By Dr. Mike Gruning Santa Monica
Ever wonder why the city of Santa Monica is so ineffective? It’s because it’s so infested with bureaucratic hoopla that no one knows what’s going on. Take the homeless issue. Bobby Shriver decides the best way to tackle the issue is to appoint a homeless secretary to work on a regional level. Julie Rusk thinks it’s best to appoint a homeless unit with one head and two helpers only tending to Santa Monica. Now, how does it make sense to have two different units in the same city working on the same issue but completely independently of each other? I thought the City Council was looking to appoint a “lean mean homeless fighting machine?” They said they wanted one senior individual who could work effectively with them on a local and regional solution. There should be one homeless secretary supported by city staff and working to carry out the mandate of the council. Two different units is not what the city needs.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 14, 2005. Read the original PDF.