Hi, everyone!
This blog assignment (worth 3 points, and due by 1:00 pm on November 6) is to review and comment on the structure of local government in Morgantown. As discussed in class, Morgantown, like many medium-sized cities has a council-manager form of government. The legislative branch of government is the part-time city council, which is elected in nonpartisan elections for two year terms. There are 7 council members, each of who lives in one of the city's 7 wards (districts), but all are elected in city-wide elections. There is a mayor, but s/he is elected by the council and has no real power. And, as noted in the class, the electoral system (electing people city-wide in what are known as at-large elections) reduces the electoral power of a geographically concentrated minority group (students). If the geographically concentrated minority group were a racial or ethnic minority, Morgantown probably would not be permitted to elect a city council in this way (that's the way many towns in the South used to elect a city council, in a blatant attempt to reduce the representation of African Americans), but discrimination against students is permitted.
The council then hires a city manager, who is Morgantown's chief administrator, overseeing the various departments of government. That person is a professional administrator (usually with a Master's degree in Public Administration), and s/he serves full-time at the pleasure of the city council. The city manager recommends policy, provides information to the council as requested, and handles the day-to-day business of the city. The council has final word on policy decisions, including the hiring of department heads.
The advantage of the council-manager system is that it removes politics from administration. Who you know should not have an impact on when, how, or if you get city services. And it allows the decisions to be made by a full-time professional rather than a part-time city council (whose members have other responsibilities in their lives). On the other hand, some argue that this is undemocratic, leaving too much power in the hands of an unelected official. There is also often a tension between the council and the manager. The council sometimes tries to micromanage (every council member envisioning themselves as a city manager). Alternatively, sometimes the manager tries to set policy and usurp the legislative function, perhaps by controlling the flow of information. There is a delicate balance that must be maintained, and it leads to relatively short terms for city managers in many places (they also are often looking to move up to larger cities). Morgantown has sometimes had this problem.
Your assignment is to address the question of whether Morgantown should change its system of government. Specifically:
1. Should Morgantown change the way it elects its city council members so that only those in each ward elect the representative of that ward? You may want to consider the particular situation in Morgantown (would the city function better if student areas could elect their own representatives?), and you may want to consider the more general question (should city council members each represent small local districts, or should they represent the entire city?).
2. Should Morgantown keep the council-manager form of government, or should it shift to the leading alternative: the council-strong mayor form of government? In that system, the council is the legislative body, but there is an elected (and usually full-time) mayor, who carries out the executive role, including veto power, appointing department heads, etc. Many larger cities follow that model, where the mayor is equivalent to the governor in a state system.
Be thoughtful in your responses, and also consider material that others have written on these questions. Take a look at:
http://www.coventryri.org/council-manager-form-of-government
This a description of the council-manager form, complete with advantages and disadvantages, published by the town of Coventry, RI, which uses this form.
http://www.rockvillemd.gov/FAQ/formofgov.htm
This is similar information from Rockville, MD, which also uses the council-manager form.
http://icma.org/en/icma/knowledge_network/topics/kn/Topic/64/CouncilManager_Form_of_Government
The International County/City Management Association is a professional management group (they thus favor council-manager), but they have a variety of helpful information.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2010/jan/31/sd-voters-will-be-asked-to-decide-if-strong-mayor/
Finally, this is an article on whether San Diego, which switched from council-manager to council-strong mayor, should switch back. It presents both sides.
The material I've given you here is a bit unbalanced (in favor of council-manager), but that's the state of the literature (which is often written by managers). You can find material on the other side if you look hard.
Be creative, argue (respectfully) with one another, and make use of the material that is out there. Good luck!--NB
I do not believe Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members. For one, we must remember that Morgantown is not a major city. I start off by saying this because I believe that in that scenario, a council-manager system would not work well. Due to the amount of work a higher level population area would entail and the resources available to them would not be sufficient with this system. Although student population in Morgantown accounts for half of its population, the majority of those students do not live here year round and therefore, I believe should not have a say in the government due to their perhaps, biased opinion depending of whatever their second location may be where they are eligible to participate in the government.
ReplyDeleteA part of this I would have to disagree with Morgantown’s current situation though would have to be the electing of city council members based on each respective ward. I believe that by doing this, the citizens of Morgantown can better understand each candidate and everything they stand for as each candidate would be specific to only a small area of Morgantown as a whole. With this said, I would then believe that each should represent that individual small local district and not the city as whole, but rather together they would all represent Morgantown as a whole as each would have their fair say on only their specific area.
I believe that Morgantown should keep the council-manager form of government. Once again, Morgantown is not a major city and therefore there does not need to be comprised of full-time elected officials. With the current system, which although relies heavily on the non-elected official who has a lot of power, just like any other non-elected person in government, the selection of this person was not a random one, but one that was agreed upon by the city council members whom the people of Morgantown did elect to put their wants and ideas in the hands of.
I agree with the first part of your blog about not changing the system. While I am a college student, I do not believe in student representation. That would create a bias towards students, and could ultimately turn the general public against students.
DeleteTo add on to what Devin said the general public has good reason to give the students a bad reputation (for couch burnings, riots, exc.) and not to be that pleased with our actions. To put the representation of the local government in the hand of the students could be tumultuous. Besides causing problems with the local residents, not many student are involved with local politics at all (massive amount of out of state students). Student representation could lead to some serious problems and should not be used.
DeleteI agree with both of you. As a student I understand why we get such bad reputation. I also do not live in Morgantown year round and so I don't really pay that much attention to what is going on. I'm sure it is that way with many more students.
DeleteI really agree with your last paragraph. it really hit home for what I said in my blog response. The hands of who's on the city council is in the hands of the people so they should be able to elect someone reasonable and trust they pick a good mayor.
DeleteI agree with Anthony's post. He is right when he says that most of the population are out of state students who don't really care about local politics. Steve also makes a good point when he says that the general public has good reason to give students a bad reputation because they do. Allowing the student population to represent local government can cause tremendous controversy.
DeleteI agree with this entire post. The out of state students that attend WVU probably don't care too much about the local government in Morgantown. I am an out of state student and although some may disagree I could honestly care less about what happens with the city of Morgantown as long as it isn't affecting the university and my schooling. I am only in Morgantown about 9 months out of the year and I wouldn't participate in the government if it was allowed and I don't believe many other out of state students would either unless they planned on staying in Morgantown after college or really just felt that strongly about something. This would also be unfair to the natives of Morgantown because ultimately the students would only be aiming towards policies that would benefit them and not the whole city of Morgantown, people that will spend and have spent their whole lives living here. Unlike us who will most likely be here 4-5 years and then leave.
Deletei also agree with your outlook on not changing the system
DeleteI certainly concur with all of your sentiments. I believe Morgantown should keep the city council-manager style because politics are eliminated and the city overseers are trained and highly qualified to make the best decisions regarding Morgantown. I live in DC and the process of electing mayors can get quite dirty and unethical depending on the biases and favoritism towards a certain candidate. I also believe that there should be representatives for each ward. Students also should have a say because many students do become residents as we mentioned in class and many are living off campus and deserve plenty of attention. The students are contributing to the economy of this town and should have a say. I am not sure if the students should elect their own representatives because I don't know how many students are aware of the issues that's around them and what it takes to change issues.
DeleteI agree with Devin to an extent. Permanent resident college students should have more of a say, but many have no permanent ties to the community and it doesn't seem like it would change even eve council members were elected geographically because studetns would not be able to vote.
DeleteI believe that council members should represent their own individual wards. I also think it would be a good idea for just the people of that ward to vote for who they want from their ward. I’m not sure if it’s entirely true; but, to me, at least in theory, that way you couldn’t have people from other wards messing up the vote for someone you want to represent your ward. To address the question of whether student areas having their own representatives would make the city function better – I say yes to that also. The argument that students are transient is not 100% valid because even if a lot of us do only spend 4-8 years here, that is still 4-8 years of living, loving, and breathing in Morgantown. Even if a lot of students go home for the summer, there are still a decent amount of students who stay year-round. Not only that, but classes run August to May, which means the student half of the city is here for just about 3/4ths of every year. We make this city what it is. And after physically going to a city council meeting, I know that the student’s concerns are not taken very seriously at all. Just because we’re students does not mean we don’t have valid concerns and opinions about the city we live in. Morgantown would barely even be on the radar without the University, so it is absolutely ludicrous that we don’t have at least one representative at the city level. They reap our economic rewards that we bring in, and we see little to none of the benefits.
ReplyDeleteI honestly like the council-strong mayor system, just not for Morgantown. In a college town, there are different things to worry about than in other cities – namely riots, extreme traffic, ect. In a strong mayor type of system, we would be getting a lot of empty promises from potential candidates that think they can fix our problems without even seeing the budget. I think that there should be as little politics woven into the administration as possible. A strong mayor would also be trying to please voters more than anything, while a city manager doesn’t have obligatory ties to the general public. The city manager usually has an MPA, so he is probably more qualified to carry out operations than a mayor would be. Agreeing with what Anthony Pecoraro said above - even though the people of Morgantown do not technically vote for the city manager, we do entrust our council members to vote the right way. In the Coventry, RI article, it says, “Because of the manager's position as the chief executive, he can and should be expected to have a broad grasp of the needs of the community and the means by which they can be met most effectively.” I definitely agree with this. In the city manager system, the city manager goes to the meetings, hears the concerns, and has a broad feel for what the community wants and probably doesn’t favor much for group of people like a mayor would.
I agree that living in Morgantown 4-8 years is enough time to where we should be able to have a say in our government. I also agree and think that student areas should have our own representatives since half of the population here is made up of students.
DeleteI also agree that living in a place for that long gives someone the right to have a say in what goes on where they live. I think the only concern that the government may have is that college students might not take these matters seriously. However, I do believe that there are some students that are informed enough about state and local government that they would be competent in making informed decisions or votes. On the other hand, I'm sure there are a large number of students that are ignorant of whats going on, let alone that even care. It just depends on the knowledge of the individuals, as well as their intention.
DeleteI agree that students should have proper representation in the city council. Many students live here year round and our opinions should be taken into account. Without the University this town would not have as many businesses it has and it Morgantown would not generate as much money as it does.
DeleteMorgantown should not change the way they elect city officials. The city is made up of primarily college students nine months out of the year. However, student representation is not a good idea. The council-manager style of government works just fine for the current state of the city.
ReplyDeleteAn important note is the availability and resources are at a premium in Morgantown. The job is part-time, and quite honestly is far from competitive because of salary. While politics are important, most people who live in Morgantown do not care about what happens with the city government. College students are not invested, and nor do they take the time to keep up with policy. Voting is also an issue for students.
While the city is dominated by West Virginia University, most students are here for school. Having them represented in the government would be a nightmare because the students are only here nine months out of the year. In addition, they are unlikely to know much policy.
In conclusion, I think that Morgantown should not change the system.
I agree with your position that students should not have a political representation. Although half of Morgantown residants are students, most students simply dont have the time to put much thought into local political matters. I believe that Morgantown native who are not attending West Virginia University should have presedence on political matters over students.
DeleteDevin, I completely agree with you. As a college town, Morgantown should not have student representation. WVU has its own government where students are allowed to voice their opinions and if they feel ambitious enough, new laws can be put into place with hard work on campus.
DeletePlus, since the majority of the student body is not technically here round, then how would the proper student representation be had for all 12 months. I agree, once again with your entire response.
I too must say that I agree with the fact that the student body in and of itself has other ways to have their voices heard if they feel they need to. For instance, students if they felt strongly enough on a matter are all free to attend a city council meeting and express interests or issues on various matters to be brought up among the council. While it is unfortunate, it is also true that only a small amount of students would either know or even be interested in the policies that they would vote on whether in state or out of state as well.
DeleteI'm in agreement that Morgantown should not alter their current system of governing. Morgantown possesses qualities that other cities nationwide do not. For a near half the year, thousands of its inhabitants pack up and leave. This reason alone emphasizes the need for a city manager. The manager is elected by the council members, which are elected by the people. Citizens are trusting their council member to represent them in the best, most accurate way possible. In this way, citizens still have an outlet through which to (hopefully) be heard. A city manager is educated on how to handle and successfully run a town like ours. In a perfect scenario, political views stay out of the city manager's decisions, but this isn't always the case.
ReplyDeleteConsidering just how much of the population students account for, I want to say we deserve better representation; that discrimination against any other group would not be tolerated and neither should this. However, students don't put near enough stock in keeping up with issues or even voting. This indifference is enough to convince me that the power to elect their city council representative isn't necessary for the student set. That said, I do think each council member should represent a small local district. This would allow for fair decisions to be made and give citizens of each district a council member to report their problems or suggest ideas to.
I do agree that because students are such a huge population of Morgantown we do deserve a better representation.
ReplyDeleteI think that city of Morgantown should not change the way they vote in council members. The current way of voting in city council members (wards) is to have the elections city-wide. First off the population of Morgantown is around 31,000 as 2010 (without the massive population of students living here because of West Virginia University), which makes it a smaller city. Therefore the voting in of elected officials should be done by the entire city, rather than their own representatives. Reasons for that are that with a small city, differences between different parts of the city are not a drastic as say major cities like Boston, Washington D.C, Chicago and others. Those major cities are described as having two different parts (richer, nicer neighborhoods versus less income and impoverished neighborhoods). Therefore the needs between two different wards would be drastically different. Also the idea of student representation would be a foolish and unsuccessful idea also. According to college express WVU has 51% of its student coming from other states, which means they are highly unlikely to get involved in Morgantown politics. Also the 49% percent of instate students are not all from Morgantown, so there are more likely to not get involved in the local politics here versus their hometowns.
ReplyDeleteThere is no absolute correct version of running a local government; every type has some serious flaws. However I think Morgantown should not change from their council manager structure of government. First off this type of structure is used for small-medium sized government (10-50,000) which fits Morgantown. This type of system is perfect for eliminating the politics from the administration which can help people getting what they need and making sure everyone gets their fair share. Having a full time professional (city manager) being in charge of running the local government seems to be a very logical idea. The individual is full educated on the ideas of having to run a successful government (versus part time official). I would rather have a professional who hopefully has a master of PHD degree running a local government than a mayor who may not have the education or knowledge to run a local government successfully. There is no perfect solution to finding a way to run local government, but I think that Morgantown should continue to use the city manger because it has the least headaches and problems.
I think the way Morgantown is set up good how it is. It is a very small city and the way the government is set up here, it fits a small town. I feel the reason why they exclude students from having representation is because most of the students here are out of state which I am one of those students. Some of those students probably don't even care about their cities government so I don't think they'll care about Morgantown's. So I feel the city council isn't wrong in that aspect and they should continue to elect the way they do. On the other hand I think they should represent the entire city because separating just by wards to me doesn't make sense when in the end they want to serve the whole city and continue to see Morgantown thrive.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Morgantown should change their council manger form of government. It fits Morgantown because of the size of the city so they know how to control it. It creates a fair distribution of resources and opportunities to get their voices heard. I feel it is really good and smart idea that there is full time professional in charge of the local government. A highly qualified person in charge is always a good plan and it fits with a university in town. Even though any form of government will always have its problems, this is just a good fit for the town as a whole in my opinion.
With all due respect although you personally may not care about elections I believe a significant amount of students do and would gladly run for elections if they knew they had a chance. Also while some students like yourself do move back home during the summer and when they graduate many do not and with term limits they could finish their term even before they graduate. Also students provide a fresh new outlook on issues and may more accurately represent the view point of future generations.
DeleteI believe that Morgantown should keep the City Manager system because it allows for the best of both worlds in government. Instead of having only and elected government or just a bureaucratic government you get the the pros of both sides. For example in having elected officials make the final decisions it ensures the people will have a say while having an educated administer make suggestions it aids the elected officials in making well educated decisions. Similar to cue voting when an elected official is not well informed on a topic they can look to the administer for more information. Also the power struggle between the City Manager and the elected officials is a good thing because it reduces the likely hood that either side will become to powerful resulting a somewhat even balance of powers.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to whether or not each district should have only people from their district vote on candidates or allow the entire city to vote I believe that only the people from that district should be able to vote. While this may lead to some students on the board I do not see that as a bad thing. America says innocent until proven guilty and I believe we should add competent until proven not competent. Until student s have been given the chance to run for election we should not say they will fail. Students account for half of Mrgantown's population and bring in more money and jobs to Morgantown than any other entity and we should not be overlooked. Also there is a law against ageism (you can not discriminate people based on their age) and I feel that it is only being recognized on the older end of the population. Students just like any other group should have equal rights and their voices should be heard.
The folowing is a website that gives more information on what ageism consists of.
Deletehttp://psychology.about.com/od/aindex/g/ageism.htm
I agree with your statement about the power struggle between the elected officals and the city manager. This makes sure no one controls to much of the govnerment
DeleteI agree with Ashley Wallace that we as students should not be under represented. Just because many of us are going to leave Morgantown eventually does not mean that we should not get a say while we are living here. I think we should have each ward elect their own representative. It's not like it's really going to shake up the city council too much, they aren't about to legalize riots just because the students have a say in council. What they are going to do is deal more with the issues that directly effect students specifically, things like traffic flow in student heavy areas of town, and getting the PRT updated (or working right at least).
ReplyDeleteI do like the city manager system though. I like that they can have a professional who works full time and can completely immerse him/herself in the responsibilities of the job. And because the city manager is elected by the council, he or she is still elected by the representation of the people. Basically you are voting for the person you want to vote for you, a bit like the electoral college system. Even though I have a major issue with the way the electoral college system works for national elections, in this smaller scenario I think it works well.
I agree with you that student should have equal represenation in the council. Students normally do stay for 4 or 5 years and are an extremely large part of this city. Students should get to elect their own council member to represent them in the council. But to disagree, the council would not have any control over the PRT because the PRT is owned and operated by the university.
DeleteI would also respectfully disagree with you about the city manager system. I would like to see Morgantown switch to the council strong mayor system. The city manager is essentially a beaurocrat running the city. The people should be able to elect their own executive, just as is done at the state level.
I think that Morgantown should not change the way they vote for their council members. Morgantown is a small city to begin with, so having the representative’s vote on a new elected official would be pointless. The entire city should be able to vote because since Morgantown is a small city, there wouldn’t be many different problems throughout the city. Student representation wouldn’t work because half of the students are from out of state. The students of Morgantown probably wouldn’t care about the city’s local problems.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think Morgantown should change their council manager structure of government. The current type of structure fits the population size of Morgantown. Having a professional where all of his time is devoted to the local government sounds better than a city manager.
I would like to respectfully point out that not all students don't care about local politics, because just like every other citizen of Morgantown the decisions made by the city council effect us everyday. And also, the professional that devotes all of their time to the local government is the city manager.
