Letters to the Editor 6-20-13

Where does the money go?
Editor: Most Sebastopol residents care little about the financial management of the City. We have enough trouble making decisions about our own priorities: housing, healthcare, bills and taking care of younger and older dependents. Why should we care about the 2013-14 budget to be approved at the next City Council on June 25, 2013?
Sebastopol has a sound administrative staff and we have elected five council members whose duties include passing ordinances, appointing committees and managing city finances through a budgeting process. Their priorities should be in the best interest of the health, welfare and safety of Sebastopol residents.
I have been reading the editorials regarding CittaSlow Sebastopol. I believe this is a good organization that accentuates the environmental diversity that many Sebastopol area citizens support. However, I am concerned about a budget proposal to allocate $20,000 to this non-profit organization as a separate line item.
What provides the quality of life in Sebastopol? We have more than 25 non-profit organizations that are essential to the unique character and welfare of our entire community. They are also deserving of an allocation of $20,000. Some of my top picks include: Sebastopol Community Cultural Center, (budgeted $11,300), Sebastopol Area Senior Center ($2,500), Sebastopol Center for the Arts ($6,000), CERT ($0), CERES ($0), Sebastopol Community Health Center ($0), and West County Community Services ($0). All of these non-profit organizations are staffed and supported by volunteers. Their limited budgets are largely, or entirely, generated by community fundraising and grants.
Mayor Kyes has stated that even with our tax increase the city is still seriously challenged financially. Many of our city obligations such as public works, street repairs, sewers, lighting and police levels continue with reduced budgets. Our own Sebastopol Chamber of Commerce receives only $5,000. Has CittaSlow provided a business plan with measurable goals benefits? If not, they should seek out the excellent services of the Sebastopol Entrepreneurial Project. If CittaSlow is a project of the Sebastopol Community Cultural Center, this should be the oversight agency responsible for managing and funding the program.
Did you know that CittaSlow is being budgeted as a new city department, not community support? Is a city budget allocation of $20,000 to CittaSlow fair?
I hope you will take the time to go view the budget at ci.sebastopol.ca.us and consider taking the time to express your priorities.
Linda J. Johnson
Sebastopol
Restoring trust in politics
Editor: During June, the 2014 election cycle officially began. Jim Wood announced his candidacy for Assembly District 2 and Jill Ravitch announced her bid for reelection as the Sonoma County District Attorney. Now that next year’s primary is only a year away, who’s next? Although these announcements are the stuff that make a headline for a day, this is what happens every odd-numbered year.
To this political observer, the resurgence of grassroots politics is the surprising news in this non-election year. Since the slow-moving landslide last November, a staggering number of grassroots organizations have emerged, revitalized or been reborn. Citizens from all points on the political spectrum are interested again in issues and willing to engage.
Say what you will, FOX news. Rank and file Democrats who worked the phones and walked precincts last year are making their mark from city council chambers all the way to the halls of Congress with renewed energy. If you listen closely, there is a note of hope in our community.
At the Ravitch kick-off event, one city council member from a smaller city told me they had cheering from packed chambers in recent months. In Santa Rosa, the public has been engaged and excited by the level of respectful discourse from the dais as the council does the public’s business in public. The diversity of opinion that is coming forward from more than just “the usual suspects” is remarkable. The willingness of electeds to search for common ground rather than holding firmly to “ideological” or “special interest positions” is a hallmark of this non-election year.
Something is happening here and you know what it is.
Step forward and speak your mind. Join your homeowners association; speak up for the neighborhood. Join your local Rotary or other service organization. Join one of the eight Democratic Clubs in the County and talk about issues where you want to take a stand. Join one of the many focused organizations like Conservation Action or Jobs with Justice or the North Bay Organizing Project. Join one of the alphabet soup of advocacy political action committees born from past Presidential Campaigns — OFA, from the Obama election; DFA, reborn from the Dean Campaign or PDA, inspired by the Kucinich campaign. Or volunteer for a board or commission.
There is one way to restore trust to our politics. And this resurgence of grassroots involvement is where that path begins.
Stephen Gale
Chair of the Sonoma County
Democratic Party