Cities Join to Tackle Common Issues

By Elizabeth Schneider

Sept. 12 -- In an effort to collectively tackle issues, such as transportation and the homeless, that affect West Los Angeles cities, the City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve in concept a Westside Council of Governments (COG).

The council, which is composed of the cities of Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Culver City and West Hollywood, will attempt to "forge a consensus on policies and programs of regional significance," according to the staff report. It will also allow the cities to be more competitive in responding to funding opportunities from regional, state and federal resources.

"This is long overdue," said Council member Pam O'Connor, who represents area cities on the MTA board.

Councilman Kevin McKeown said he hoped the newly formed organization would take some of the burden off the City of Santa Monica when it comes to the homeless.

"This is an issue that should be regionally addressed," said McKewon said.

At a conference last month of officials from the four cities, McKeown suggested adding a clause to the joint mission statement calling for working together on homeless-related issues. The response, reported by McKeown at the August 15 council meeting, illustrates how difficult it might be to tackle the issue collectively.

"The very next thing I heard was someone from another city saying, 'We'll have to take that whole paragraph out because we don't want to be too specific. Let's retain our flexibility.'" McKeown said. "That's the attitude we're up against from the other cities in the region."

On Tuesday, McKeown said that sharing social services with the other Westside cities should be at the top of the agenda.

The four cities have functioned as a voluntary association since the early 1990s, taking action on sub-regional transportation plans, policies, Southern California Association of Governments planning issues and representation of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), said Kathryn Vernez, assistant to the City Manager for Government Relations.

Over the past few months, the cities have met to discuss forming their own COG to meet the demands and opportunities facing sub-regions in Southern California.

The staff report mentioned recent developments at the MTA, such as the new sector approach for transit operations and a return to area focused planning, as reasons to formalize coordination between the cities.

Bylaws and establishment of a Joint Powers Agreement to effect the COG would be submitted for consideration by each city council, and representatives from each City would be appointed by the councils.

COGs are in existence all over California, including the Western Riverside Council of Governments, San Luis Obispo Council of Governments and the Orange County Council of Governments.