DeleteI believe for the relative size of Morgantown that the council-manager system works appropriately. Granted, it does cause the students to be underrepresented, but one must also look at two other factors when thinking about this decision. Fist that most students given the chance would not take part in local politics anyways. Known to most who study political science it is well known that the younger population rarely votes even in national campaigns let alone smaller local city government. Two, that even if they were allowed their own representative to vote for many are here for only a few months out of the year during school and would it be fair to give students a representative when they do not have a commitment to the town itself.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I believe that the council-manager system is a great system because Morgantown is still just that, a town. Granted it may seem like it has a decent sized population, but when you take the students out of the equation like anytime that school is not in session than we see the town shrink nearly in half. What is left is a small town that may seem like a congested city at times, but is still just that a town. Also, one must take into account that while the students may not have a council member, generally speaking WVU has a representative at council meetings to hopefully protect the student’s interests.
I believe that a full time administrator who is basically a lifetime bureaucrat best suited for Morgantown. I feel that the city manager probably would have the best policies available for the current constituents of the town and serving full time can only further cement their knowledge of the town and what it may need. Since it is most likely that this city manager will only be here until he is able to find work in a bigger city than it stands to reason s/he will work hard to get policies enacted that can show other bigger cities that they are more than capable of running a much more intricate city.
In the end I feel that the current system works and there is no valid reason to change. As long as the town stays the relative same size than the needs can be attended to by one non-elected person. That person, since not partial to elections would most likely not be influenced by parties or the schools interests and thus would have the entire town interests at heart.
The city of Morgantown should not change the way it elects its city council members, but should not be limited to one council member per ward. While keeping the structure of governement that it currently has. I believe this because the the city of Morgantown is the perfect size and has the perfect circumstances for having a city council elected by the city as a whole. The city council should be elected in a manner where they are meant to represent the city as a whole. At the same time i believe that Morgantown simply isnt that large of a city that it needs to have different council members from each ward focus on specific parts of the city. A council made up of the best overall candidates, rather than the best candidate from each ward is good enough to run Morgantown in my opinion. I also believe that the students of West Virginia University should not have politiclal representation. I follow this position simply because the students wouldnt have the time to focus on politcal matters in Morgantown, and because a large amount of students attending WVU are from out of state and wouldnt even be in Morgantown for a quarter of the year. I also take this position because the students of West Virginia University dont have the greatest reputation. Even though WVU has great students with credible political views, the student body's reputation is overridden by to the constant partying, and occasional couch burning.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the city of Morgantown should not adopt a council strong mayor for a few reasons. If there was a mayor with powers such as a veto power and appointing heads, there may be too much power in the hands of one person in a town like Morgantown. If a mayor had this type of power s/he may end up paying too much attention to WVU rather than the city of Morgantown since WVU contains half of the city's poplulation. In a college town like Morgantown the city manager and council member should treat both the city and the university equally, with a city manager to lead the way. I also believe Morgantown should have a city manager because this city isnt large enough to the point where it would need a mayor to make important executive roles over an entire council.
I agree that the council should not adopt a council strong mayor. To put so much power in the hands of a single person for such a small town could cause a lot of issues.
DeleteI agree with Shannon Martin. I think that because Morgantown's population is largely made up of college students, then we as students should have a say in government and electing officials. So therefore I think that electing officials by district wards is a good thing. For example if discrimination against a racial minority group is illegal, then why isnt discrimination against student minority groups illegal. Students are to thank for bringing in money and people and jobs so we should have a say in our town's government. Yeah, i get that a lot of students could care less about Morgantown's government, but theres also alot of student individuals who do care and it is not fair to them.
ReplyDeleteI do like the way Morgantown elects a city manager though. I think its best to have an educated full time city manager. I also like how it leaves politics aside and how they are not elected by who they know. I think its a good way to reduce corruption and it increases professionalism.
At surface level, I can see why some people believe that only members of a district should be able to vote for the city council representative of that district. It would appear that because the actions of a specific council member would affect the people belonging to his/her respective district, only the people belonging to said district should be able to vote for the representative. However, this could possibly lead to the election of unfit representatives. For example, if one district is mostly made of college students, as is the case in Morgantown, the students could possibly elect one of their friends as a city council representative. For this reason, I believe the entire city should be able to vote for district representatives.
ReplyDeleteI think Morgantown should remain as a council-manager form of government. While some citizens would like to be able to elect a mayor, I think it is more efficient to have several different representatives from several city districts elected. This way, it is almost completely ensured that every corner of the city will be represented equally at city council. I also think it works out fine that the elected council members appoint a city manager. With this system, voters have indirectly aided in the selection of city manager, and it is likely that the city manager will do his/her best work for the city as a whole. Because Morgantown is a small city, I think the council-manager system works just fine. Especially in a city heavily composed of college students.
I believe that Morgantown should remain a council-manager form of government. I think that because of how small Morgantown is this system of having more than one representatives from each city districts elected. This allows for each different part of the city to have a fair chance in representation. I agree with Haley Shepard, that the fact that politics is left out and people are not elected by who they know is a strong way to reduce corruption and it increases professionalism. I also believe that the Mayor of Morgantown should not have greater power. A mayor with a lot of power, I believe, would be too much power in the hands of a single person in such a small town.
ReplyDeleteIt allows the decisions to be made by a full-time professional rather than a part-time city council (whose members have other responsibilities in their lives). On one hand this gives the people in this position a lot of power but at the same time this is there job. They devote there work days to the city and the opinions and goals they have. I think that it is better to have someone in this position who can put there full effort into it then someone who has other things on their plate.
In regards to students holding a position I think there are pros and cons. I believe that since students make up such a large part of the population it would be beneficial to have a student representing the population. Students could bring a new outlook and fresh ideas to the town. They are coming in here with a fresh mind and without corrupted or swayed opinions. I think if they right person was elected it really could make a positive impact. The issues some people see is the fact that students graduate and leave for the summer months. Term limits could fix that issue.
I don't agree that students would have any real benefit for the permanent residents of Morgantown. The University represents them in that manner and if they want to sway decision making they could do that by being proactive in Morgantown council meetings or convincing heads at the University to promote a cause.
DeleteI agree with Aaron about the student involvement. If students want to get involved in the government, they should become active in SGA. That's what it's there for. Being proactive in council meetings is also a great point. There are ways to let your voice be heard without disrupting the current flow, so to say, of the local Morgantown government.
DeleteI do not think that Morgantown should change the way it elects its council members. Although the current form of election seems unfair on the surface due to the minority dominated (students) city of Morgantown, its important to keep the big picture in mind. First of all, the students in Morgantown (about 30,00) only make up a little over 1.5% of the total population of West Virginia (about 1.8 million). Therefore, the minority of the students is really not all that impactful when it comes to things like elections. Also, a very low percentage of students would even bother voting in the first place. Although Morgantown should definitely not be discredited for some of the major assets and education facilities, the “college-town” aspect is perhaps best left ignored for instances such as voting for city council.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that Morgantown should keep the council-manager form of government. I am from Cincinnati, Ohio which also operates under this system. Back home, everyone knows the name “mayor Mark Mallory”. Cincinnati is a good example of a council-manager system with an elected mayor that maintains the “delicate balance”. As the first mayor in over 70 years to not previously serve on the city council, Mallory is admired and esteemed as a very influential figure within the city. He is extremely interactive and proactive which is something that appeals to the people of Cincinnati very much. I am not saying that the mayor of Morgantown will become such a figure, but I do think that the mayor can have as much or little influence as he/she creates. The council, manager, and mayor should all compliment each other in their assets to the city and their strengths and weaknesses as leaders.
James Goard
ReplyDeleteState and Local Government
November 5 2013
Blog Assignment Due November 6th
I personally do not believe that Morgantown needs to change the way its election process for the city council. After visiting one of the councils meetings I can say I do agree, the people working on this board wish they could change the way that the council is elected. Yes the idea of micromanaging is alive and clear in a lot of towns in our particular region of America. I believe that Morgantown should keep its council manager form of government.
Personally I believe the issues that city councils tend to deal with in towns like Morgantown, revolve around the school and the students that go here. Those issues tend to not amount to any serious political ruckus. Hence why things like partisan elections would not make sense for a town like Morgantown. Half the people living here are college students who are not preoccupied with the state of Morgantown local government. Also, those working on the council aren’t making high-level decisions, and only really hold significant power within their meetings.
With local government taking care of the remaining town figures complaints and concerns about the state of the town before and after football games, fall fests, and various other events brought on by student culture, there is no reason for people living within the wards to get too involved with what happens in their local government meetings. The problem with the ward voting system would be, that the wards would only want to vote for a “republican” or a “democratic” which would create bias. This is Morgantown, not New York City, not Brooklyn, etc. The wards living in Morgantown have the right to vote for other state legislators when the Presidential elections come around, which in my opinion should be enough voting privilege for a voting citizen.
Having an outside mayor figure that takes the electing process into his own hands is a civil way to figure out the person who deserves that job. They can come in without knowledge of the opinions of the citizens as a whole and do his/her job efficiently. When the town is responsible for who gets elected to city council, then we would have campaigns, and Morgantown does not need anymore-local ads cluttering up the streets.
Morgantown should not change how they elect council members, mayors ect. I believe they election process is fine, and the council-manager government operates well for here. I do like the idea how letting each council member represent their own ward though and allowing only the people in that certain ward to elect who they want to represent them. Only the people from there will know what is best for them and what their ward specifically needs. As far as letting students elect representation for our ward, I do not see as a great idea. Morgantown is a decent sized city and is on the up, I’m from here and needless to say when school is out this place is like a ghost town. So letting kids from Jersey and New York or where ever vote for who should represent the ward isn’t too fair, because when they aren’t here, I doubt they care what is happening with politics here along with other things. So I am against Morgantown changing how we elect council, but there are a few different things that could improve the process.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Morgantown would be more efficient if it were only allowed that the residents of each ward elect their city council members. While Morgantown is not a major city, as Anthony Pecoraro said, it very much resembles one in terms of diversity. Because the university is such a central part of Morgantown, a large amount of people are living here from all different places and walks of life making Morgantown constituents have a broader range of opinion than other places. Furthermore, Morgantown is also diverse in terms of age. There are certain areas in Morgantown with high concentrations of students, and other areas with high concentrations of regular Morgantown residents. If only the constituents of each ward got to elect their city council representative, more decisions would get made that are tailored to the different parts of Morgantown, so that more groups ultimately get heard from and are satisfied.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I do believe that Morgantown should maintain its council-manager form of government because, while Morgantown is diverse like a larger city, it is still a smaller town in terms of area and population, thus, I believe that its problems can still be handled through council-like discussion. Remaining on the council-manger system allows Morgantown problems to be discussed by multiple people with different ideas and opinions as opposed to one person ultimately having the power to make final decisions. With the way that it currently is, more people can be fairly represented. A council-strong mayor system may have to be implemented in the future however, as the city continues to expand, but for now, I believe that the current system is the most fair and efficient.
I am a born and raised Morgantown resident who believes the system is fine as it is. The council-manager system allows for the true residents of Morgantown, not the fleeting and always changing student population, to decide the city's council. This would keep consistency in the legislative process and decision making for Morgantown. Because the student population is so diverse demographically it would be impossible for them to ascertain what is best for a long term Morgantown resident. The only way to switch to separate ward voting, would be to exclude the student populations vote while attending school. Perhaps after graduation and residency is established they could then vote.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe the council-strong mayor system would work for Morgantown. Morgantown is comprised of wards that vary greatly with each population require individual needs. Anyone who has lived here long enough that there is a huge difference, between say, second ward and westover. I would say, "if it's not broke, don't fix it".
I agree with you that the system in Morgantown should not change but I do disagree with your stance on students. I feel that there should be a way for students to be more involved because more than 50% of the population in Morgantown are students. I think that we should find some way to stop student discrimination and get our voices out there.
DeleteI agree with Michelle, to a point, when it comes to students being involved in the local government. I think it could be beneficial, but only if there were certain regulations around the idea of student involvement. Yes students do make up a large majority of the population, but MANY of them are not here year round or stay for the full 4 years; this needs to be taken into the consideration.
DeleteI agree with Michelle that since Morgantown is heavily populated with college students there needs to be a way to get the students more involved. I'm just not sure about any good ideas that could be implemented or how you would monitor so that there's no student discrimination.
DeleteI agree with Aaron on all of his statements and that it would probably be a disaster if all students were able to vote, considering lots of them are not even familiar with the area and what is best for it.
DeleteAaron, this is exactly my point. The current form of government represents and works for the true Morgantown residents rather than the flighty student population.
DeleteMichelle, half of the student population is out of state and therefore unable to participate in West Virginia politics. The unfortunate truth is majority of the student population, in or out of state, does not care. For that reason, I believe the government of Morgantown should concern itself with its permanent residents.
I believe that Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members because each ward should have the power to pick someone who has their specific interests in mind. I think it would actually help the relationships between Morgantown residents and students if we elected someone to help show that the students do care about what happens in this town. Of course there are some students who do not care at all about local politics. However it is a fallacy to say that all West Virginia University students have no interest in what happens in the area where we currently live.
ReplyDeleteWhile I do see the benefits of a council-strong mayor form of government, I think the current system in place is the best option for Morgantown. Like many of my classmates have pointed out, Morgantown is not a large city and this makes a city manager better suited for this area. Having a city manager is good for this town because it makes it so there is a person who can try to do what is best for Morgantown without politics interfering. Also, if they are not doing a good job, we can find someone to replace them.
The city of Morgantown should not change the way its city council members are elected. Morgantown hires 7 city council members who then select the mayor. I believe that this a good system because then the 7 city council members each represent a district in the city. I think this is a good thing that each represent a district because then there are people from all areas around the city. I don't believe that everyone that wants to run should be allowed to run I think that it should be a harder process since being a council member in this city is a big job. I also think that there should be a way that students should be involved instead of being shut out because we "don't vote" so our voice doesn’t matter. Student discrimination should be illegal just like all other types of discrimination are. I don't think that they way Morgantown elects these officials should change much, I just think that at least one of the city council members should represent someone from the university since we take up more than 50% of the population in the city. This would solve student discrimination issues and it would get students to come out and vote if they feel like they could make a difference.
ReplyDeleteThere are many flaws in any government system and Morgantown is not unlike them. There is no absolute way to fix all of the problems in Morgantown and changing the system is not one that is going to help. Although at one time Morgantown went through 3 city managers in 18 months I still believe this is the best system for us. The city manager is elected by the city council and the manager often is a previous city council member so they have experience in the system and the city of Morgantown. I think that in a city manager system there is a balance and it is much better than the mayo being more in charge because mayors make empty promises to be elected and the city manager is elected by the city council. The city manager can influence the agenda but they do not overpower it like a mayor would.
I seem to agree with most of the literature I think that Morgantown should stay with a government structure they currently have. I especially like how the ICMA article explained what explained it: “council-manager form of local government, which combines the strong political leadership of elected officials (in the form of a council, board, or other governing body) with the strong professional experience of an appointed local government manager or administrator.” I think this hits at the idea that in this form of government that Morgantown uses has the best of both worlds: chosen qualified professional and citizen elected officials.
ReplyDeleteFirst off I think that the the way Morgantown elects their city council is a fair way. With an election that where the whole town votes on representatives from different wards I think that it allows for better representation. It not only allows citizens a particular person who can help with concerns in their ward, but it also keeps the overpopulated areas from becoming too powerful. This way the wards are represented by a council member who specializes their particular ward on behalf of the council. Ultimately a decision should be made by the whole council.
Unlike Devin Jones I think that the city council may want to consider adding student representation since of the vast number that occupy Morgantown. I think that without a student representation the council isn’t hearing the students concerns. With a student representatives the city will be able to create a better relationship with the school and also they will be able to communicate better with the students with live in certain areas.
Continuing I agree with Anthony Pecoraro when it comes to the issue of council-manager Morgantown is relatively small and doesn’t need a full-time elected officials. I think that the part-time council covers the city well. I think that since the citizens of Morgantown elected the council their needs and wants are understood allowing the council to select a manager that they would agree with. With this in mind I believe that there may want to be some checks in balances, so that neither the city manager with holds information nor the council from micromanaging.
I believe that Morgantown should not change the way they elect city council members. Several advantages are often cited in favor of council-manager government. Since the council is able to choose the best qualified person it can find to direct the administrative operations of the city or town, a consistently high standard of administrative management is usually achieved. Too, this structure centralizes authority for effective administration in one person whose reputation and future career depend on the quality of his work (Council-Manager). This, taken from text, is a very valid point as to why Morgantown should not change the way their city council is elected. Morgantown has an elected mayor voted by educated members of city council. Also there are members from each district, which is how it should be. I believe that Morgantown is a vas city and needs members from every part of it to represent their district, not the city as a whole. With this said, I strongly believe that students should not get a representative. Yes, the city’s population is mainly made up of students but most of those students are not from this state and do not pay attention to local government. Also, students are not in town all year round. Students not only have summer off but they have other breaks such as, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break. During these breaks, students are not in town meaning the representative would only be useful during school days.
ReplyDeleteThe Morgantown city council needs to keep council-manager form. If Morgantown gave more power to the mayor it would lead to destruction of the local government. Giving the mayor veto power would cause him/her to become big headed. Instead of working for the best of the city they would now work for what is best for them. They would be constantly worried about what the community thinks and it would get too political and destroy the good form of government we currently have.
I completely agree that students at WVU should not get a representative. It just doesn't make sense for a short term population to have a say in a longer term representative. I also agree that switching the government would be a bad idea, but only because Morgantown is not a large enough city that this needs to be done. If Morgantown were much larger, I think it would be a good move.
DeleteI am not a permanent resident of Morgantown, I am a student that lives here 9 months out of the year. This is also true for many of the WVU student population. That being said, I think it would be a bad idea for the students to be considered their own district, who could elect their own representative. I feel this way because students are constantly transferring in and out of WVU; so why should a student who is only going to be living in the area for a few months get to decide who will help represent the Morgantown area that is home to many locals. Their decision would not effect them in the long run, only the locals. I feel like it could be beneficial for Morgantown to vote on each district's representative, however, I don't believe it is a big enough city that it would really be worth the change. I think that Morgantown's governing strategy is fine just the way it is.
ReplyDelete2. Should Morgantown keep the council-manager form of government, or should it shift to the leading alternative: the council-strong mayor form of government? In that system, the council is the legislative body, but there is an elected (and usually full-time) mayor, who carries out the executive role, including veto power, appointing department heads, etc. Many larger cities follow that model, where the mayor is equivalent to the governor in a state system.
