Lake Forest Election 2014

With the election only a few months away, and the City accepting applications from people who want to run for the Council, one reader suggests we talk about those characteristics we’d like to see in a City Council member. We’ve seen so many examples of what not to do, and so few examples of what should be done, the task is a lot more difficult than you might imagine. So here is a first attempt to develop a set of criteria against which to evaluate all the potential candidates. We’re going to try to list the relevant characteristics and also weigh them in terms of importance.

INTEGRITY – KEEPING PROMISES

Very few people actually know any of the candidates, and fewer still have worked with them on projects. One of the few things we have to go on are their promises. In the absence of knowing them personally, their promises about what they hope to accomplish are about the only insight we have. Therefore it’s vital that we can trust that what someone says is what they will do, or at least, try to do.

HIGH LEVEL MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE

The City is a multi-million dollar business with revenue and expenses, staff and programs. While there is a City Manager who is tasked with running the City, the role of the Council is to manage the Manager. Unless the person has some idea of how companies function and how they are managed, it will be impossible to hold the City Manager accountable for his performance.

INTELLIGENT

The plain fact is that being on the City Council requires making decisions on a wide variety of issues. No one has the background and experience to master all of these issues, so they must depend on the voluminous staff reports. But these reports are often flawed and the issues are often complex. To do a good job and not merely be a rubber stamp, a Council member must be able to evaluate the reports and understand the issues.

KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE CITY

Almost every decision that’s made requires not merely an analysis of the specific issues, but a context in which to place the issues. Part of the context is knowledge of the City. Not merely historical, but in as many respects as possible (e.g., demographic, physical). A good candidate will not only know what is in the Strategic Plan, but also able to offer his/her own vision. He/she should have graduated from the Lake Forest Leadership Academy.

PROVEN LEADERSHIP ABILITIES

It’s hard to assess leadership abilities. Some people have a proven record (e.g., President of their HOA, Board of Directors of Kiwanis), but unless the candidate has prior examples of their leadership abilities, it’s hard to make a determination. OTOH, being partially responsible for the quality of life for 80,000 people, we probably should only consider people with a proven track record. Candidates with potential should prove themselves on a City commission or a HOA Board or some other way before they offer themselves for a Council seat.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

The more ties a person has to the City the more likely they are to try to do the best job they can. Here are some indicators of ties:  Own a home in the City, Own or work in a business in the City, and Family who live in the City. Here are some indicators of involvement:  Active in City activities (Council, Commission, Committee), Active in HOA (Member of Board, Head of Committee), Active in city-wide groups (Kiwanis).

ABILITY TO WORK WELL WITH OTHERS

Over the years, and particularly recently, we’ve seen examples of Council members engaging in verbal fist-a-cuffs. It’s important to be passionate, but it’s equally important to be able to work together toward common goals.

These are 7 factors we should assess when looking at selecting our new City Council members.

Do you agree? What characteristics are more important than others? What other characteristics do you want to see?

Once we have a list of relevant characteristics, we'll apply them to the potential candidates.

If you're interested in running for office, you can make an appointment with the City Clerk and she'll gently walk you through the process. Deadline is August 8 to file your papers.