Long Beach Endorsement: Restore the coalition
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Restore the coalition
On Jan. 1, 2004, Jim Hennessy, Mona Goodman and prodigal Democrat Tom Sofield became the first GOP majority in Long Beach since the early 1970s. For two years, the Democratic party, with its endless resources, proud history and vast voter advantage, cooled its heels in anticipation of 2005, and for two years, the upstarts learned on the fly how to govern an often ungovernable city.
The members of the coalition won by promising two years without tax hikes. They pledged to stop "overdevelopment" and to develop and implement a master plan for the city. Nobody bats 1.000, but those were the three big promises in their 2003 campaign, and it's hard to argue that they didn't deliver. The tax freeze is indisputable. While coalition members couldn't prevent the zoning board from granting variances, they gave the power to approve zoning board commissioners to the council rather than the city manager. They commissioned a master plan for the city based on citizen input and professional guidance.
When the coalition administration erred, however, it erred big. Its first city manager, who was supposed to provide a face for the reform movement, was unpopular with his charges and pushed out after nine months. Given that it had run on a good-government platform, many of the coalition's post-election hires smacked of cronyism, and many of its firings reeked of retribution. Some are still in litigation. There was an us-versus-the world attitude about City Hall that alienated early supporters. The coalition's strongest charge during the 2003 campaign - that Democratic leader and Long Beach Director of Operations Eugene Cammarato was running a quasi-criminal enterprise out of City Hall - was never even close to being substantiated.
During the coalition administration, Goodman, who won only a two-year term in 2003, allowed herself to get bogged down in ugly pedestrian squabbles, most notoriously over the city's troubled animal shelter. Rather than running as a seasoned incumbent in the 2005 campaign, she brought anger to what should have been civil debates. She and her running mates lost handily.
When the Democratic Party retook control in Long Beach in 2006, with fresh faces and fresh leadership, the lessons the party learned from its 2003 defeat should have been visible in stark relief. But things only got worse.
Instead of functioning as a machine, the Democratic majority of Leonard Remo, Denise Tangney and Robert Tepper almost immediately had a falling out, and seldom spoke except through intermediaries. It was under these condition that a city manager was hired. The process was bungled so badly that their man, John Laffey, an indisputably honorable career cop, was made to look dirty. He quit in disgust after six months.
The Democrats' first city budget called for the now notorious 25 percent tax increase. When the council's Democrats, who were still not speaking to one another, couldn't agree on any cuts to the budget -and stubbornly refused to entertain any of Sofield and Hennessy's cuts - the tax hike went through, untouched.
Meanwhile, for all the new tax revenue flowing into the city, surprisingly little has been accomplished. A year and change after the city turned down the Army Corps of Engineers' beach replenishment project, there is still no plan B.
The boost in the city's bond rating inspired an infrastructure bond to be passed without, it seems, consulting the master plan for guidance on how to spend it. The Democrats have promised a new recreation center, yet the long-promised arts center (previously a long-promised teen center) is still an empty Jewish War Veterans building.
The Herald endorses the Republican coalition slate of Sofield, Goodman and John McLaughlin, and in doing so, we urge voters to once again go against their instincts. We're asking a city full of Democrats to vote Republican. We believe recent history has shown that the city is run better by this team.
If the coalition retakes City Hall, it will mean that a two-party system is viable in Long Beach - and the coalition will need to demonstrate that it is capable of functioning within that system. Its members must understand they are the government of everyone, not just those who voted for them. They must want what's best for everyone.
We were very disappointed in Hennessy and Sofield's stubborn refusal, once they were relegated to the minority, to vote for the Democrats' common-sense social host law. We believe their votes were simply a political statement, with potentially devastating consequences for Long Beach families. Democrat Robert Tepper deserves a pat on the back from parents for his authorship of the law.
Coalition members need to prove they can rise above their resentments from the past and learn to take criticism from Democrats and the media without retribution.