I feel as though the council-strong mayor form of government is a more beneficial system when looking at the big picture. It makes sense that someone of power (the mayor) is voted into office by a non-partisan election. I think that having a mayor elected by the representatives is a bit pointless. If the person in this position has no real power, what is the point of having the position at all? To me, it makes more sense for someone to have the full-time job of governing a city, so that it is their main focus. Even though I think this system makes more sense, I still feel as though Morgantown should continue using the current system. Morgantown is a very small city, if even a city at all; there is no need to have separate district elections and a mayor who governs all. I feel like this approach is more appropriate and effective for large cities. For example, a district in NYC may be just as large as the entire city of Morgantown. There is no need to make such a change just yet. However, if Morgantown does grow substantially over the years, they may want to consider switching the style of governing for Morgantown.
A council-strong system wouldn’t work well at all for Morgantown. It simply does not have a large enough voting population to warrant the council acting only as administration to a powerful mayor. I fear that in a system like that, smaller parts of the city would not be taken into account the way they are now, and more emphasis will be placed on WVU affairs, since it is essentially the lifeblood of the city.
ReplyDeleteThus, changing the way Morgantown elects city council members makes a certain amount sense. Morgantown students as a whole make up the majority of money-spenders in the city for 9 months out of the year. As a group that has such a huge stake in the city, surely consideration should be given to their votes, right?
The problem arises, however, when one remembers that WVU students are not a whole and that they will most likely lose interest in the affairs of the city after four years. All voting decisions would be based on the short-term, and those that actually live in Morgantown would suffer, along with the University.
Morgantown should change the way city council members are elected. People vote for the governor of the state in which they reside, not for neighboring states or anything else. Likewise, you should vote for your own city council member and not the council member representing someone else's district. Steve Accardi mentioned in his post that it doesn't make sense for a small city like Morgantown to do that because the districts aren't as different from one another as the districts in a bigger city are. He's right, but it doesn't mean that the issues from district to district aren't all different. Each individual district in Morgantown has issues that are important to their particular residents and not to the residents of other districts, so residents should be able to vote solely for their representative. Personally, I don't think student representation should really be important in Morgantown since so many students don't come from Morgantown, and the ones that do can register to vote here like normal and take it upon themselves to vote. How many students really would, even if they were going to be equally represented? Young people as a whole don't vote. Don't waste city representation on them when they won't vote, and most of them won't stay here long enough to see the results of anything they may vote for. I know I personally don't plan on staying in Morgantown, or West Virginia, past graduation, so I'm more concerned with voting for things in my own city. The issues of Morgantown don't really affect me since I'm not a permanent resident, so I don't think that the Morgantown government should waste the effort in getting students to be equally represented. It's a whole different ballpark than the discrimination that happened in the south to keep permanent residents of a different race from being well-represented. Like Paige Madden said, if students were represented better, they could just vote for a friend. That friend may have a student agenda, which frankly is not always in the best interest of the rest of the city.
ReplyDeleteI was going to say that I think Morgantown should stick with the council-manager form of government but that they should let the residents vote on a city manager. However, I then realized that doing that would basically be the same thing as switching to a council-strong mayor system, since the official with the most power would be elected. I have a problem with the fact that the person with the most power in the city's government is not directly elected by the population which they serve. Especially because, as you said, city managers often are just trying to move up to a higher position and further their own agendas. In my opinion, that just means that they're taking advantage of citizens who didn't give them the power they have, so that they can get more power. At least if the citizens elected a mayor who only wanted to further his or her own agenda, the citizens chose that person so it was fair. We live in a democracy. We should be allowed to choose the people who represent us, no matter at what level. It just seems farfetched to me that the city government acts in any manner different than a mini-state or -national government system.
Morgantown is a specific case because it has a population that is predominantly college students who only live here for 9 months out of the year. Students have a chance at voicing their opinions to their SGA or university staff of who would be better equip at addressing their issues. Additionally, these students are from all over the world. Different ideologies and cultural perspectives can skew a student’s personal opinion on a system that may have worked in a town for years. Devin Jones made a good point saying, student opinions towards Morgantown issues could “could ultimately turn the general public against students.” Tension between locals and students has always been present, negatively affecting the happiness of the people living in the town. With this being said, I believe it would be best to have members of the city council represent small local districts within Morgantown. This would allow for students to at least have some voice, rather than none at all, closing the gap between students and Morgantown citizens. We talked in class about how council members sometimes become advocates for groups they represent. Having one member overhearing students and another member overhearing Morgantown residence would allow for the community to become more cohesive and understanding of each other.
ReplyDeleteSeeing that the availability of Morgantown’s resources are very limited, I see no reason why a part-time mayor would not suit the town well. If we have city council members who oversee different districts, a mayor would have less of a responsibility. He/she would have experts to look to when making certain decisions, similar to cue voting. The mayor would be able to generalize the comings and goings of the city but would not need to be an expert about the town because he/she would have her city council members to look to for specifics. Therefore, I believe Morgantown should not change how they vote in city council members but should change their mayor’s representation within the town.
I definitely agree with your statement on SGA, it's there for students to use as their government. They don't need to go directly through the city of Morgantown to get their voice heard or get something done. City council members elected a part-time mayor is best.
DeleteUnfortunately, SGA has little real power even at the university level. The best they can do for major policy issues is to suggest to the institutional Board of Governors policy changes that can very easily go ignored (the institutional BoG only has to listen to suggested policy change and then can effectively ignore it after that, such is the case with the Medical Amnesty policy that has passed through SGA repeatedly (and at least once, unanimously) and has been thus far not acted upon. For more info about such policies, check out http://www.gannett.cornell.edu/topics/drugs/goodsam.cfm.)
DeleteI do not believe Morgantown needs to change how it operates today. The biggest issue is the fact the Morgantown is a college town, made up of college students who are only here during the academic year.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that having a student representation would do any good. It could create a lot of bias opinions. Also, like Anthony Pecoraro mentioned in his reply to Devin Jones, WVU offers a government where students can make themselves heard. They don't need to go through the Morgantown city government to voice what they want. It be pointless to have a student representation due to the fact that student probably isn't even from the area and it could create a biased opinion based on what that student believes from the are he/she is from.
I believe that Morgantown should stay the way it is now. The current system works well. Morgantown isn't the biggest or most major city there is. I think their current system suits them well.
I can see how some would think it's unfair now especially how the city council members are able to elect the mayor. I would usually say that citizens should vote for mayor but sometimes that isn't always the best idea. I think that having a well balanced and educated city council, their pick of who is mayor would be just as good as the people's pick. The council members each represent a district of Morgantown, so all areas are covered when the vote for mayor occurs. The citizens pick the council members (so they should know their districts represented well if they voted for that particular person), so they should trust them to appoint a quality mayor.
They current way Morgantown operates now is the best fit for this smaller city. I have full confidence that the city council works hard and has the best interest of Morgantown in mind. I would trust them to make the right moves.
I do not think that Morgantown should change the way they vote in city council members. Morgantown is a relatively small city when you take the number of students out of the picture. Taking size into account, the voting should be done city-wide instead of having representatives from different districts. Because Morgantown is rather small city, there are not going to be that many differences throughout different parts of the city. I also do not believe that students need to have representation. WVU has many out-of-state students that are not likely to vote and take part in and vote in Morgantown politics. You also have to take into account that WVU students in Morgantown are not still here May through half of August.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that Morgantown should change from their council-manager structure. It is most effective in smaller cities which suits Morgantown. The council-manager should be more efficient in getting things done and allowing the people to be heard. They are a professional that specializes in this type of work. This is not necessarily the best structure, however I do believe that it is the best for Morgantown.
The population of Morgantown becomes seriously inflated because the students are not permanent residents. I agree with you that Morgantown runs fine just the way it is.
DeleteI think that normally, I would say that a city should change the way it elects city council members so only those from each ward can elect their representative, as to not reduce the electoral power of a minority group. However, since in this case the minority group is students, I think that it’s okay. As a student, I can understand why many of my fellow students may disagree with me. But many of the students at WVU are only in town for the time school is in session, and most of them are from outside of the city. A majority of students just go to school here then leave after graduation, so they probably are not too concerned about Morgantown’s local government operations, and probably wouldn’t take the time to keep up with policy here when they are busy with school. I’m sure many students probably wouldn’t even take the time to vote with their busy schedules anyway. Since most students are unconcerned and probably uneducated on city policy, etc. it is okay that they are not represented because most are only Morgantown residents for a limited amount of time.
ReplyDeleteI think it is okay for a city council member to be from each separate ward, but have the whole city vote for each representative, so they can come together to use their individual knowledge of their areas to better the city as a whole. But I also understand peoples point of view who believe that each city council member should represent their small local district and that people in only that district can vote on them, because they might have a better idea than people in the rest of the city of who can help their district the most.
I agree with many of my fellow classmates who say that Morgantown should stick to the council-manager form of government. I like that the city manager works full time at the pleasure of the city council, who are elected by the city and live in the 7 different wards. I also like that the council, not the manager has the final say on policy decisions, so 1 person doesn’t have too much power like a mayor would in a council-strong mayor form of government. The best part about this system is that it removes politics from the administration. I believe that politics can really get in the way of progress and doing what is best for the city, and can cloud peoples judgment and cause bias. Having the council-manager form of government would eliminate these problems, which is why I think it is the best system for a medium-sized city like Morgantown.
Jacqueline,
DeleteI think that since Morgantown operates as a medium-sized government that the system it currently operates on is doing the job it needs to get done. I think students would change the focus of the duties that concern the local government, even though they make up a large part of the population. I also think that the system that Morgantown functions on currently allows for the district representatives to come together to represent Morgantown as a whole in a positive way. This way each district is their focus and accounted for.
Alli Colasante
Morgantown should not change the way it elects city council members. Like so many of the other students have already mentioned in their responses this city is made up of a primarily college students nine months out of the year. Most of these students that make up the population are out of state students. Most college students are not interested in what is going on with the city government or care at all about politics. Students who are considered out of state students will have a bias opinion on government matters and politics in Morgantown because this isn’t their home state. Allowing students to have political representation would be foolish. Anthony Pecoraro mentioned that if students did want to get involved and voice their opinions they could join the Student Government Association. Morgantown is a small city and doesn’t require the need for having individual representatives to vote in elected officials. Students can also attend council meetings where a representative will listen to the interests of the students.
ReplyDeleteI think Morgantown should continue using the council manager structure of government to run the local government. I believe this structure suits Morgantown because it is such a small city. This structure helps eliminate politics as well. Although some people may not like how much power the non-elected official has, this person was chosen based off of city council members and the people of Morgantown who clearly trusted this person enough to elect them in the first place. I believe the person elected would devote his/her time to the town and have everyone’s best interest in mind. This person specializes in this area of work and will be the best at getting across the peoples wants. This structure is what is best for Morgantown.
Marissa,
DeleteI agree that since students are not permanent residents of Morgantown that they should not be involved in the local government elections. The city of Morgantown functions successfully now with part-time officials and students not being a part of the system. If students were a part of the system I think it would change the focus of which is supposed to be local duties. Students do not necessarily have an idea of city issues besides what happen in the "university" world. Also, I agree with your statement of the people elected should be devoting their time to other things and that students should just trust the residents of Morgantown to elect the proper council members.
Alli Colasante
I think that Morgantown should not change the way that it elects city council members. Mainly because the students shouldn't be the ones determining our city council members considering the reputation WVU has. Also as stated in recent posts, a good bit of students at WVU are from out of town so they shouldn't be able to have a say in who Morgantown elects to be our city council. Students are only here for school then most of them go home whenever school is out and done with so they aren't going to take much part in it as being a college town. Many students aren't even educated or care about the city council enough to even vote or pay attention to it. I don't think that it makes sense for as small of a city that Morgantown is to do this because the district is so small unlike many other bigger cities. Morgantown isn't that big so they don't need to have separate districts.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Morgantown should keep the council-manager form of government because it is such a small state that it works well for Morgantown. I like that it doesn't give one person full power over everything and their are different people helping with different agendas. This would move politics away from the administration which is a very positive thing for our city.
I do not believe that Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members. Morgantown is not a large city, but considered more of a medium-sized city. We also have to remember that there are many students who temporarily make up some of the population. Since they are not considered city residents living in the area and do not necessarily make a good name for themselves, I do not think putting government elections in the hands of students, when they do not really know the facts of other city matters that are going on around them is an important thing to do.
ReplyDeleteMorgantown operates on a part-time serving city council, elected in a nonpartisan manner. This is the "popular" way for how most local cities similar to Morgantown operate their structure. I think it is a positive feature that each of the seven council members serve a different district, also known as a ward. By electing our city council this way, residents know who to direct their questions and concerns to depending on the location. This prevents wasting the citizens' time and council members' time on something that does not necessarily involve them.
I do not think that students in the area should be allowed to elect their representatives because they are "seasonal" residents. If they end up staying in the area, then I think is when the students should have a say after becoming a permanent resident. Since these members represent small districts, if a student were to need assistance from a council member, I think it can be done, but that the students should not be able to effect the vote of the entire city or district. I do not think Morgantown's local government should function their elections in a way that would involve students.
I think that Morgantown should keep the council-manager form of government and not shift. I think we should keep the trust in the hands of the residents who elect a manager that can provide as a whole to the city, including any student ordeals if needed. I believe the system that Morgantown functions on currently allows for the district representatives to come together to embody Morgantown as a whole. Morgantown does not need to have full-time officials due to its size and amount of office responsibilities required.
http://www.coventryri.org/council-manager-form-of-government
Alli Colasante
I totally agree with the first paragraph. Morgantown is small enough that is doesn't have to be bureaucratic. I also agree that students should not have a major say in the inner workings of the city of Morgantown. However, a bigger say in the inner workings of West Virginia University is much more applicable.
DeleteI think the system is all right the way it is and Morgantown. I think it works for this particular city which is in an interesting place geographically. On one hand it’s a town that is growing rapidly thanks to the university but on another hand it’s right next to a vast amount of country that is sparsely populated so it has a wide diversity people living there and thereby making districts and wards more necessary. This is because you don’t want certain parts of the city to be underrepresented or not represented at all because their views are different than others around the city.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to students from WVU, I don’t think they should have a major say in the “goings on” in Morgantown because more than likely this isn’t where they plan on living. They are only here for four years on average and aren’t really concerned in the long term well-being of the city as opposed to the short term gain which really matters to them. The power for the city of Morgantown should be put in the hands of the citizens who have lived and plan to live in Morgantown for a more substantial amount of time and really call Morgantown home.
I don’t think that Morgantown is quite large enough yet to where it becomes necessary to have a council-strong mayor form of government. However, if Morgantown continues to grow at the pace it is going, it will become a much more plausible idea. I think at the moment, it can work with council-manager form because it’s still a small city. As discussed in class, the bigger the institution (or city in this example) the more there is a need for a bureaucratic system which is more towards what big cities do but since Morgantown is still fairly small it can get away with being less bureaucratic then say Pittsburgh.
I agree with your comment on the size of Morgantown making a council-strong mayor unnecessary. Unlike with much larger cities like D. C. or Chicago, a city of this size is in need of professional, innovative, and helpful direction which a council-manager can provide. In smaller cities such as Morgantown, I can see how a tighter-knit community could exert a tremendous pressure on an elected official. By taking politics out of the process, a council-manager could do Morgantown a lot of good by taking risks good for the community or even just the fact that one district is not pulling the strings over another through intimidation.
DeletePersonally I don't think that Morgantown should change the way they vote for city council members. Representatives that have good ideas or plans of action would be good or any ward regardless of where it is. Unless someone has a plan for a specific change in a certain area then this would be one time to consider letting the individuals of that ward choose the council member. I don't think that students should be allowed to choose their representatives because students may not care and may vote just to vote instead of voting with informed knowledge. With the exception of a few who may keep up with politics and government action, I don't believe that many student have the knowledge or passion to make decisions about this matter. However, I think that having city council members represent small districts may be beneficial in the fact that representatives may be better able to handle certain matters that could potentially be looked over by representatives by a larger ward.
ReplyDeleteI also don't think that Morgantown should change it's form of government from the current form of council- manager. If we were to switch to council- mayor (strong) then they mayor would be more likely to abuse his power in the way that council tries to micromanage administrative issues. Unfortunately, this would be a much larger problem due to the power that the mayor has in council- mayor (strong) government. One of the benefits of this form of government is that the mayor is elected full time which may be a concern for districts that operate under a system where the council members are part- time. That's not to say that the council members don't take their job seriously or actively try to resolve issues but my concern is with the amount of time an individual council member can spend on government policies due to the limited amount of time.
Morgantown’s current election structure for city council members is extremely justified. Morgantown’s size allows for the city council to be elected by the entire voting population. That being said, Morgantown is not large enough to desire a structure that elects one council member per ward when ultimately – regardless of the candidate/council member’s district – he/she is working for the good of the entire city. As noted in class, this election structure heavily limits student representation, and I do understand the argument for district based elections; however, I do not find them necessary, and I am unable to see where student representation in the city council would be too incredibly beneficial. I, for one, do not see an issue with the current status of the city council – or how each of the council members found their seat.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I am heavily in favor of the council-strong mayor form of local government. I found the article about whether or not San Diego should keep their strong mayor system to be extremely useful when coming to this conclusion. As pointed out in the article, this system “puts an end to the question of who is accountable”, and I find that to be the most substantial reason in favor of this system. Within this structure, there is an elected official who can be held accountable for city operations. Likewise, because the mayor is equal to the city council – and not more or less powerful – a system of checks and balances is established. As San Diego mayor Jerry Sanders pointed out when speaking about the city council, “I don’t work for them. They don’t work for me. But we both try to do what’s right for the city”. Therefore, I believe that a move to the council-strong mayor form of government would be good for Morgantown because it would establish accountability within an elected official and a system of checks and balances between said official and the city council.
I understand your favoring a council-strong mayor. Citizens should be allowed to elect their own representatives. With that being said, however, I do not believe that hiring a city council-manager removes the ability to point fingers or lay blame. It is, after all, the elected city council members that hire this council-manager in the first place. This council-manager does not come out of thin air; it is up to the elected council members to decide whether or not the hired manager is effective and good for the community. If he or she is not, then it is the council's responsibility to do something about it, like finding a replacement. And though council members take the council-manager's advise and suggestions into deep consideration, the city council members are the ones with the ultimate power and final say in policy decision making.
DeleteYes, I believe Morgantown should change the way it elects their city council members. Through city-wide elections, they are not only singling out students, but perhaps also under representing other minority groups as well. Aside from the student body, Morgantown is not like a big metropolitan area that provides diversity in politics or background in its permanent citizens. I feel that having each ward elect their own representation would allow better communication and harmony between districts, eventually creating a better standard of living throughout the city. Every corner of the city will have their own problems, so it is important that all voices are heard and no priority is given to any one area. I’m not sure how I feel about students being able to participate in the city council, however, outside of voting for their representatives. The fact remains that a majority of the student population is in Morgantown only temporarily. If there are policies they wish to press or issues they wish to confront, they should be able to rely on their ward’s experienced representative rather than rely on a student. With school work and a social life, I find it hard to believe that a student could really give 100% to a job like city-council member that requires time, effort, and pushing policy in favor of their community. Not to mention students aren’t the only people that live within this ward. Perhaps a student representative would over represent students, forgetting the needs of the permanent citizens around us.
