Entry #5 of Politics in My City - L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti's First 100 Days Portend a Shift in Governing

Eric Garcetti is a mayor with a broad range of previous experience.  He is an Oxford scholar with a master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University, he was an activist working on issues of equality and civil rights” in ACT UP/New York and is currently serving the country during his stint as a lieutenant in the Navy Reserve Information Dominance Corps working on naval intelligence.  As today's article mentions, "Philosophically and concretely, Garcetti represents a new direction, a gusto for rethinking what is—with a fidelity and deep sense of duty to the nobility of public service."

Read more here:
http://www.frontiersla.com/News/Context/Story.aspx?ID=2050316

Entry #4 of Politics in My City: First phase of Bradley terminal opens at LAX

With the $1.9 billion renovation of the first phase of the Tom Bradley terminal at LAX now completed, I wonder whether this investment will actually prove to be profitable for the City of Los Angeles in the long run.  As Gina Marie Lindsey, executive director of Los Angeles World Airports, has said, "the sophistication infused into the new terminal would give LAX an edge since airlines that fly long distances are selective about where they stop".  How does one go about measuring whether the venture is profitable or not?

These thoughts are triggered by the following article:
http://wavenewspapers.com/news/local/culver_city_edition/article_078b71c6-26f7-11e3-a429-001a4bcf6878.html

Entry #3 of Politics in My City: Garcetti Attempting to Modernize L.A.'s City Government

L.A. Mayor is running a top-to-bottom assessment of all agency heads working for the City, a 50,000-person bureaucracy that essentially controls all of the City's public services, from the water supply and power grid to the police and fire emergency dispatch system.  As he interviewed department heads, those who make the cut will be forced to have their performance evaluated by a metric-based system that is meant to provide transparency of the City's efficiency.  I'm skeptical about how accurate such metrics will be, as government has a tendency to "cook" the stats in their favor.  But I am fascinated by the fact that Eric Garcetti is going with this approach, since, as this article mentions, it is could be somewhat of a political gamble.  

What I would like to research going forward:
I am interested in learning more about the 2001 legislation that is said to have created the groundwork for a more powerful mayoral position in Los Angeles.  Historically, L.A.'s powerful 15-member City Council can limit the mayor's will, while a web of commissions can also slow things down.

I will be following closely the opening of the City's "transparent" site during the week of October 8th.  

I will also take some time looking at similar sites for the cities of Boston (http://www.cityofboston.gov/bar/scorecard/reader.html) and Minneapolis (http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/results/index.htm).

My thoughts above are in response to the following article in today's L.A. Times:
http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-0926-garcetti-agenda-20130926,0,1017431.story

Entry #2 of Politics in My City: Department of Neighborhood Empowerment

Today, there are 95 Neighborhood Councils in neighborhoods across Los Angeles, which are organized by the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment.  Here is their mission:

The mission of the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment is to promote increased citizen participation in government and make government more responsive to local needs through the creation of a citywide system of Neighborhood Councils. Our vision is that by 2020, the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment will have fostered a robust and empowered Neighbohood Council System that enables meaningful civic participation for all Angelenos, and that serves as an effective voice for improving governmnet responsiveness to local communities.

In looking at the following website, I was unable to find a council that may address belongs to.

http://empowerla.org/about-us/

Entry #1 of Politics in My City: A blog dedicated to becoming a more involved local citizen

Today source of information comes from Rick Orlov of the Los Angeles Daily News.
http://www.dailynews.com/government-and-politics/20130922/tipoff-show-and-tell-time-at-city-hall

My thoughts on what I read:

• I am curious to know more about how Police Chief Charlie Beck's Compstat program works, a program started by by former Chief Bill Bratton as a way to track where all manner of crime is occurring throughout the city
•  Is Garcetti the first mayor to ask all department heads to reapply for their jobs?
•  It will be interesting to see what comes of the visit to Washington by Los Angeles Unified Superintendent John Deasy and board members Monica Ratliff and Steve Zimmer, who spoke with lawmakers about budget impacts caused by sequestration. How many board members are elected to the LAUSD board and what can we expect from them?
•  Interesting that Councilman Paul Krekorian and three of his staffers traveled last week to Armenia, as part of a trip paid for by the Armenian government.  What will closer ties with Armenia bring?  What type of goals are currently held?

Keeping track of leaders in my City

Police Chief Charlie Beck

Monica Ratliff, LAUSD board member newly elected to represent the East Valley after working a decade as an elementary teacher

Steve Zimmer, LAUSD board member