Will El Cajon have a new council member on Tuesday?
Without holding a special City Council meeting by Jan. 12, or defaulting to a special election, Tuesday, Dec. 10 is when the city of El Cajon could find out who will fill the vacant council seat left by freshly appointed Mayor Bill Wells. Yesterday was the closing date for all applicants interested in filling the vacant seat.
Will El Cajon have a new council member on Tuesday?
Without holding a special City Council meeting by Jan. 12, or defaulting to a special election, Tuesday, Dec. 10 is when the city of El Cajon could find out who will fill the vacant council seat left by freshly appointed Mayor Bill Wells. Yesterday was the closing date for all applicants interested in filling the vacant seat.
This should prove to be an interesting meeting, and at this time it is unsure how many applicants applied. We already know that many people supported El Cajon businessman Ben Kalasho, who lost the seat against Councilmember Bob McClellan by less than one percent in 2012. Vickie Butcher, a long time El Cajon resident and member of the Planning Commission for three years also indicated her interest in filling the seat.
If they pick Kalasho, though there might be some opposition, it is a hard argument to win with him being next in line in the people’s choice of the 2012 elections. In no way am I endorsing Kalasho, but it seems a logical choice that would have less reverberation than any other decision made.
Whether or not the current City Council will decide on someone that breaks the “Good ol’ boys” depiction is yet to be seen. But this is for sure, not everyone will be happy with whatever decision they make. There are plenty of mixed feelings of who should fill that seat and why. That is a fundamental element of our government and I for one, am excited about Tuesday’s meeting, to watch democracy in action.
La Mesa citizens calling for term limits at City Hall
A grass roots movement in La Mesa completed initial requirements to begin gathering signatures to place term limits on city council and mayoral seats. It is a conservative measure compared to other cities, limiting term limits to three consecutive terms, but allows them to run again after a four-year break in service.
The La Mesa Term Limits Committee believes that it has the ability to gather 3,306 valid signatures in 180 days since a majority of La Mesa citizens voted for term limits for County Supervisors.
Another interesting item in this proposed ballot measure is that it is not retroactive, meaning that incumbents reelected would begin their 12-year limit if they run and are re-elected.
Vice Mayor Kristine Alessio tried to get council to place the ordinance on the ballot, but with only one more councilmember supporting her, it failed. So now, it is up to the people.
I support term limits in any governmental body, especially in small cities where demographics are not part of the equation in representing the people. Not all, but in many cases, politicians from all backgrounds get complacent, do not keep up with changing times and refuse to inject new ideas in moving forward. If El Cajon had term limits, which many have voiced support of, it might not be in the position it is today.
With a population of a little more than 58,000 in La Mesa, it is not a lot of signatures to gather. In a press release, the committee states that no elected incumbent has lost an election in La Mesa since 1990, the city has a $34 million unfunded pension liability and even with an additional $7.5 million annually with a .75 percent sales tax increase the city is still struggling to make ends meet and stay away from its reserves. To find out more about the initiative, citizens of La Mesa can go to www.lamesatermlimits.com.