ReplyDeleteThough I believe Morgantown should shy away from the city-wide elections, I do agree with their council-manager approach. Though the council-manager is an unelected position, the responsibility still falls among those who are elected. Hiring a manager allows each council member to focus on his community and concentrate on improving policy. A manager can provide members information, research, and professional advice that the council may otherwise never have benefited from. If a council-manager is performing poorly, it is up to the elected officials to do something about it. This allows flexibility in leadership and policy because it is not an instance where the local government is stuck with a terrible mayor until his term is up. Hiring a council-manager also removes politics from the administration, allowing him or her to focus on what he or she believes is truly best for the community.
I don't think that Morgantown should change the way it votes for council members. I like that people get a say in who they think is going to best represent them on the council.
ReplyDeleteI think that Morgantowns form of governmner, council- manager, is how to should stay. Morgantown is not a big city. (Although, it is huge compared to where I come from). It is not necessary to make the town council a full time job. I think that it would be a pointless decision.
I also think that it should be the students choice whether or not the decide to participate in Morgantowns local government. I personally think that it would not be a wise decision for myself to participate. I do not stay up to date on many local things going on in the city.I know many others feel the same way I do. But, I feel like if a student wants to participate in the local government their voices should be heard.
I don't believe that Morgantown should change the way it elects it's council members. Morgantown is very much based around the university. I don't think that it would be a good idea to let students represent the government. This would be unfair to the citizens of Morgantown because all of the students will most likely be voting one way that will favor them. Also, most students are only in Morgantown for 9 months so allowing them to make choices for the city wouldn't be a very suggestive idea because they aren't even here full-time so some of these decisions wouldn't be relevant to them. University students are also way too busy with classes to even make an attempt to be a part of the government system let alone care about what's going on in the city of Morgantown because for the majority of us we are just here to attend school then we will leave after the 4 years.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the council-manager system is a good fit for Morgantown. The person who is chosen devotes their full-time to doing things for the city and I think that is a very good attribute to have when dealing with a small city like Morgantown. Although Morgantown is a small city there are a lot of things that need to be done within the city. Having the council elect the city manager also gives representation from the people. This type of system fits perfectly for the size of Morgantown.
Once again, I do not believe students should be allowed to have representation in the local government in Morgantown for certain reasons and I believe that the council-manager system works great for a small city like Morgantown.
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ReplyDeletePersonally I don't think that Morgantown should change the way they vote for city council members. Representatives that have good ideas or plans of action would be good for any ward regardless of where it is. Unless someone has a plan for a specific change in a certain area, this would be one time to consider letting the individuals of that ward choose the council member. I don't think that students should be allowed to choose their representatives because students may not care and may vote just to vote instead of voting with informed knowledge. With the exception of a few who may keep up with politics and government action, I don't believe that many student have the knowledge or passion to make decisions about this matter. However, I think that having city council members represent small districts may be beneficial in the fact that representatives may be better able to handle certain matters that could potentially be overlooked by representatives that have a larger case- load.
ReplyDeleteI also don't think that Morgantown should change it's form of government from the current form of council- manager. If we were to switch to council- mayor (strong) then they mayor would be more likely to abuse his power in the way that council tries to micromanage administrative issues. Unfortunately, this would be a much larger problem due to the power that the mayor has in council- mayor (strong) government. One of the benefits of this form of government is that the mayor is elected full time which may be a concern for districts that operate under a system where the council members are part- time. That's not to say that the council members don't take their job seriously or actively try to resolve issues but my concern is with the amount of time an individual council member can spend on government policies due to the limited amount of time.
I believe that Morgantown should not change the way they elect their legislature mainly because of two reasons, the geography and the amount of students who live in Morgantown that travel once the school year is over. Their is a large amount of the population that leaves and their is not a significant amount in all of the state. With all of the people working together Instead of just representing their district there is better chance of everyone getting represented.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that Morgantown should keep the Council Manager because it involves a professional that will hopefully bring his or her expertise to help the community. But if one takes advantage of the power they have than there has to be some sort of checks and balances. And the term limits much remain minimal in order to keep the manager in check. As long as the manager and council do not butt heads too often than they should not change the process.
I believe that Morgantown’s current council-manager style of government is best to fit the needs of the city. Morgantown’s population (minus students) is only around 31,000 individuals, and our officials are elected from their wards. The way we elect individuals from wards seems very beneficial, even though the demographics of Morgantown don’t differ dramatically from one ward to the other. If we had elections based on the whole city of Morgantown, we might find individuals with more money in the “better” areas obtaining council positions and micromanaging their own personal wants for their selected area. By having individuals selected by their ward, it allows for a more even distribution of ideas to best effect the city as a whole.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I noticed at the city hall meeting, the town is not very welcoming of the students of WVU. I understand that the simplicity of traveling during the school year is troublesome, along with other issues, though I feel the 30,000 students should have at least one representative in the city council. I can find this very beneficial for students that are political science majors, social workers, and public relations. What many students don’t understand is that is quite simple to become a resident of Morgantown. I have lived here year round for the past 4 years and have made the town my home. Registering to vote and have a political voice is no harder than paying a parking ticket. For saying that, if council members realized that individuals are working to become functioning members of the town, they may be more opened to allowing students to represent and present their concerns.
If the school became more involved with the city, we could hold an “election” to find an individual most suited to help bring ideas to incorporate the school more into the community. The WVU campus stretches into many different wards, but if we took the students as a whole into “one ward” the representation of the young professionals could help benefit the city in the future.
As for the city manager, the position seems to be quite beneficial for the city of Morgantown. By hiring an agreed upon individual to manage the needs to the city, we, in some ways, leave out the politics and popularity, and focus more on the education and achievements of the individual.
In my opinion, the city council as a whole should represent an entire city but each council member should be representing their personal district. Morgantown should change the way it elects city-council members so that the members in each ward can choose the representative of their certain ward. I feel this was because constitutes of each ward know what is needed in their area therefore they would get to choose the best candidate to advocate for the needs of their district. This way they will know that there voice is heard to the city-council through a council member of their district. On the topic of college cities such as Morgantown I feel that it would be beneficial for the city council to take concerns of college students into consideration. Because the electoral system reduces power of minority groups such as students it would beneficial to college population to be able to elect a member for their district to represent them in city-council. Since many college students aren’t registered to vote or vote in Morgantown there will be less people voting without informed knowledge. I feel that college students aren’t going to take the time to register and vote unless they are genuinely concerned about their community. Therefore assuming that students who are willing to take the time to register and vote have done their research and can contribute to an informed decision on who can make decisions for them on a macro level.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I believe that Morgantown should make changes to the way they elect there council members I don’t not think that we should change the form of government. I think that the council strong mayor form of government is meant for large cities and in my opinion, Morgantown does not fall under the category of a large city. I believe that giving the mayor that much power could lead to possible abuse of power and less input for the voters. I think it is best that Morgantown’s city council is elected by the voters and given the most power to make final decisions. This does not give the mayor power to abuse but he is still has a role in the city. Being that the city council is a group they have more input to make informed decisions especially when it comes to the decision of who will be city manager. The city manager has the perfect amount of power and is backed by the city council which makes for a good team to assist the community and its needs which is a good method for Morgantown. Since the final decision on policies is made by the city council this keeps the city manager from abusing their power.
I believe that Morgantown should remain as a council-manager form of government. There are many positive attributes to this type of government for Morgantown specifically, fair representation, less corruption, power isn’t held by only one person, and removes politics from administration. There are obviously some negative aspects to this system like tension between the council and the managers, but no system is perfect.
ReplyDeleteThe 7 council members represent 7 city wards or districts elected by the citizens. The managers are appointed by the council. Since the council is elected by the people it holds the most responsibility for all aspects of the government-administrative as well as policymaking. By having the people elect the council members you get fair representation, and by allowing council to elect managers you have the in theory the “right” people in office. Like many my classmates have said by leaving out politics, and not electing a person on who they know reduces corruption and increases professionalism. Having power distributed throughout the government, the council, managers, and mayor I feel like more opinions, concerns, and ideas will be heard and taken care of. This also allows for more improvements in the 7 districts instead of only a few due to lack of representation.
Unlike most of my colleagues; I do not think Morgantown should change the way it elects city council members. For the long term stability and prosperity of the city. I do see the democratic side of the argument, but university students are only here for a short period of time, while permanent residents live here, maybe for their entire adult life. I do believe that it is more their city, than the students' city. I hold the belief that the goals of a possible 'student' representative would be very short term ones. I think Reid Widders got some good points, I did not think about the simple fact that most students would probably not take up politics, even if they got the chance. Along with his point about Morgantown being a small town under the surface of the university.
ReplyDeleteMy personal experience with the Morgantown City Council was that they think a lot about the students and the university in their city, it is after all a huge part of the local economy, culture and daily life in general.
I think the Morgantown's model with an elected council, appointed mayor and hired manager suit the city's needs fine. Morgantown is not that big, and the challenges are more administrative than ideological, I would say that the state and federal levels are where the big democratically driven battles should take place.
I agree with the text from Coventry, Rhode Island. Especially on the note about accountability; "Since the council is the elected legislative body, it must bear ultimate responsibility for all aspects of the government--administrative as well as policymaking." Also that it is up to the council members to work with and use the city manager. It is what they make of it, in other words.
I think that Morgantown needs some slight changes to the way we run the government. First off, the mayor needs to have a little more say in how things are run and have a little more power. Since Morgantown is a middle sized city, based on residents and not students, I think it would be appropriate for the mayor to also oversee each ward. In larger cities this would not work due to too much work load for the mayor. In determining how the wards are elected by city wide elections works well for Morgantown due to our size. However, the fact that students are not represented for a good reason, as stated by Steve A., is a load of crock. Just because a student is not from here doesn't make it right to not allow them to partake in our government. They have to live here as well as the Morgantown residents, like myself, so if they have a suggestion, let them speak it. Students should not be ignored just because they are students. This honestly gives students a negative idea on government and may then not participate in their own government. I agree with Isabelmora that allowing the city to vote for the council is right and fair to the people. We as citizens should have as much say as we can in politics, especially the politics that affect where we live more directly.
ReplyDeleteIn conclusion, Morgantown needs to keep the city council government but with some changes. Allow the mayor to have more power. Also, take students more seriously, regardless if they are from here or not.
I believe the way Morgantown elects its City Council members is the most efficient way. This is because of the way that Morgantown is set up. Morgantown is a small city and because of this a council manager would not work out. Big cities such as San Diego and New York can do this because they have a very high population and many more resources available to them. Morgantown for example is a population that is mostly controlled by students. Many students do not live in Morgantown year around and therefore do not pay attention to the city council. This would create a bias vote because many students will probably vote based on what the candidate back-round.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Morgantown should follow the concept of electing council members based on each ward (or district). This would create better knowledge of each candidate for Morgantown’s citizens. With each candidate having a specific area, the people of Morgantown would be able to listen to the issues and make a well-educated decision. I agree with my fellow colleague Anthony Pecoraro when he says “that each should represent that individual small district and not the city as a whole.” That way each person would have their own specific area to take care of and if everyone did their part it would fit together well.
Lastly I believe that keeping a council manager in Morgantown would be beneficial. Because Morgantown is a small city it should be filled with “part-time” officials instead of full time ones. This is because although most power is in the hands of the part time elected officials, a council manager oversees the cities actives. The part time officials; who the people of Morgantown elected in the first place would elect the city council manager. This way the people of Morgantown have a say, the elected officials have power and there is an overall supervisor (council manager).
I don’t think that Morgantown should change the way it elects their council members at all. They have been doing great thus far and changing it would cause so much confusion and chaos. Morgantown is a small city with about 30,000 residents as to Washington D.C having 632,323 residents. Since Morgantown is such a small city they should keep the entire city to elect the members rather than split up each district and have them each member within the district sway the opinions.
ReplyDeleteStudent representation should not be a factor in voting for the cities government. Students make up most of Morgantown’s population. But most of the students aren’t actually from Morgantown. They only attend WVU for a year at a time than go back to their hometowns. So students within the WVU community should not have the ability to vote. They will be too biased towards their governments at home. Also most of the students don’t understand what’s going on in the city to begin with. They aren’t up to date with the issues going on within the public. The student wouldn’t know how to run a government.
Morgantown should stick to the council manager form of government. It allows for a full time professional, a mayor, to make public decisions and regulations. The citizens state a public opinion and the mayor goes off and decides to make it happen or deny the request. You need to have someone higher to run the government so that it runs smoothly.
Samantha Strejeck
I believe that Morgantown should stick with the council-manager form of government. This form removes the politics and reduces the amount of corruption that a city council could be faced with. Morgantown, being the medium sized city that it is, functions well under the council manager system. I believe Morgantown is electing its council members in a way that benefits the residents of Morgantown as a whole. Allowing all the residents of Morgantown to vote for the council members is best. Each council member should be focused on what is best for the entire city of Morgantown and the problems of each individual district as well. I agree with Courtney Jones on this aspect of electing our city council officials. If you vote by individual wards it turns into merely a popularity contest, especially in ward highly populated by students. I think SGA is a positive alternative for students who want to change things for themselves and WVU. That being said, students have the opportunity to have their voice heard at city council meetings they just have to take the initiative to go to the meetings.
ReplyDeleteI also believe it is very important to have a city manager who is hired to do research and administer the business of the city. It is important because this individual has a master’s degree and has the ability to provide professional advice to the city council. This is a positive adjustment to how a city council is supposed to work. I agree with Steve Accardi when he states that he would rather have a professional who has a master degree running a local government than a mayor who may not have the education or knowledge to run a local government successfully. I think this is an important statement because in the council-manager system we give little to no power to the mayor. We hire the city manager to do research and find the best possible solutions and outcomes to make our city run smoothly. I think this is the best alternative for a local government in a town the size of Morgantown.
-Hannah West
I argue that Morgantown should maintain their current system of government. I think that positive general state of the economy in the area is a powerful piece of evidence that the current system of government works for the city. Morgantown should not change the way it elects its city council members. It is not a large metropolitan area that demands full-time elected officials because it is clearly much smaller than those areas. A large majority of the population is the students at West Virginia University and most of them don't live in Morgantown year-round. Therefore, they should not have a say in the government because of the likelihood of them having a lack of interest in the issues in the area considering it isn't their permanent residence.
ReplyDeleteI also really like how there are several wards that are elected and responsible for specific areas of the city. It makes the responsibilities of these part-time elected officials much less if they don't have to always worry about all the issues of the whole city. Instead, they are mostly responsible for their sections of Morgantown. Since the wards are part-time, I think this is a very good idea to ease some of their work load.
I am very much in favor of the current system of government that Morgantown has because it is proven to be successful for the city, it suits the requirements of the elected officials, and represents the needs of the constituents.
When a city council member are representing their own individual ward, I believe there is a lot more at stake for them, and they are more willing to fight for the things they believe in. Furthermore will their neighbors put their trust in them, which also fits with the general impression of local governments. When that has been said, Morgantown is not a very big city, and its diversity are not as extreme as it is in bigger cities as Chicago. The needs to have a representative for each ward is probably not as big here, because the representatives have the ability to think what each area needs, because it is not a very big city. On the basis of this, I believe that Morgantown should not change the way it elects its city council members.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, I do believe that students have a right to have a representative in the city council, when it comes to special towns as Morgantown - college towns. When a lot of the activities and issues are surrounding the college and its students then I think they have a right to be heard and have an influence. As Ashley Wallace points out, even though the students are not in the town 100% of the time, the students are here in a amount of time that is reasonable and fair enough to have a representative in the city council. At the city council meeting I attended to, almost all of the issues referred to or involved WVU, which I believe underline the reason to have a student reprensentative. In these kinds of discussions it would have been nice to know that someone was talking on the behalf of the students.
When it comes to running a local government, I believe that Morgantown should not change their structure of government. This is based on its design, which is design to medium size cities just as Morgantown. Having a council manager, who is educated in how you should run local government, is in theory a very good idea. And if the alternative is an unfitted and unprofessional mayor, then I would rather have a city manager. I also really like the idea of taking politics out of the administration, which the "city manage structure" is design to do.
Morgantown should absolutely have voting based on ward, with only those individuals in each ward electing their ward's representative. There are particular issues that have a disproportionately large impact on people that primarily live in or around the downtown area; these are mostly students but can also be long term residents. The issues I have as a South Park resident (...tractor trailers driving at all hours of the night and day, for instance) are entirely different from the issues that a person living in the Evansdale area encounter. (as an aside, the wards themselves could probably due with some re-districting: http://www.morgantownwv.gov/government/city-council/ward-map/. For instance, why is some of Beechurst part of a ward that includes Medical?) Currently, the council serves to protect the interests of those that vote in high numbers (older people.)
ReplyDeleteI've read posts by individuals stating that because many students are disinterested in politics, the current system is justified. I disagree. Even if a large majority of students do not vote, those that actually do vote can help elect council-members that will benefit all students, voters or non-voters. From my perspective, government ought to serve to improve the lives of individuals, even if they are apathetic to politics.
Lastly, an important benefit of having individuals elect a single representative for their ward would be that it would create a system that would allow for more representation from both political parties. While there frequently aren't explicit tickets, we saw in the last election that Morgantown Together was a broadly more liberal ticket, and their (supposedly independent) opponents had a more conservative slant. This system would allow for more liberal or conservative wards to elect their own representative.
In regards to the issue of council-manager vs. a strong-mayor system, I'm conflicted. While the idea of an elected official (versus an appointed one) is usually something that appeals to me, I worry of two main concerns: firstly, that the city council may not be on good terms with the mayor, and will have little in the way of dealing with such issues. This could cause significant gridlock similar to the kind we see in DC, and depending on the severity and the powers granted to the city council, could absolutely harm progress.
Secondly and also similar to problems with political gridlock in DC, if the voters are electing two separate entities, these entities have the potential to blame each other for a lack of positive action in regards to the well-being of the city. We consistently see this with individuals blaming Obama or Congress, despite the fact that Congressmen get re-elected at very high rates, and the President has little power in creating legislation.
Overall, this tips my opinion in favor of the city manager system. You mentioned in class that Morgantown in particular has had a problem with the rapid transitioning of city managers and that it is hard to strike a balance, but I think the most startling fact is that we had the same city manager for 13 (or so?) years. While transitioning may be rough and many various city managers may be cycled through in a short period of time, I believe this is preferable to recurrent gridlock every few years.
