By Zina Josephs Santa Monica
The March 29th article, “Chamber opposes potential initiative,” refers to The Residents Initiative to Fight Traffic, “which has been endorsed by several neighborhood groups and the Santa Monica Coalition for a Livable City.”
In fact, the boards of all five active neighborhood groups in Santa Monica have now endorsed the RIFT initiative. On the www.smRIFT.com Web site, there are position statements from Friends of Sunset Park, North of Montana Association, Ocean Park Association, Pico Neighborhood Association, and Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition.
Over 100 volunteers have been out collecting signatures since February. On election day, I spent six hours standing 100 feet away from polling places in order to collect 98 signatures. Since then, some of us have been going door-to-door, some have stood outside grocery stores, some have stood outside schools, some have gone around their apartment or condo buildings, and some have just asked friends — whatever we can do to find registered voters. This is a grassroots, citywide effort. And it’s very time consuming. On election day, I was averaging 15 signatures per hour. At one grocery store, I averaged 10 signatures per hour. At another, only five signatures per hour. So it’s definitely a labor of love for the volunteers.
But you should see the expression on people’s faces as I explain why I’m collecting signatures. When people take time to stop, they listen politely, then it registers on them what I’m saying, then their faces light up, and then they say, “Yes! Finally! Where do I sign?”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 5, 2008. Read the original PDF.