In short, it's time for them to lead.
On Jan. 1, 2004, Jim Hennessy, Mona Goodman and prodigal Democrat Tom Sofield became the first GOP majority in Long Beach since the early 1970s. For two years, the Democratic party, with its endless resources, proud history and vast voter advantage, cooled its heels in anticipation of 2005, and for two years, the upstarts learned on the fly how to govern an often ungovernable city.
The members of the coalition won by promising two years without tax hikes. They pledged to stop "overdevelopment" and to develop and implement a master plan for the city. Nobody bats 1.000, but those were the three big promises in their 2003 campaign, and it's hard to argue that they didn't deliver. The tax freeze is indisputable. While coalition members couldn't prevent the zoning board from granting variances, they gave the power to approve zoning board commissioners to the council rather than the city manager. They commissioned a master plan for the city based on citizen input and professional guidance.
When the coalition administration erred, however, it erred big. Its first city manager, who was supposed to provide a face for the reform movement, was unpopular with his charges and pushed out after nine months. Given that it had run on a good-government platform, many of the coalition's post-election hires smacked of cronyism, and many of its firings reeked of retribution. Some are still in litigation. There was an us-versus-the world attitude about City Hall that alienated early supporters. The coalition's strongest charge during the 2003 campaign - that Democratic leader and Long Beach Director of Operations Eugene Cammarato was running a quasi-criminal enterprise out of City Hall - was never even close to being substantiated.
During the coalition administration, Goodman, who won only a two-year term in 2003, allowed herself to get bogged down in ugly pedestrian squabbles, most notoriously over the city's troubled animal shelter. Rather than running as a seasoned incumbent in the 2005 campaign, she brought anger to what should have been civil debates. She and her running mates lost handily.
When the Democratic Party retook control in Long Beach in 2006, with fresh faces and fresh leadership, the lessons the party learned from its 2003 defeat should have been visible in stark relief. But things only got worse.
Instead of functioning as a machine, the Democratic majority of Leonard Remo, Denise Tangney and Robert Tepper almost immediately had a falling out, and seldom spoke except through intermediaries. It was under these condition that a city manager was hired. The process was bungled so badly that their man, John Laffey, an indisputably honorable career cop, was made to look dirty. He quit in disgust after six months.
The Democrats' first city budget called for the now notorious 25 percent tax increase. When the council's Democrats, who were still not speaking to one another, couldn't agree on any cuts to the budget -and stubbornly refused to entertain any of Sofield and Hennessy's cuts - the tax hike went through, untouched.
Meanwhile, for all the new tax revenue flowing into the city, surprisingly little has been accomplished. A year and change after the city turned down the Army Corps of Engineers' beach replenishment project, there is still no plan B.
The boost in the city's bond rating inspired an infrastructure bond to be passed without, it seems, consulting the master plan for guidance on how to spend it. The Democrats have promised a new recreation center, yet the long-promised arts center (previously a long-promised teen center) is still an empty Jewish War Veterans building.
The Herald endorses the Republican coalition slate of Sofield, Goodman and John McLaughlin, and in doing so, we urge voters to once again go against their instincts. We're asking a city full of Democrats to vote Republican. We believe recent history has shown that the city is run better by this team.
If the coalition retakes City Hall, it will mean that a two-party system is viable in Long Beach - and the coalition will need to demonstrate that it is capable of functioning within that system. Its members must understand they are the government of everyone, not just those who voted for them. They must want what's best for everyone.
We were very disappointed in Hennessy and Sofield's stubborn refusal, once they were relegated to the minority, to vote for the Democrats' common-sense social host law. We believe their votes were simply a political statement, with potentially devastating consequences for Long Beach families. Democrat Robert Tepper deserves a pat on the back from parents for his authorship of the law.
Coalition members need to prove they can rise above their resentments from the past and learn to take criticism from Democrats and the media without retribution.
In short, it's time for them to lead.
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