I do not believe Morgantown should change the way elects city council managers. I believe that Morgantown’s steady economic growth shows the balance that has been found between the student and residential population. Although, Morgantown is host to 30,000 + students for nine months out of the year; many of these students aren’t committed to the city of Morgantown, they’re only committed to WVU. Its important for students to differentiate the difference of the university and the town it’s located in. Issues that the university faces, are going to be different than those of Morgantown. If the student representation became the primary focus, the city could suffer from lack of experience and economical advantages that is currently in place in the council manager form of government.
ReplyDeleteI believe it’s best if Morgantown continues the council-manager form of government that’s currently in place. In a unique town like Morgantown, it’s crucial to have individuals who possess a strong understanding of their individual ward. These representatives have been elected by their neighbors and often time have the most knowledge of relevant issues that need to be addressed within the city. Morgantown possess a strong mix of resident and college students, so its especially crucial to have a very solution orientated government, that is best represented by the council-manager form of government. In a larger city, local government usually has more money and resources available for addressing problems that that the city is faced with. When there is limited resources its important to have a chief administrator who is educated, and caused to become more innovative with finding solutions.
I don't believe that it is necessary for Morgantown to change its system for electing council members. First off, it seems as though the vast majority of the people who inhabit the city of Morgantown are not even permanent homeowners, rather students who live either out of state or in a different area of West Virginia altogether. While you would think it may be a good idea for elections to consider a student area on its own, in my opinion I think that it would be rather pointless as many students honestly wouldn't vote or even truthfully care about who was representing them as council. From my own experience in being an out of state student I can say that if I weren't a political science major or didn't find interest in political matters, I would not bother to engage. As far as whether council members should just represent local districts or entire cities I would say that it has to depend on how large the city is but in Morgantown's case I think that splitting it into wards and assigning particular council members to them is a good idea because it in a way raises the interests of each member and pushes them to do the best they can in representing their individual block.
ReplyDeleteThe council-manager style of government that Morgantown currently follows I believe is fine just as it is. Morgantown is by no means a big city especially to those who live outside of the area and any other style would just be unnecessary. The system available now also ensures that the decisions of the voters are still being carried out through the council-manager.
I do not think that Morgantown should change from a Council-Manager form of government to a strong mayor lead one because, quite simply, for Morgantown it works. It allows the majority of council members and the Mayor to be mostly everyday kind of people who have other jobs, careers, and businesses. While I do prefer elected officials in most positions over appointed ones, in this case, I think that appointing someone who's whole work load is focused on keeping the city council and the city of Morgantown in check, in a sense, is the best idea. Also, allowing someone to be in that position, allows for, ideally, politic free information and cooperation between the city manager and council members. While there are some cons, to this, such as the ones listen on this website: http://www.mrsc.org/research/libraryresults.aspx?cat=440 . I believe having someone there that has been appointed based on merit, can be fired instead of on term, and whose job is to focus on the issues concerning the city, and far outweighs them.
ReplyDeleteUnlike many of my classmates, as far as how the city council members are elected, I think that should be changed, and that we should elect members by ward, giving every citizen the chance to elect the person that they think would benefit them the most, including wards that are mostly students. While most students do return home for the summer, the majority of our lives are spent in this city, we are citizens and the decisions made in city council affect us just as much as anyone else, and therefore we should be able to elect an official that understands the concerns we have about the city of Morgantown. I however, would like a qualifier that whoever is up for election must be a permanent resident of Morgantown, perhaps even someone who has a job here, if you could create such a qualifier for city council members. That way, instead of having the possibility of electing someone that will eventually not be able to participate in city council, we know we have elected someone that is passionate about the city in which they live and intend to live, while still allowing the voices for the many students in this town to be heard.
It's a good idea to have those in a particular ward just vote for that representative with a ward for the student body. The citizens in their ward know what's best for their area, considering in Morgantown there are downtown locations vs the suburban neighborhoods. People in the suburban areas want someone to represent them differently than someone would represent the city area because they have different concerns and opinions. In addition, although individual students are only here for a short period of time, students as a whole will always be in Morgantown because of the University. Maybe one student or class wouldn't see change, but with student representation in the council, they could get things accomplished to benefit the future students. Yes students aren't permanent residents, etc. but students take up about 1/3 of the city's population and a lot of the city revolves around the University, so students deserve some representation in council. So, I think that people should elect someone for their wards from their ward, and students should have representation in council.
ReplyDeleteI think the system of a council-strong mayor form of government has a good structure and is good for large cities like NYC, but I do not think it is necessary for Morgantown. The council-manager system is best for Morgantown because it keep politics out of council which is good for such a diverse city. In addition, it's smart to have a manager because the city manager is their full-time job so they take it more seriously and are completely education about everything in the community. Also to go along with the no politics, it's beneficial for the wards because they can just discuss their issue/opinion based on their ward and not political stance.
I believe Morgantown should maintain its current system of electing city council managers. Considering that we are a small town and do not have the same issues that a large city would have, we do not need full time members. With a part time legislative, officials wont be as stressed and can properly do their job.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that students should have some representation in government. Although many argue that since they are only here for a limited time they should not have influence on the government. Many students remain in Morgantown all year round and make up for most downtown residents. The students are bring money into Morgantown and it could be argued that this is correlates positively with Morgantown's good economy. I believe voting based on wards is a good thing for this town. Citizens from Westover deal with different issues than those from Cheat lake, so these areas should be represented differently. This also would allow students to have an influence on their area while not representing areas more heavily populated with locals.
I do agree with you for the most part, but majority of the students are out of state are participate in their local government. As much as students are free to participate in the local government here, how many students are actually participating? Most are concentrated on their academic studies and not policies around the Morgantown area.
DeleteI do like the points you addressed though.
I would change the system with which council members are elected to a ward specific system. While I see the justification for electing council members in a city wide manner, I think it leaves a large portion of Morgantown’s population underrepresented. Students directly and indirectly contributed significantly to the economy of Morgantown. Even with many students that are temporary residents the money they spend while here is a major contributing factor to the strong economy of Morgantown. In addition students indirectly support the economy of Morgantown by being part of the university and keep demand high in the housing market. For no other reason than the economic contribution of students more representation in city government is deserved on our part.
ReplyDeleteI think the Council/Manager system is a good choice for Morgantown. As stated in the Coventry article a council/manager system should put a qualified professional in charge of the city. In smaller cities like Morgantown where one person can effectively manage, I think taking the politics out of the executive role and putting a qualified individual in place is a good thing. I don’t think that a the power struggle that occurred in San Diego, with the strong mayor system, would manifest as such an issue in a much smaller Morgantown, but I think the more bureaucratic system in administering a city is good.
I believe Morgantown should allow each ward to elect it's own representative. The city-wide election system ignores minority concerns. A democracy can only be true if it has a majority rule with minority rights. Also, the existence of the wards is pointless. They have no purpose but to seperate the city into pointless political districts.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the council-manager system can be kept. If the city council is properly representative of the city, than the current system doesn't need to be changed. If the council is trying too hard to control the city manager and the people disagree with it, they will get defeated in the next election. If the city manager is trying to have too much power, then he'll be fired.
Therefore, there doesn't necessarily have to be a change in the form of government, just the way it is executed.
I do not believe that Morgantown should change the way that they elect city council managers. I feel like this gives puts decisions in the hands of a more educated individual that is full time rather than putting all the decision making in the hands of the city council who has other matters to attend to in their lives. I feel like this is a good system because the city council is acting like a boss towards that manager, and if they don't like something he/she is doing then it will be fixed. I feel like this limits the power of the manager, but gives him/her enough power to get the job done.
ReplyDeleteI am a little indifferent about whether the students should have representation. I lean more towards having representation because it is definitely not fair to us by being ignored. On the other hand, a lot of Morgantown's population is those students and when school is out, they move back to their homes. This leaves Morgantown with less people. So, I can definitely see the other side of the argument.
I do not think Morgantown should change to a strong-mayor lead form because Morgantown is a small city, one would even say it was more of a town. My point is that Morgantown is not the biggest of size by population or by area. Thus being the size it is I think that Morgantown should not switch, Morgantown does not need the full time elected officials like some very large cities. The council-manager form allows for full time employees to work an extra part time position. The reason this is the best form is because the same people who work in the community as teachers, layers, etc, know what things must be changed because they see it on an every day basis.
ReplyDeleteThe way Morgantown elects its city council members does in fact need to be changed though. Morgantown should elect by ward. This allows for more people to have more of a say in who they want leading their allotted area. This could help students at WVU because we could have the power to elect someone that puts us as students very high on the priority list. After all we as students do tend to spend a lot of money and we also help Morgantowns economy, so why shouldnt the students be represented well.
I believe this council-manager is the best form for Morgantown. I originally thought differently until I took a step back and thought about it.
ReplyDeleteIf this was my hometown and students came to live in it for 4-6 years for ¾ of those years, I wouldn’t want them to have a say in many of the governmental functions. If they are just temporary citizens it’s not fair for them to elect a council member from their ward if they aren’t in that ward for an extended period of time (more than 5 or so years.) I think Morgantown took this into consideration when they set up this type of government. I think they’ve found a system that is best for this area and it seems to be working. I don’t see any major problems with the town as it’s ran.
I don’t believe the students electing council members would benefit this city. Throughout my years here I’ve seen students do some ignorant, stupidity ridden things. I can’t imagine what it would turnout like if they were allowed to vote for a representative. I can only seem to imagine kegs on every porch and constant couch fires smoldering when I think of what a student city council member would do. (Although I realize they wouldn’t have total control and be able to get away with something like that.) As I stated before I think we have a system that works.
In Morgantown I think the council-manager form is effective. The city seems to be run pretty smoothly with a manager in place. I think for this the size, makeup, and background of this city it’s a safe choice. Not only that, but with the business background many in Morgantown have, I can’t imagine there ever being a horrible manager. Also, with the fact there are so many jobs in Morgantown I don’t think you could pull someone that is effective enough, out of their work to be a full time mayor, except for someone who was trained specifically for it. These managers take a lot of responsibility off of council members and mayors. They are full time, meaning the city gets their full attention. With a strong mayor, the city may suffer because his/her plate is full with other jobs or trying to balance everything (another job, family, and being the mayor.)
Personally, I think that Morgantown should have ward based elections for City Council. I think that individual wards should be able to elect an official who has their areas specific needs in mind. WVU students should have better representation because the students are a large portion of the city and a lot of the issues that come up, involve the students/campus. I believe that students, whether or not they are planning on spending time here beyond school, should have a voice while being here. With this said, I do believe that Morgantown could improve city council elections.
ReplyDeleteMorgantown has a fair way in electing its city council members, but I completely agree with Ashley Wallace. Council members should represent their own individual wards. Constituents from a given ward in Morgantown should be able to vote for who they want from their ward. I also have to agree with what Ashley says about her Morgantown's colleagues concerns and opinions not being accounted for. Even though the majority of us are either eighteen, nineteen, and/or in are early twenties, we still have a right of say in what we believe is best for our community. The reason for us not being able to have a say in what we think is best for our city has to deal with the electoral system which was noted in class. The electoral system reduces the electoral power of Morgantown's minority population which is primarily the students who most don't live in Morgantown all year long. This isn't fair because like stated above in Berch's description, it's almost racially not right to discriminate our say in representation amongst how we feel about the Morgantown’s city council decisions.
ReplyDeleteWith this being said, I strongly am towards having the council-strong mayor system. There needs to be someone in charge of keeping the city up-to-date, the city manager has the authority to remove politics from administration. Yes, this manager would have too much power in his/her hands, but it’s sufficiently beneficial to have such a manager who sets new policies and usurp the legislative function. The manager may have too much control over the flow of information and I can see why Morgantown has had problems with their city managers only being short term, but one must be aware as to how competitive it must be to run for this position and know that your job may not last up till you retire.
http://www.coventryri.org/council-manager-form-of-government
As stated above in this link, “It is normal to expect a manager possessing such a grasp of needs to make recommendations on community needs and their implementation.” Given prior thought to this, I believe Morgantown shall keep the council-manager form of government. I do not like the idea of the council-strong mayor government because Morgantown is a small city compared to that of a city in New York who needs a mayor who is equivalent to the governor for sake of their given minority. The council-manager form is best, because it allows for us to have a say in what’s right and what is wrong which is taken into consideration to our needs.
For most or all states, the city council is a big deal because they are generally the people responsible for handling the day to day operations of state governments. Living in D.C. my entire life, I have grown fond of people campaigning to represent a ward (D.C. doesn’t really have districts) and throughout the city, these people are usually household names. For example, I live in Ward 7 and our city council members name is Yvette Alexander. She used to come around to schools and speak to students and I still remember her to this day. The Morgantown city council is much different.
ReplyDeleteWith the information given above, I feel as though Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members. The old system seems very outdated and not widely accepted by most people who actually care about how politics impacts their districts. The mere fact that minority groups are more prominent nowadays, continuing with this sort of system could be seen as discriminating and that could not only effect the existence of a respected staff of individuals, but people would start looking at their government different for the unequal representation. In accordance with my stance, I feel it is only appropriate to allow students to elect whom they want so long as they meet a certain requirement (like being 18+, etc.) Not only this, but city council members should be chosen by the people in certain districts (much like D.C.) and represent as such.
With all that said, Morgantown should switch from its council-manager form of government because not only is it unstable, but it could potentially turn into some sort of tyrannical thing and that is one thing, I feel, we as a nation do not need in order to move forward. According to Leon Neyfokh from the Boston Globe, “Skeptics point out that mayors in America can only do what their superiors in state and federal government will let them—that even a powerful city leader can be forced to back down from ambitious plans… But scholars who study local government say that hasn’t stopped visionary mayors around the country from putting forth bold local policy ideas that have spread and taken on national influence”. If Morgantown actually wants to promote democracy then they would allow not only students, but ALL constituents with the opportunity to choose individual council members by district.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2013/08/31/risemayors/Rnv8nJds6FP5ufnAQQMohM/story.html
I think that Morgantown should change the format of city council elections so that only residents of each individual ward elect their councilman/woman. Having city-wide elections makes it pointless to even have wards; this is like letting everyone in the US vote on each state's Congressmen/women, it just defeats the purpose of them representing a specific district. I like the idea of having wards so that each part of the city has someone who is supposed to promote the interests of the residents in that area, but this looks like it would be difficult in Morgantown. Looking at the Ward Boundary map (http://www.morgantownwv.gov/government/city-council/ward-map/), some of the wards (specifically the 1st, 5th, and 6th) are very stretched out and hardly connected, making them varied and not much of a specific area of the city. To address the issue of students, it is wrong to purposely try to dilute the power of a large group of residents. If students are willing to make Morgantown their official place of residence, they should get an equal chance to choose the representative for the student-heavy wards.
ReplyDeleteOn the issue of Morgantown's type of government, I believe that the council-manager system should stay. I see the good in council-strong mayor for larger cities, but council-manager seems to work best for cities of Morgantown's size. Having the city council hire a professional to handle the administrative duties is the best way to ensure that they are qualified and know what they are doing. The largest argument against this is that it is undemocratic, and my main counterargument is that elected officials hire the city manager, so if residents are unhappy with the city manager they can simply unseat the city council if a new city manager is not hired.
Do you think they should add primary elections and partisans to the ballot or do you think taking away the student population would be the only alteration necessary to make the ward representation the most efficient it can be?
DeleteI believe that the current council-manager system is the best fit for Morgantown. With this system, we have representation of the people through nonpartisan elections, combined with the education and experience of the city manager. The city manager handles the "business", but answers directly to the council. The council has a final say in many of the important decisions that directly effect those they were elected to represent. Many issues that arise in a college town of our size that other communities, in general, never experience. These issues are sometimes complicated and call for solutions that someone without a background in Public Administration may be unable to handle. Larger cities often utilize the council-strong mayor model for their local governments. In this system, the mayor is a full time elected official and has more power. I feel that style is not the best for Morgantown. This would mean the person "in charge" of Morgantown could possibly be a "career politician". They would be limited in their knowledge and experience, where the council has several people that can offer a wider variety of backgrounds, opinions, and abilities, therefore keeping the local government more "citizen oriented" and less about politics.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with the current method in which we elect council members. I do not believe that it would have any real impact on council decisions if the members were elected to represent certain small districts. Since our council members are only part time, they usually have other jobs within the community. They often have family members that also live in the area, I believe that they are interested in the success and well being of the city as a whole, and not just a specific district. The argument could be made that this would offer better student representation in the city council, but i disagree. Council members are very aware of the impact WVU has on our community. WVU provides opportunities to residents that would not be available if we were not a college town. Many long term residents of Morgantown are former WVU students. If we (the students) genuinely felt that we were not properly represented in the city council, we would band together and elect a representative of our own as one of the 7 members of council.
Overall, I think that the current systems are the best fit for Morgantown. We are still a small enough community to be represented by elected individuals from the area. If we were to change to any other system, I would be afraid we would lose a lot of our community focus and many easy to solve problems would be tied in red tape. Anytime government decisions can be made by individuals who directly represent the people, the outcome is usually a win.
Joey England
I personally was not born in Morgantown, West Virginia how ever over my four years in this city I have found the system to be effective and efficient, therefore I would propose not making many drastic changes in Morgantown. The residents are the ones that make the decisions around here, not the students that go to WVU that switch every year and have no lasting concerns for the area. This allows for organization and consistency year in and year out for the city and although Morgantown welcomes the uniqueness of the students, it would be too complicated to try and figure out what the best long term plans would be for the long term residents. I do not really think that the council-strong mayor system is a plausible idea for Morgantown, it is made up of wards that are quite diverse depending on what each individual requires. I would think that if you have lived in Morgantown for more than a couple of years, then you would realize that there are not many similarities between different areas around here, each ward is unique and should be governed as such. I like the way that Morgantown has been doing things and I agree that they should not change their approach.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members because while students account for a large amount of the population, students are not in Morgantown year round, and often do not have as much time and money invested in their lives within the Morgantown community. Opinions about elected officials could be skewed depending on what other location a student may spend the rest of their year. Since residence is temporary for many students, they may feel as if decisions are less important because they are shortly leaving. If students had a stronger presence of representation, there would be a student vs. non-student battle that could be ongoing, and there would be controversy generated. Students can and should utilize student government opportunities through WVU, and use this outlet to impact local politics.
ReplyDeleteMorgantown should also keep the council-manager form of government. While Morgantown is a large city, it does not have the education and income levels that many other larger cities do have. Morgantown also does not have a strong economy in the areas surrounding it, so while the council-strong mayor form of government may work for these large cities, it may not be the best option for Morgantown. The way it is currently running with council manager eliminates politics from administration, which creates fairness and increases probability that tasks will be completed and progress obtained. I, and I know many other feel confident in a trained professional who knows what they are doing carrying out the legislation process.
