingame

This information is provided by the candidate
We need to end closed-door decisions by the council majority and debate issues publicly.
To people who regularly attend council meetings, it is obvious that decisions by three of the five City Council members are choreographed in advance, away from the public's view. There is often no debate on important issues, and the council makes decisions with lightning swiftness that leaves citizens in the audience scratching their heads.

Other issues are never even scheduled for public discussion on the City Council's meeting agendas. For example, have you ever heard the council debate the idea of merging fire departments with Hillsborough or police and recreation departments with Millbrae? What are the pros and cons or these highly disruptive and expensive proposals? They have never been debated in public.

The City Council makes too many decisions behind closed doors. Recent examples:

  • The council's decision to circumvent the Planning Commission's 6-1 denial of the Safeway project by appointing its own subcommittee to woo Safeway

  • The council's original decision not to reappoint Ann Keighran and Stan Vistica to the Planning Commission (later overturned)

  • The council's decision to ignore its subcommittee's recommendation to approve Deborah Griffith to the Library Board and to appoint David Carr in a last-minute "switcheroo"

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