By Sandy Grant Santa Monica Sustainable City Task Force
I am writing to back up Dean Kubani’s letter to the editor that was published in the Oct. 2 edition [“Report card clear-up,” page 4), regarding the development of the Santa Monica Sustainable City Plan and the review and approval of the Sustainable City Report Card.
As a member of the Santa Monica community (I have been a resident of Ocean Park for 22 years) and an expert in community involvement, I have been a member of the Sustainable City Task Force since it was created by the City Council in 2004. Seven years before that, I was a member of the Task Force on the Environment and was thoroughly involved in the design of the 15-month community process to update the Sustainable City Plan in 2001 and participated in most of the community meetings. So I can assure you that the plan and its goals represents the vision of a sustained quality of life for all of Santa Monica by a number of community leaders from businesses, schools and neighborhood groups.
I can also assure you that the grades of the Report Card is hardly an inside job on the part of City Hall. The Sustainable City Task Force, which is made up of experts in the various aspects of community sustainability who are either residents of, or work in, Santa Monica, has oversight of the Sustainable City Plan and its implementation, including the annual Report Card. Our annual review and approval of the Report Card is conducted in a public meeting, as are all of our deliberations, and we draw on the expertise of the Task Force on the Environment as well, also in public meetings.
I can speak for both task forces and say that using specific measurements to honestly show progress toward goals, especially when it’s not good, as is the case with the housing goal, and loudly publishing it for all the world (and press) to see, is courageous on the part of the city and demonstrates the Council’s and city staff’s commitment to sustainability. It would be a lot less work and way more politic to fudge the numbers.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 5, 2006. Read the original PDF.