I do not think the city of Morgantown should change their current council manager system. However, each ward should be able to elect their own city council member. This member would have the wards best interests in mind. Also, it would get rid of the county wide elections that ignore minorities concerns. In this case ignore the concerns of the students in Morgantown. I believe students should have a say in the city of Morgantown, especially when many of the issues involve or evolve from college students. Although, the council manager system is an effective system for the city of Morgantown. The residents are the ones who should elect the members of the council because they are here for long term and long term issues that may arise. Each resident should also feel responsible enough to elect a reasonable member from their ward that will chose an efficient manager. In this way the city council manager system properly represents the city of Morgantown. I do no think the council strong mayor system is a system that would fit Morgantown. It gives too much power just to one person. I feel the city of Morgantown is managed better by all the people rather than just one.
ReplyDelete-Taylor Shipley
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ReplyDeleteI do not believe Morgantown should change the way it elects city council members. Morgantown is not a major city, it is a large town. Students make up half the population in Morgantown, but these students do not live here year round. Therefore, I don’t believe they should have a say in the government. The people that live in West Virginia may think Morgantown is a city, but the way it operates is more like a town. If Morgantown tried to operate as a city, like Pittsburgh, it would not work out the same way. Overall, Morgantown has an efficient way of electing city council members.
ReplyDeleteMorgantown should not move away from the council manager government structure. No form of government in a city or town is exactly the same. Because of the size in population and its close proximity to surrounding areas, this is the most effective form of local government. Morgantown may be a large town however it is most effectively ran when the city managers keep city hall moving smoothly by keeping themselves and staff away from political positions and controversies. Professional city managers are specifically trained for public administration and belong to professional associations such as the international city/county management association which help network and share advice with other city managers. This all allows the city to take advantage of the deep resources of knowledge and experience with no additional cost to the city. With training and experience the city managers know when they don’t have enough knowledge to make a good decision and put forth the right measurements to gain additional resources when needed. Furthermore, the city manager has the duty of handling the day to day operation of the city government while the elected mayor is able to devote all his or her energy to paying attention the interests of the constituents. Lastly with the mayor part of the council, council meetings and citizen committees play a stronger role in developing policy, not just approving it. Citizens can access all stages of policy development and share their insights during the process.
I agree with the points that you stated, Morgantown is a large town and I wouldn't consider it a city like Pittsburgh. One thing is what is your thoughts on student representation? And how would this change you thoughts on how the town is ran?
DeleteI think Morgantown should keep the current system of government it is using now. Each district is evenly represented and each member of the council has basically the same amount of power. I think this is a good way to make sure that no one council member gains too much power, or tries to bully the other council members. This also ensures that certain wards don't get forgotten or overlooked because each one has their own representative on the council. Allowing student areas to elect their own representatives has the potential for disaster though. Most students at WVU aren't very well tuned-in to their government, or government in general for that matter. Putting more power in the hands of the uninformed is just making a bad problem even worse. Students also aren't from Morgantown most of the time, so they wouldn't be that emotionally invested in making the city better, unless they were planning on living here after school.
ReplyDeleteThe council-manager system seems to work for Morgantown because it is such a larger area geographically, and each area is different from the others. Having seperate representatives for each ward ensures that each ward is taken care of, not just the most important ones, or the ones with the wealthiest people living in them. If Morgantown switched to a strong mayor government, the mayor would have so much power. With Morgantown being such an important economic city, the strong mayor would more than likely have too much responsibility and likely struggle with budgeting and spending correctly. Having multiple representatives from every ward ensures that each person is a bit of a "specialist" for their ward. Each memeber can keep tabs on their ward, instead of one strong mayor attempting to keep tabs on the giant city of Morgantown.
I do not believe that Morgantown should change anything about how the city elects the members of the council, nor about the council manager system. Even if having a city wide election reduces the impact of a minority this particular minority does not do much in regards to over all legislation. In regards to students in Morgantown the majority of students at WVU, and other campuses are not from Morgantown. The only time they are in the city is during class hours, or during the school year in general. They are not here all year long. If Morgantown had an election where each ward elected their own representative; who would the elected official from the student’s ward listen to over the summer months? Also students in Morgantown aren’t here for more than maybe 6 years on average if you count doctorate programs. Others leave after 4 or less. I do not think it really necessary for a voice which changes that frequently to be represented as a voice which will be here for the next 50 years or so. As it is now the rest of the population of Morgantown who actually lives here can chose what’s best for the city in which they live. SO they will care more for the upkeep of the city in general. Rather than people who care more for noise violations, and underage drinking.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to the council-manager system it seems to function well on its own. It keeps the power diluted and in a variety of hands rather than all power concentrated in a single person. I feel that if all the power was concentrated in a “strong mayor” then the mayor would have too much to handle. Between students and underage, to police force, to general upkeep of the city there is just too much for a single person to handle. As it is now in the council-manager all power is split up so rather than it being a decree from the mayor on high… there is a full council which makes the decisions. If you want to get technical it would be similar to the difference between statutory law, and an executive order. Statutory Law, law from a legislature, is always more carefully considered. It is the first thing people think of when they think of a Law. In regards to an executive order, which is not an option for any legislature, it can be derived from any whim from the governing mayor/president/executive.
From what I can gather from my fellow classmates’ comments on the blog, the consensus seems to be that Morgantown should not change its council-manager form of city government. I have several arguments for why I think the council-manager system makes sense for Morgantown, many of them stemming from the fact that Morgantown faces unique challenges as a university town. After thinking about it, I have decided that the three best arguments for keeping the current system can be broken down along fairly neutral representative lines:
ReplyDelete1. A proper defense of the ward voting system.
My classmates seemed to take issue with the fact that ward representatives were elected from a city-wide vote. I understand the sentiment, “The people in the individual wards alone should choose who represents them.” However, I would counter this sentiment by saying that the critiques don’t contain adequate knowledge of the population distribution of the wards, or other important characteristics. I assume that the elections are city-wide because there was a fear that a dubious usurper could come into power in wards with a fragmented constituency. By holding city-wide elections it reassures that the entire city approves of the ward representatives. This serves as a balance against fringe candidates.
2. Unique problems faced by a college town
As we discussed in class, there are a plethora of problems that are unique to a college town. It is harder to micromanage each individual service of a town that faces such nuanced situations; therefore, having individual department heads would be inefficient and complicated. It is preferable to let the departments run themselves. They do a better job because the University provides a built-in source of income for departments (such as police and fire). In fact, I recently heard that were going to start charging an extra fee of $20-$50 in tuition expenses to hire additional emergency services. While funding still is a contentious issue, it is less so than in other cities. It is preferable to let a city manager manage this situation. This results in less struggles within the council, and the entire city runs more efficiently.
3. It could be argued that students always get the most representation
Several of the classmates have presented the argument that students are underrepresented on the city council. They reason that lack of physical representation on the council actually equates to a lack of policy representation. This could not be farther from the truth, it could be argued that students are still disproportionally overrepresented. This is due to the fact that the University is by far the most powerful political force in the city, and they are directly responsible to the students. I can’t think of a single reasonable policy that, if a significant portion of the student body demanded, would not be implemented. The city economy relies nearly entirely on the students, so you had better believe that they are the most powerful political force. This is the case, even though they might not be able to get seats on the city council. Their representation just comes from a different “political” body (The University).
The way I see it Morgantown should not change the way that they elect city council members. If each ward chose their own representative the best interests of the city may not be there. I am a student and I have lived in Morgantown my whole life. There are many families that live in-between all of the students. These families may not want someone representing them who only have the best interests of the students at WVU. I think that it would be best if everyone would work together to represent the city as a whole.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of the council-strong mayor form of government. Everyone works to come to an agreement and then the mayor carries it out. This could be difficult for the mayor because he may become disliked by some people who do not like what is being done for the city. The mayor is supposed to represent his or her city and should step up and do so. The line item vito power would also help with what the city wants as long as he used all of this power for the city and not himself.
I believe Morgantown should keep its council-manager form of government.
ReplyDeleteAnthony (and the comments to his post) mentioned above that Morgantown is:
A) not a major city
and
B) largely comprised of students who do not care about the government.
This is important, and it is exactly why I feel the way I do about the current system. Giving more power to students in the local government is almost assuredly a terrible idea. Most students (unless they took this class, of course) do not express interest in the local government or its procedure. With so many other responsibilities and leisure activities, there is not much time to devote to a real understanding of the local government or the people that run it. Turning the power (even a small portion of it) over to students would simply not turn out well, in my best estimate.
I also personally like the current system in which each council member is elected by the city as a whole. You mentioned that this reduces minority power (which could be disastrous), but in Morgantown, this is not a major concern. I like this better because the city of Morgantown is not greatly segregated, and the city, in my experience, tends to operate as a whole rather than separate parts (like New York City, for example). Because of this, having city-wide elections makes sense because most people are involved with the entire city in some respect.
While the way the council chooses a city manager is perhaps a bit undemocratic, it does make sense to have a trained professional at the helm. Again, I'm not convinced that most people are extremely invested in local government, so, to me, it makes sense to have the council choose the city manager. They understand the policies and procedures, and they understand what skills and expertise a city manager should exhibit. Because of this, it follows that the council should choose their city manager to ensure optimal quality.
The city-manager form of local government is certainly not a "one size fits all" solution, as demonstrated by the article on San Diego that you shared, but it does work for Morgantown, and I do not think it needs to be altered.
After reading through the links and through everyone's posts, it seems that the general consensus is that Morgantown should keep the way it elects its city council members so those in each ward elect the representative of that ward. I agree, and there are a few reasons why. It's a given that WVU students are not going to go out of their way to vote for any Morgantown representatives, and even if they did, they most likely would not put in the type of effort and time learning about the candidates because it would not pertain too much to them at the end of the day. City council members should each represent small local districts, in my opinion, to get more personal feedback from their constituents and not have to represent more opposing opinions from throughout the city.
ReplyDeleteAs for whether Morgantown should keep the council-manager form of government or have a council-strong mayor form of government, I can see pros and cons to both sides. There are some interesting points listed in the article about San Diego being up in the air on whether or not to switch back to the council-manger form of government. For example, many believe that the strong-mayor structure is best because it holds a single person accountable when something goes wrong at City Hall (playing devil's advocate, can any one person ever be held accountable in politics?? it takes dozens of people to have legislation passed) Another example that is anti-strong-mayor structure: it is pointed out that the mayor typically had a slow response when requested for records and information. The mayor does not get to be seen voting in public and is not obligated to sit in at council hearings. (That is something that can be a serious issue, and makes it seem as if the mayor has HUGE power). I think that keeping the council-manager form of government would be appropriate in Morgantown's case, because I think the last thing really any small town in our country needs is someone with too much power. A mayor is equivalent to governor in a state system, and in a place as small as Morgantown I don't think it's necessary or efficient.
I think Morgantown should keep the system of government they are using currently. With this system, each district of Morgantown is represented fairly. There is no district that has more power over the others. Having students be able to pick their council member would be a horrible idea. Students would then be able to pick someone who can fight for what the student body wants, rather than for what is best for the city of Morgantown. Most students at WVU don't know a great amount about politics. Students would be electing council members for the wrong reasons.
ReplyDeleteThe council-manager system seems to be working just fine for Morgantown, however, I think that having the council-strong mayor form of government would have its benefits also. The current system we are in allows each part of Morgantown to have a say and improve their part of the city. If we were to have a mayor that acted almost like the governor and performed executive orders, there would be a lot more that would get done. Instead of having a vote on every single thing that goes through city council, the mayor would be able to approve or shut things down right away. This would allow each district to get its fair share of city improvements. The system we have now can allow for 1 district to benefit a lot more than other districts. Both systems work, however, I feel like giving the mayor more power would benefit the city of Morgantown as a whole.
I think Morgantown should keep it's current government system because it works well for a small city such as Morgantown. If Morgantown was a larger city and half of it's residents didn't account for as students then I would reconsider this opinion but since literally half of this city's population is West Virginia University students I have to stand on my opinion. I am from a very small town in West Virginia; therefore, this current government system is familiar to me and I understand it well which makes it easier for me to take the side that it should remain.
ReplyDeleteThe council manager system works well because since Morgantown is smaller, the city council can meet to make sure the city stays away from possible threats to the system and other things that could possibly be the downfall of the government and/or city. Morgantown also does not have the financial resources to have any other type of system; therefore, it has to work for Morgantown because there really is no other option.
I can go both ways on this situation. To start off, I do not think that Morgantown should change their way of electing representatives. I like the idea of an individual being elected based on the wards of the city. This allows for people of each district to feel comfortable with their electorate, and have confidence that he/she will be successful. Each district has a an elected representative based on a vote from these districts would make much more sense then just one big vote.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to the students, this is where I disagree. Like people have mentioned above, students are enrolled here primarily nine months out of the year, and a majority of these students are out of state and belong to their respective area of government. Personally, I am from outside of Boston, and I am fully registered in my town along with the state of Massachusetts. I am a full time student here, but I do not participate in Morgantown local government and the policies associated with this town. WVU has a majority of the population here, and I think a good amount of the students here are in the same boat I am in. Even though the electoral system in Morgantown reduces the electoral power for the minority population (the students at WVU), students would be based off of a short-term basis which therefore would be ineffective.
On the other hand, students should have to right to participate if they feel necessary to do so. Reasons for this are the fact that people who do attend this school, and happen to locals should have the right to participate.
Overall, I think the way council members are elected is successful so far, and should not change at the moment.
I do not believe that Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members or the current governing system. There is a definitive reason that the city has the city-manager approach to government: a little over half the population are not full time residents. This system provides for the needs of the true residents of the town. Although some would argue that students should be represented, that is completely absurd. When asked who plans to leave Morgantown after college, over 90% of the room raised their hands. Therefore, these individuals should not have a say in the longterm policy making of Morgantown.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, Morgantown is not an Atlanta or a Chicago, and does not require the services of a powerful mayor. For a city of less than 30,000 permanent residents, Morgantown effciently elects its council members to the best of its ability. Some question the functionality of each ward being a city wide election, but they must understand that it is the only way to insure fair and equal representation for all. The council-manager city government also removes politics and corruption from the table as professionals are brought into serve the city, and not those who are popular in the town.
George Bostic
I believe the current council manager representation in city council is the best form of city government we can have in Morgantown. However I do not think this form of government works well outside of college towns. As many students have already commented allowing students to vote would be foolish because students in Morgantown have little to no interest in what happens to this city and most are out of state. Hiring a city manager is better than electing one for a couple of reasons; 1. S/he can bring in and unbiased and non partisan viewpoint to the council. 2. S/he has being fired as a punishment held over their heads which forces them to do a good job to better the city. I also like the idea of city wide voting against strictly district voting within ones own district. This being because in a medium sized city such as Morgantown people move and use different things all over the city and should have the right to vote for members in all areas of the city.
ReplyDelete1. Morgantown should not change the way it elects its city council members. They cannot chose to make it that only those in each ward elect the representative of that ward because Morgantown does not have the population to so. The only way that would work is by allowing students (not full time residents) to elect their own representatives. But I feel that this would not be a good idea, because for the most part students are here for 4 years- so is looking into the local politics and understanding where each representative stand really that high on their priority list. By keeping the vote strictly to those who live in the area would result in a much more knowledgeable group of voters as a whole, and not have to deal with voters who are only in the town for short term purposes (school). And as for the city council members representing small districts or the entire city, I feel that they should represent the entire city, but I think that this should be based solely on the population of each city. If the city is large enough where the council members can represent small districts I feel that that is the way to go, but the smaller cities, such as Morgantown, should be represented by the council members representing the whole city.
ReplyDelete2. Morgantown should continue with the council-manager government because this way the council is able to choose the best-qualified person it can find to direct the administrative operations of Morgantown, which in turn leads to a high standard of administrative management being achieved. It also leads to effective administration in one person whose reputation and future career depend on the quality of his work. The fact that the council is able to choose the best qualified person it can find to direct the administrative operations of Morgantown also shows that the council-manager government would be most effective which would lead to a consistently high standard of administrative management being achieved. The reason that such a small city would have success running this system is the fact that the population doubles every school semester due to WVU, and even though most students are not full time residents they still spend over half they year here and are effected by what is happening in the local government.
The only viable alternative to the council-manager system is the council-strong mayor system. For Morgantown, this system would work though it might lead to tension between the student population who only lives in the city for some months out of the year and the rest of the city's population. A manager-council system prevents this in some way but does give too much un democratic power to a manager. Too much discretion, even on the part of an expert can be suspect. The only real way to find a managerial system for local government is to remain flexible to circumstances and avoid giving too much discretionary power to those that aren't democratically elected.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that Morgantown should change its current form of government. I agree with previous posts in that Morgantown is not really a large city.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the main reason I believe current form of government is so affective lies in the in representation by ward which ultimately reduces the power of the student population. Though it may be ideal for students to have more power than they currently do, many issues that affect the students that attend the university do not necessarily affect nor benefit the permanent residents of Morgantown. Moreover, because many of Morgantown's permanent residents are alumni of the University and are actively involved in the extra curricular that the university draws to the city unfairness to students is much less likely due to high community involvement.
The council strong form of government would not be ideal for Morgantown because it allots too much power to the mayor which can cause tension between the mayor and the rest of the legislature. In contrast, the council weak form of government may be too weak for a city like Morgnatown because though we may not be a particularly large city, we are not a small town either. There is not enough structure in the council weak form of government. In addition, when something goes wrong in a council weak form of government, legislatures are quick to blame and things fall apart very quickly.
I believe that Morgantown should change the way it elects its officials. Council members representing smaller specific district areas would allow for certain areas that may not have as much political power to still be focused on. I also believe that since Morgantown is a college town, that students should be represented in the city council. At first, I didn't agree with this because I understand that most students are here to get their degree (or party) and then leave which doesn't really bring anything to the city itself. But after attending a City Council meeting I found that many of the issues (almost all of them actually) were some how directly or indirectly connected to the students living in town or WVU in some way. In this respect I believe it would be advantageous for the council to have student representation or someone from the university (maybe a professor whose residence is Morgantown) serving on the council so the council would have an easier time getting ahold of the right people at WVU to help work out problems.
ReplyDeleteBeing a Political Science Major myself I am torn on the idea of a City Manager. I'd like to think someone who has a full background in Public Admin would be the best suited for managing a city as opposed to someone who had a degree in another area. I do agree though that this does limit democracy but I think there are enough checks on this position through the city council, who are elected members, that the city manager position seems to be the most ideal for smaller-mid sized cities.
-Kathrine Lilly
I believe that Morgantown should remain a council-manager form of government. Based of the size of Morgantown this system has more than one representative from each city district elected. Which in turn allows for each part of the city to have a chance in representation. Also I believe that the Mayor of Morgantown should not have the greatest power, it would give the mayor too much power for such a small town. This form of government allows for decisions to be made by a full-time professional rather a part-time city council, whose members have other responsibilities in their lives. By having a full time council member since this is their job they will devote their work days to bettering the city and reaching goals that need done. Its best to have someone in this position who can put forth their full effort into it rather than a part time who has other obligations.
ReplyDeleteThis issue with students holding a position in city council has its pros and cons. Students make up a large amount of the population, so it would make sense to have a student representation for the city. Students can bring up points that someone who isn’t living on campus can bring up. They will have a new outlook on issues and bring in ideas to better the town. The problem is you have to pick a student with the right mindset and that will have a positive impact. Along with having student representation you would have to put a term limit on their position because of summers and students who graduate.
I agree with you that students do make up a large population in this town. With that being said I don't think there is a need for student representation. For one I don't think they would have the same attention to detail because students are so busy already with work and school. Another thing is that students are only here part time, and most issues that they have should be dealt with through the school, not the city.
DeleteMorgantown is a unique city to say the least. That is reflected in its system of local government. Since so many of its inhabitants are students, it makes it hard for Morgantown to neatly fall into a specific system. Right now, the system in place is council manager, which has 7 wards represented by people elected by the entire city to avoid a student possibly running for election. This is difficult because typically, one would want to individually choose the individual who is representing their specific district. The problem for that lies in the fact that some districts are heavily populated by students. Even though this system seems to be working from a distance, I feel as if it could use some tweaking. It could possibly be beneficial to jerrymander the wards to redistrict them, changing their population density to limit the amount of student housing in each district. That way, there would still be a very decent amount of adults per each ward, allowing for elections within the ward. Even though I like the idea of representing the entire city, I feel as if it would moreso benefit the people of Morgantown if individual wards were focused on, and topics that needed to be addressed within the ward would be taken care of in a more timely and efficient manner than if the entire city was being focused on as a whole. In San Diego, the transition from the same system Morgantown has to the Council-Mayor(strong) system did not seem to be the best option for them. The transition seemed to take the mayor out of touch with its council and its citizens, which did not sit well with council members. It seems as if Morgantown tried to undergo a similar transition, the same result would be present on this side of the country, in addition to San Diego, California. Even though Morgantown is considered a medium sized city, it has a small town feel. Separating one powerful person away from the average citizen would not end well in my opinion, because the system now allows constituents to be very in touch with their ward representative and even mayor. Distancing a high powered official would not benefit a city like Morgantown, yet would just provide for more issues to go unaddressed and leave the citizens feel more out of touch with their government system.
ReplyDeleteThe great thing about having a council-manager form of government, as seen in Morgantown and mentioned in the Coventry,Rhode Island website article, is that it allows for a wide variety of variations in the operations of local government. The Coventry, Rhode Island website example also gives insight into another positive aspect that this council-manager form of government allows for, and that is a concentration of responsibility in the elected council.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that the city would function better if student areas could elect their own representatives. Like so many others have mentioned in the thread, it would not make sense for a student population, a majority of which will probably be short term, to have such representational power. Many in the thread have stated that they are only residents of the town for the short term, before returning to work in their home state or town. They do not plan on staying in Morgantown once they graduate. Many have also stated that they even return to live in their home state or town when school is not in session (during semester breaks). These students are only residents for two-thirds, or at most, three-quarters of the year- so they are not actually permanent residents. Again, it would not be fair to give them the same representational power that a long term, full-time, permanent resident (with local interests) would have.
Classmate Jess Mazzelon brings up a good point that if students have opinions or issues that they want to bring attention to that they can bring it up to University Deans or the Student Government Association. There are organizations designed to listen to the voices of students and handle their concerns. The Caruth Center, mountain lair offices, and student advising offices also offer channels to address university concerns as well. Classmate Andrew Gavin offers a good counter-point to this with the Medical Amnesty example that shows how an Institutional BoG can ignore policies that are consistently passed and supported by the SGA.
I believe that Morgantown should keep its council-manager form of government. I do not feel that a council-strong mayor form of government is appropriate for Morgantown. As of 2012, the US Census website pegs Morgantown with a permanent population of about 31,000. A full time mayor should not be appointed to have much of the same power and representation that Earl Ray Tomblin would have as Governor. West Virginia has a population of about 1.8 million. Morgantown accounts for less than 2% (1.72%) of the states permanent population. In bigger cities, where the population is more concentrated and takes up bigger portions (populations) the state, it makes more sense to have a council-strong mayor form of government. I don’t feel that this is necessary for Morgantown.
*posted on behalf of Chris Trusty*
ReplyDeleteChristopher Trusty November 6, 2013
Blog Assignment Pols 220
I do not think that Morgantown should change the way they elect city council members, as well as the way they operate. The way Morgantown, a large college city, is made up simply does not make sense to make a change. The population literally cuts itself in half during the summer months making the voter turnout not nearly as high or representative of the members that are effected by the city council decisions each year. In addition to the fact that the city population is largely made up of college students, it is made up from college students all over the country and the world. The differences in beliefs and cultural background make changing the election process inappropriate. Students are mainly affected by student government and the makeup of the university’s staff, those are the decisions in which students should be able to voice their opinions. Students should not be able to voice change an election in a city where they only live for nine months a year for just four years. Granted, nine months out of the year is a large portion of the year, but four years is not an extremely long time when it comes to changing the diagnostics of a city for temporary residents for people who live there for a large portion of their lives. I do not think I have ever heard a student complain about a city election showing that frankly, most students simply don’t care about anything about Morgantown besides how the university is operating. If you are going to allow students to vote you might as well let people who are in town for the weekend vote to. Leave the decisions to permanent members of the community, not temporary members.
*posted on behalf of Christ Trusty*
For as "big" as everyone thinks Morgantown is, it really isn't. We're not a major city. We just happen to have a huge school in the middle of a small city, thus there are people everywhere, all the time; they're almost always students. That being said, one would think that the students need a lot of representation. Being a student myself, I disagree. I think the council-manager form of government seems to be working fine for Morgantown. The students could probably benefit in some ways by having a representative at meetings, but the meeting I attended did have someone from WVU sticking up for us, essentially. Students say they want to be heard, but I just feel like most of us don't care that much. I can't really think of a time that I've had a big enough issue with Morgantown that I wanted to march down to the courthouse and take out my frustrations. Most of the students will be gone in a matter a few years. As for having a representative for each ward be elected by that ward and specifically represent them, that may be a decent idea. Everyone wants to be represented properly. It may even be more functional. In the San Diego example, it seemed like the mayor wanted to act more independently. He wasn't as connected to the council or even the constituents. Since Morgantown isn't even as big as San Diego, that could really cause for some problems. I also feel that having a mayor act as almost like a governor would be way too much for Morgantown. There's really no need for that. We all have our reserves when it comes to giving someone more power. We know what can go wrong. It can all go to someone's head and make them lose sight of the fact that it's about the residents of the city. I just don't really see too much of a problem with the way things are going now.
ReplyDeleteI agree that some students want to be heard, but I feel even those people are not going to speak up. Most of Morgantown's population is made up of students that are not even a from Morgantown. Therefore, I believe that the council- manager form of government is best for the city of Morgantown.
DeleteI don’t believe Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council members. I don’t have a problem with the way the members are picked because I believe it’s a fair share. Morgantown population is mainly large because of the out of state students that attend college. So therefore there is no need for students to run for their own representatives. I believe no one would actually pay attention to the student ideas because after they graduate or depart a way from college, they’re not part of Morgantown anymore. I also say this because no one would pay attention to their ideas, because no one would care. After all you’re just a student. I believe the city council members should be entitled to their own ward just to give the council a little bit more power. However they all would be able to stand together because at the end of the day, they all represent Morgantown.
ReplyDeleteI believe Morgantown should change the council manager form of government. I say this because I believe it does leave too much power in the hands of one individual. As we all know one individual having too much power eventually starts to abuse the power. I also believe it may be a lot of things for just one person to handle. It should be split up with a number of people to take on different roles, or at least another method, so that the person doesn’t get to have a lot of power. But most of all so that the person won’t seem so under pressured. For me, I know if I have a lot of responsibilities I began to get overwhelmed.
1. Should Morgantown change the way it elects its city council members so that only those in each ward elect the representative of that ward? I agree that only electing council members from your wards causes problems due to heavily populated student living in certain areas. I believe that whomever wants to run for council should be able to, despite what ward you are from. What is important is what you value and stand for as a councilperson, and living in a certain ward does provide you with certain beliefs and issues to lobby for, however I do not feel that it should be restricted to certain people from different wards. As a student, I have been in Morgantown for six years, and after attending a city council meeting now I truly know how we are viewed in the eyes of local government. Students are not treated equally as other citizens. For the past three years I have stayed in Morgantown to work through out the summers and students are here for a large majority of the year. I feel that my opinions, needs, and concerns have the right to be met just as any other person living anywhere in this country. however, I am not certain if a student should be on the city council, but rather student representation in another form. I do not think city council members should represent districts, they should represent the entire city, the needs of the city and truly provide for all the residents that make Morgantown such a fantastic place.
ReplyDeleteMorgantown should make the transition from council-manager form of government to the council-strong mayor form of government. After attending a city council meeting, and I would like to continue to do so, I witnessed a lack of knowledge of the roles and responsibilities of these councilmen and women. They were not aware if most of the issues such as traffic, safety, construction etc. were the city's responsibilities or the states. The council even admitted to projects not being completed and being put on the backburner due to the lack of being able to follow timelines and to complete necessary tasks. Yes, Morgantown is not the biggest city in America, however it does consider itself a city nonetheless. Morgantown is a city, but it's needs and population are different than most. There are students, long time residents, environmental needs, major traffic issues, commuter issues, major sporting events held in this city where people travel all over the country to visit and support our city, there are many local businesses and countless other things that deserve a better form of representation of their local government. With a mayor, there will be more motivation to complete tasks, meet the needs of the people, and better management over a budget. I believe that with an acting mayor they will take on the responsibility because their name represents all of the people within the city, and the council can make sure they are lobbying for their people.
In my opinion Morgantown should not change the way that they elect city officials. Morgantown is a very unique city in terms that the population is dominated by college students during the year, and then drops off in the summer months. Voting in officials should be done by the city as a whole, not their own representatives. A reason for this is because it is a small, not highly populated area that is not very diverse, or spread out eliminating the need to separate by wards. This type of style is better suited for large cities like New York or Boston. The current system in place is suited for the way Morgantown currently is operating.
ReplyDeleteThe council-manager form of government is best suited for Morgantown. I think a major benefit is that it eliminates most political pressure and corruption that come with electing officials. Also the system is better suited for a smaller city such as Morgantown. It does under represent students students, but in all honesty if you took a poll of students involved in politics on campus I feel like their is small numbers of students really involved in politics on this campus or in this town. If their was an outcry for more representation for students than there might be a push to change the system.
To me, it makes no sense for Morgantown to change the way its council members are elected. The city functions perfectly fine the way it is and adding students to the equation is not likely to have any practical or positive impact. The portion of Morgantown that stays up to date on city events consists of the non-students who already vote. The majority of students have no interest or knowledge of Morgantown's politics or needs, so why should we make up our voter populous? There is already some level of resentment towards WVU students from locals. I can't think catapulting us into arenas that have been exclusively reserved for residents would do much to mend that relationship. Ultimately, the Morgantown residents know what is in their best interest and should be the ones to vote on it. The students would only congest the process. -Steven Seibert
ReplyDeleteI think that the form of government Morgantown has right now is fine. I also think that the City Council members should represent the city as a whole and not just a certain district. Speaking from personal experience, last week I was trying to get a hold of someone on city council for comment on the new Sheetz issue. I called each City Council member multiple times but Ron Bane was the only one I could reach. If I lived in a certain ward and was assigned to only speak to one Council member, I think it would be difficult at times to address issues. I also do not think the students need representation. I think most students' opinions differ from those of residents. With the Sheetz issue again, many residents are opposed to having a Panera and Starbucks on top of High St. and a new Sheetz on University, but the students are all for it. These new chains will hurt the local businesses and their owners (most likely residents). It is frustrating though that if you sign a petition as a student who's not a resident, your name doesn't count even if the issue pertains to you.
ReplyDeleteI think the Council-Manager form of government should stay. I don't think Morgantown is large enough for the alternative. Although some argue it's not democratic, the Council was elected by the people and then the elected officials appointed who they thought was best fit for the position. I think this is definitely the best option for Morgantown.
Laura Haight
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ReplyDeleteIn reference to the discussion of a citizen’s ability to vote for other district’s council members, I firmly believe it is necessary to allow cross district voting during elections. The leading reason for this conclusion is the expansion of diversity that this concept would provide. Inclusion of certain areas of Morgantown within the districts would lead to the inevitable grouping of homogenous people living similar lifestyles with likeminded concerns. This is a product of the basic human tendency to inhabit areas with small demographic variations. Examples would include the likelihood of elderly citizens to live in retirement home communities, in comparison to a student’s probability of living in an apartment complex.
ReplyDeleteThese concentrated areas of demographics create districts that include people with similar concerns and interests, yet exclude the ability for council member candidates to be elected in an open minded manner. Namely, because it would be overwhelmingly likely that the prevalent demographic in a specific district would vote for the candidate that most closely represents that demographic. Candidates with similar demographics would purposely run for the district they most closely resemble, and the election would be based upon the candidate’s demographic, not their stance upon issues. This could also lead to a manipulation of which issues and concerns would most dominantly be addressed by a councilmember’s campaign, as opposed to a well-rounded council member winning the election as a result of their stance on issues important for the city as a whole.
Illustrating the bigger picture, council members should be representative of the entire city. While some could argue that this minimizes a candidate’s personalized connection with their district, it is important to take note that there are a total of seven council members, a sufficient amount for addressing the individual needs of all citizens in a city the size of Morgantown. The necessity of council members to singularly represent a specific district in large cities is apparent, but a smaller city such as Morgantown does warrant a concern for a member’s neglect of any constituent’s problem.
Lastly, I believe that a strong-mayor form of government is most reasonable. Primarily, because the head of the governing body should be elected and under no circumstances appointed without consent of the public. The mayor is not a Supreme Court justice, a person that is immune to all influence of the people and merely serving as an interpreter of law. The mayor should be member of government that is heavily influenced by constituents, and he should possess an intimate understanding of the needs specific to his community. As I observed at the Morgantown City Council meeting, the council does not always work as a cognitive machine that steadily progresses toward a well-defined goal. Instead, they sometimes need the unifying force a mayor can provide, which guides the council’s direction toward the outlined objectives of the citizens.
Mariah Mandy
I believe that the city of Morgantown should not change the way it elects its city council members. Morgantown is a much smaller city than major cities, so having a council member represent the district that they live it is a good way to be very familiar and "specialized" almost, with that specific ward.
ReplyDeleteAlso, do to the fact that the council members have a say in the entire city and not just their ward I do not think only those in each ward should elect the representative of that ward. However, I do not think that it would be better if students could elect their own representative. Most students are only here temporarily so it would not be fair for the residence of Morgantown that live here permanently. The students represent such a huge population in Morgantown that the focus would only ever be on the student ward.
I think for Morgantown's best interest each city council member represents their small local districts and by doing that and forming together they are representing the city as a whole.
Overall, Morgantown should keep the council manager form of government. The council strong mayor form of government would put too much power in one persons hands. Also, a full time mayor seems unnecessary for the size of Morgantown (especially when it is not the school year). It also would cost more to do that form.
I do not think that Morgantown should change the way it elects city council members. I have lived right outside of Morgantown my whole life and always hear a lot bout the city. I do not see any reason as to why they would need to change their system. The council-manager system allows actual Morgantown residents to decide on the city council. The residents are the ones who pay more attention to the politics here in Morgantown, yes many students might, but thousands of them are not even familiar with how our systems are ran in WV. Students do have a lot of education on politics and are learning more in classes like PoliSci 220, but the majority of them are only in Morgantown when classes are in session. They more than likely do not know what is best for Morgantown so I do not see why all students should be able to vote. Also, going off of Aaron Riel, the student population is so diverse that it would be hard for them to make a decision that is agreeable.
ReplyDeleteI do not see the need for Morgantown to shift to the alternative, council - strong mayor. In this system the mayor carries out roles such as veto power and appointing department heads. I think that department heads should even be voted on. In bigger cities the mayor is equivalent to the state's governor and I do not think that Morgantown is that big of a city.
I am firm believer in the idea of “divide and conquer”, so I would favor small district representation within the city council. I am a native of Virginia Beach, a city where a system similar to this is already utilized, so I can understand the benefits of such system. By dividing the interests of the city, a representative has the opportunity to become more deeply educated and informed on issues affecting the city. For example, a representative geographically closer to Cheat Lake would take a particular interest in issues relating to the lake. This could include things like nature preservation, tourism, and even long distance transportation to metro areas – issues that would probably never concern a representative for the Downtown area. Morgantown is particularly unique because of the university’s presence. Electing people to particular wards would greatly benefit the interests of WVU and boost the relationship of the city with the school. The representative for the Sunnyside area can truly get a student’s perspective (unique from other full-time residents) and help the council better serve their interests. Overall, specialization is never a bad thing and Morgantown would benefit from a more intricate system of government.
ReplyDeleteI think that Morgantown would also benefit from shifting power from the city manager to the mayor to be more in line with my previous suggestion of representing particular districts. Although Morgantown is not a very large city, it does control more than your average small-town metropolitan area (WVU). If the mayor was the central focus, the idea of dividing tasks would be exemplified at the highest level. It would be a uniform standard that all facets of the government follow. The council’s role should be strictly legislative, granted that they are the most educated on the issues affecting the city. The mayor serves as a general gate-keeper of policy and can be advised on a wide array of issues. Ultimately, a council-strong mayor form of government is more professional and allows for greater specialization.
Some of my classmates express concerns that a council-strong mayor system and a ward representation system would neglect the needs and interest of students, but that is simply untrue. By dividing the town into districts, there will undoubtedly be areas of high university concentration. A representative will have to recognize those issues and conduct policy accordingly, ultimately serving the needs of WVU and its students.
I believe that Morgantown should change slightly the way that they elect officials. I believe that people of specific wards should only be allowed to elect people from there ward, because other people don't know what someone else in a different ward needs. They can not say that something they need is what the other ward needs. I also believe that students should have a Representative on the city council. Students make up a huge majority of the population of Morgantown for most of the year except for a total of 3. We should have a say. The council likes to pass legislation that affects students, but they have no clue how that affects us because we don't have anyone speaking for us on the council. I believe that if this changed there would be less tension between students, the university, and the council.
ReplyDeleteI also think that the city-manager role should change as well. I am all for a city-manager who carries most of the buracratic work. But I feel strongly that he should be elected in some form. I think that the people should have a say in who is running their city and its services. Because not being able to decide you can have someone come in who doesn't know your town and starts to run it. He does not know what the people need only what he has heard. I believe that if they can't be elected they should at least be from the town itself or else they may be doing more harm than good. But no matter the system I think we should keep the mayor as a minor role someone who doesn't hold much sway so that way he can not influence decisions and show favoritism to certain departments.
-Michael Swanson
I do not believe that Morgantown needs to change the way that it’s council members are elected per each ward. I think that Morgantown citizens voting as a whole on who should represent each ward is probably the fairest viable option, though I do think that the district system as a whole works well for most cities. However I do believe that it would be in the city’s best interest to have student representatives. The students that truly care about the political structure of Morgantown would be able to bring a fresh pair of eyes as well as fresh ideas to the council. Furthermore seeing as WVU students make up a large portion of the Morgantown community, it’s wrong that we don’t already have the opportunity to run for city council if we so choose. In the case of the council-manager form of government, I believe that this might be the strongest of the different types seeing as it does take out most political agendas.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the city of Morgantown should change the way its city council members are elected. The mayor is chosen by 7 city council members who represent every district inside of the state. It's nice to know that every small district in the state is represented rather than cities as a whole. Since being in city council can be a big responsibility, it's important that we elect the right candidate who would best represent the needs and wants of that district. I believe that students need to get more involved and be welcomed with open arms because the majority of students DO care. Student discrimination is clearly a type of discrimination so it should be illegal! It would be really cool if we had a council member who represented the university as a whole so that we could prove that we do have thoughts and opinions on the city we live in for 4+ years. This would allow students to put their faith in the local government and learn more about getting involved while also eliminating much of student discrimination. Even though the population is quite diverse I still believe we can find someone who can represent the needs of students. I don't see the need for Morgantown to turn into a strong mayor type of government. Morgantown isn't a major city so the mayor and governor shouldn't have similarly the same responsibilities. It causes too much responsibility and power for the mayor. I'm not trying to belittle the mayor's job but I think that the council and mayor along with constituents work well together so that there isn't too much responsibility on one person.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that Morgantown should not change the way they elect city council members. Morgantown isnt a big city at all, when students aren't in town there are an estimated 30,000 residents. When school is back in session the population doubles. Another reason I believe Morgantown shouldnt change is because of the whole politics ordeal. It shouldnt be "who you know" it should be based off the work you do and the success you actually have. If Morgantown changes its ways pertaining to this matter, it could see politics at its full effect with regards to people getting hired because of "who you know"
ReplyDeleteI feel like the power that the mayor hold at this moment is more than enough. Like i stated beofre, this city isnt big at all. 30,000 people in one city doesnt have to mean that the mayor gets more or equal power as a superior official dealing with hundreds of thousands of people in the state.
A council-strong mayor isnt necessary for the type of city that Morgantown is. It is extremely unique, 9 months out of the year its packed with college kids and the rest of the time its all calm with half of the population in tact. I just dont feel like this city needs a mayor that has so much power to veto when there arent really much people here to begin with.
You made a valid point, since Morgantown is not a major city with a lot of problems and concerns, they do not need a mayor that is the end all be all. Morgantown is a tight-knit community and all of their voices should be heard instead of one person controlling the population.
DeleteI believe that Morgantown should stay a council-manager form of Gov. Morgantown is a smaller area compared to other cities. Having more than one rep from each district allows each area to have fair representation. Leaving politics out helps put people in charge who really do want to better the city. I feel as though that the Mayor of Morgantown has a good amount of power. He doesn’t have any real serious business to take care of and it’s better like this in a small town so that there isn’t too much power in one position.
ReplyDeleteHaving full time positions is fine with me. Some may think that it’s giving too much power to one individual is scary, but it’s their full time job. They want to see the city do well and their career is based on it. If they do well in their position they can progress but if not people will see. Having a person full time allows them to spend more time on things pertaining to the city, where as part time maybe some areas wouldn’t get the attention they need.
I believe that Morgantown has almost been built by this university. So the relationship between the students and the citizens must be more cohesive. Without representation from the students, their side isn’t being heard. Many problems within the community stem from the students. So maybe if they are heard and have representation more things can be resolved and make the city grow and prosper.
I one hundred percent agree with Nicholas Pastor that Morgantown should not change the way it elects its city council members. If each ward were to only elect those representatives in that district than Morgantown would need to allow students to vote. This is not logical because the vast majority of students are here on average four years. Issues and problems occurring in Morgantown may expand past these time limits and having students elect a representative does not make much sense. I firmly agree with Nicholas again on how Morgantown should be represented by the council members representing the entire city. However, I do believe there should be a city-manager role rather than seven council members trying to make one executive decision. For instance, we do not have seven people controlling our nation but rather a head power and I believe this should be the way for every state and city. In order to keep things from chaos, having one person in power will eliminate the different opinions and the back and forth and will allow decisions to be made when necessary.
ReplyDeleteJennifer Clarke
I believe our current system operates well enough. It's not perfect, but no system is. underrepresentation of students is, in part, the fault of students for not becoming voters in Morgantown. While I am here year-round, I still vote absentee in Parkersburg. Students would also have to become more active in city politics before I would say this method is unfair.
ReplyDeleteI am not opposed to the council strong mayor form, but it would require more money for elections in a city that already complains of budget shortfalls. I am fine with the city hiring a manager and allowing the fine points of the operation be ironed out by those actually doing the governing.
I do not feel Morgantown should change the way it elects the city council members who make all the crucial decisions for the city. I feel that all the problems this system can cause are a much more prone to happen in larger populated areas. Morgantown is an area that has a high population of students during only a small time of the year. Once the students leave town so do a lot of the business and the streets become bare. Most out of town students also leave town during long breaks and holidays. Due to the high rate of traffic out of town, I feel that most students are not interested in what goes on politically in the city. I can’t say that not a single student could help the city council but rather that there would be a larger number of students not taking the council seriously as opposed to the number who would work hard to make a positive difference. The full time professional has more obligations to bettering the city and will have more focus on the issues at hand. This is a very unique city and is just the right mix between big and small town life. The representative is chosen by the entire city and I feel this is appropriate because the city functions much like a small town and the council members can easily hear the voices and opinion of any of those who feel there is a problem in the community. Ideas are always progressing and change is inevitable. The system may be changed in the future but I feel that the system in place is doing the job it was designed to do.
ReplyDeleteAs a whole, I like the current structure of the local Morgantown government. I believe it successful completes all of the main goals of a local government and fully represents the city of Morgantown. Although I am not always a fan of the two-year term, I feel as if this could work because it is only a part time assignment. Each of the seven council members are elected to represent one of the cities seven districts that they live in. The fact that each member lives in the district they represent goes a long way give citizens in those districts an outlet for their voice to be heard. It makes them feel like they can actually have their input and ideas heard. Even though the mayor doesn’t have any legitimate power, he still is a trusted leader and the council will listen to his ideas and vision. The election process seems to work for the system it represents.
ReplyDeleteThe one part that really stuck out to me was how the electoral system reduces the electoral power of a geographically concentrated minority group. At first this might seem like an unfair use of power, but in a city that is overrun by students for two thirds of the year, there needs to be a way to stop the students from taking away the citizens power of vote. Overall, I like the system in place for voting because it represents the districts well and gives the yearlong citizens the power they deserve.
When comparing the system in place now with the council-strong mayor form of government you can see how both would work depending on the city. I believe for Morgantown, the council-manager system works fine. Bringing in the council-strong mayor would have too much emphasis on big time politics and not the work getting done. For a city of our size, the system in place represents everyone with a council member in his or her district. Any citizen can in turn, get their voice heard through this person. The council-manager has a full time job of public administration and is appointed through the people the town has selected. This way, the council-manager can focus on the serious tasks throughout the city and not the politics. Maybe if our city was bigger the council-strong system would work but I’m happy with the system we have in place.
Honestly, I feel like from living around this area a large portion of my life around Morgantown, it seems like changing the way city council members are elected would be beneficial to the largely college-esque town. Let's face it the school itself is pretty much the town and trying to limit students from being able to elect any sort of representation by doing a town-wide vote instead of a vote for each ward is highly inefficient and doesn't help the relationship between the students and the "townies." If students were able to get some sort of representation in wards where it is mainly student populations, it could help to face other issues that maybe Morgantown residents never thought to consider and maybe relieve some tension between the students and permanent residents who think we make this a rowdy town rather than a wholesome place to live. We already are one of the best small towns in the country and by involving the temporary population of students we could work to improve that further.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the form of government, I think the council-manager form works just fine in our small town. We aren't a huge town that needs an executive form of authority in order to operate. Everything is on a smaller scale than say New York where you need a hierarchy to maintain order over such a large population and area. The council-manager government, with a change in the voting of course, would give Morgantown a well-rounded council who votes on any issue that is presented with the advising coming from the manager. Some would say there is a concern that the city manager could undermine the actions of the council, but the council elects the city manager and they can replace them if necessary. I don't consider this un-democratic as long as the election of the council is changed to a ward by ward basis. Under best circumstances, I feel we should be able to trust in the council members we elect to elect a city manager who we can agree on as a town. We entrusted our representation in them enough to be on the council so why couldn't we trust they would ensure someone was manager that we also could have agreed on. Not to mention the manager position offers less power than a council-mayor position where the mayor becomes the executive and has the power to veto and so on just like they were the governor over the state legislature. I feel like that gives one individual too much power over a small town where most of the population is students 9 months a year. It seems like someone who was power hungry could do some detrimental damage to the population that does remain here permanently.
Morgantown does not need to change its form of government. The current system works to improve the lives of the permanent residents. Yes, the size of Morgantown doubles when the semester starts. However, in 4 years a new crop of 30,000 people will be in place of the original. Half of the student population is out of state and unable to participate in elections. Furthering the idea that the student population shouldn't effect the permanent residents. Hiring a full time mayor in Morgantown would be inefficient. S/he would find themselves bored for lack of work. An elected city council with a chosen mayor is appropriate for Morgantown. The permanent residents are represented because they are allowed to elect city council members, thus they can feel secure who the elected will chose as mayor. Morgantown population distribution is challenging. Majority of the population is condensed in a particular area. Therefore, I believe the city council members should represent Morgantown rather than individual districts. The representation should flow similar to that of the House of Representatives.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I am a proponent of having a full time mayor elected by the people. This form of government gives the people more control and the mayor can be held accountable. However, I do not believe this is an appropriate system for Morgantown.
I do not think Morgantown needs to change the way the city elects its city council members. It does gives students little representation but honestly, I do not think that most students here really care about how our local government is ran. Most of the students are too busy studying, working and drinking to show much regard towards the city. If students were to become more active and interested in the city, then I would change my mind about this.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that to be city manager, you need to be elected. This is a very important job where a lot of decisions regarding our city is made. The people of Morgantown should be able to decide who can obtain that job.
I believe that the representatives of each ward should be elected solely by members of their particular district of the city. This method would be the best to equally spread out the power of the Morgantown government and give each district an equal say. Each ward could likely have a different agenda. For example the district with students would be very partial towards the University. To eliminate the problems that this could cause, having a representative selected solely by his or her particular ward would ensure that this representative is looking out for the best interest of their district. This would ensure that each of the 7 wards are equally represented and taken care of.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the current government system of Morgantown. I feel that the setup of the 7 district counsel members with equal power is the most logical way to set up the Morgantown government. This is because it evens out the balance of power and makes students, a large majority of the Morgantown population, not as influential in a city vote. If there were to be power weighted by population of these districts, the district with the students would have the heavy majority of the power. This would be unwise, as many students do not live in Morgantown year round, nor would they particularly care about the city of Morgantown as a whole outside of the University. If students made decisions for the city of Morgantown based on their selfishness of solely caring about the University, this could create a riff between the citizens of Morgantown and the students of Morgantown that help this city prosper. This could be disastrous for both sides.
There are many pros and cons to whether students should be able to get involved with Morgantown politics. As stated in the blog post, the electoral system reduces the electoral power of a geographically concentrated minority group (students). I agree with a lot of my classmates that because Morgantown is a college town, why would our voices not be heard? However, I also agree that many students do not actually live in the city, where they go home during the summer, and many WVU students may not be informed on any decisions being made in Morgantown. Why would anyone want an uneducated minority group representing and voting on the city's needs for permanent residents.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Athena White that Morgantown should keep a council- manager form of government. I do not believe that the council-strong mayor form of government would benefit Morgantown or any small city. The council-manager form of government eliminates politics which as stated in the blog post, I agree that who you know should not have an impact on how, when, or if your city gets the services that it needs. The full time city manager is educated in politics and therefore has the knowledge necessary to successfully run a local government.
As for the way that Morgantown elects its city council members, I do not believe this should change either. I believe that having elections city wide eliminates politically uneducated students from electing an official. Most of Morgantown's 31,000 population is because of University students with a lot of students coming from other city's and states which means students are less likely to get involved.
I do not think Morgantown should change the way it elects its officials. Morgantown even with the student population factor in is still a small city and it is surrounded by rural areas. I think Morgantown should try and avoid political voting for members as much as they can because the population is so diverse that there will always be an unhappy party no one will be happy.
ReplyDeleteCouncil Manager Government is the best option for Morgantown, this system would benefit Morgantown more if the the students would be able to have representation on the council because the city council has the final say on what is past. Morgantown is too small to have a council strong mayor system. Morgantown does not have the resources and population to pull off the Council strong mayor system. I also think that Morgantown should change the way they vote for council members. Each ward should elect their own representative. Allowing each ward to only elect their member will allow more diverse opinions on the city council. With all seven wards voting for all the members people can stack the council in favor of certain wards, if each individual ward voted for a member more people have a fairer opportunity to get the representation they want.
I do not believe that Morgantown should change the way we elect our council members because I think that the way we do it now is appropriate for our small city. We are not a major city therefore, this way of electing our council members works efficient. I don't think that students should be allowed to elect members because students don't even live here year round and really most don't even consider themselves residents of Morgantown. So more then likely students really dont care about how the government is run here so therefore, having them involved I think would just be a disaster.
ReplyDeleteI think it is also a good idea that council members represent their own small local districts. I think this is the most fair way to get a good representation and make the best decisions for Morgnatown as a whole.I feel that Morgantown is a very diverse city, so a representation from each local area I think would work out very well in trying to fairly represent the whole city.
I think the council-manager way of government is the best for Morgantown as well. We are not a huge city so don't have near the responsibilities and duties that the government could. So I don't think that a council- mayor form a government is necessarily needed.
I believe that Morgantown should stick to the current way they govern the city, with the council. Morgantown is not a major city and therefore doesn't require the "mayor" one man in charge mentality. Morgantown is comprised of many different components such as landscaping, tourism, city programs, etc. I believe that having specific people work on each of those departments is what is best for this city. It allows more concentration on those areas by people who take an interest in them or have background knowledge specific for that department. Another aspect to this style of government is that people cannot
ReplyDelete"buy" there way in to their positions, there's no way an outsider could come in and intimidate and outrun the citizens because of monetary contributions. Morgantown in my eyes is a city where many get involved and work together to achieve a goal. That is why the city council method has continued to work for them. The only thing I would disagree with is the lack of student involvement that is allowed. The students make up a lot of the population of Morgantown as well as generate a lot of revenue for the city, as well as bring in tourism. Therefore I think students should be able to vote on who represents them. Students pay to live in this town just as the other citizens do, so I feel that it's only fair that we get some type of say in the matter.
I do not think Morgantown should change the way they elect city officials. Growing up here I have seen the students come and go and how that shifts the city, but the issues city officials address students rarely car about. The people and families that reside in Morgantown year round are the ones that care about the upkeep of this city and the needs of the city. Having students represented would lead to discussing issues that the university should take care of rather than the city council. The people who live here for longer than 9 months out of the year and who think of Morgantown, as their home should be the ones represented. Students are here for school. They think of Morgantown for the next 4 years not in long term. Students have not shown an interest in many issues that effect Morgantown.
ReplyDeleteThe council manger form of government fits the size of Morgantown. We are not a big city, rather a college town. This system allows resources to be used where they are needed and everyone's issues addresses in a timely manner.
I agree with Shannon Martin's comment - " Also the power struggle between the City Manager and the elected officials is a good thing because it reduces the likely hood that either side will become to powerful resulting a somewhat even balance of powers." This division of powers makes sure no ne has two much power or control over the government.
I don’t think it’s necessary for the city of Morgantown to change the way city council members are elected. Morgantown’s electoral system does reduce the electoral power of the student population, but majority of these students pack away and leave after nine months. Although some may oppose, I, as a student who isn’t from the area, wouldn’t find the time or interest to participate in politics here in Morgantown unless it was involving my education at West Virginia University. Considering that most students will be leaving Morgantown, I don’t feel that it’s there place to participate in the government, which would strongly affect the population that does live here year round. Also consider the students reputation (couch burning, riots, etc.), which we all aware about. With that being said, I can understand why Morgantown reduces the representation of students.
ReplyDeleteI am in favor of Morgantown keeping the council-manager form of government. Considering the size of Morgantown, I feel that this form is most accurate. It allows the people in Morgantown to be heard, which is one of several advantages of this form. Citizens elect council members, who then elect the city manager keeping democracy and fairness. Another advantage is that the city manager is a professional administrator, who usually has a Master’s degree in Public Administration, which keeps political views out of administration. Therefore, these advantages make council-manager the simplest of all forms for the city of Morgantown.
Due to the fact that Morgantown is a relatively small town, I feel that the current set-up to elect city council members is quite efficient. Personally, I do not think that students here should have a lot of representation, but they should have some. Because many students are out of state, it simply does not seem right to me. But as a student myself, I feel that our voice needs to be heard. I also think that we should be able to elect a student to be a city council member to be the voice of the students.
ReplyDeleteI think that the city manager system is efficient. I like that the city manager is elected by the city council. Thus, in a way, it makes the manager the voice of the people. I also like that this person gets to devote his or her time to the local government.
I agree with many of the people above who are saying that we as students should have representation. Even if many of us are from out of state, we're here nine months a year, for four years (in my own case I'll be here for even longer), and I believe that warrants representation. While many students don't care about city council issues, others would gladly participate if they had the chance. Students more accurately represent the viewpoints of future generations, and they should not be discounted.
ReplyDeleteOther that that, I don't think Morgantown should change from the council-manager form of government. Morgantown is not a major city and therefore there does not need to be comprised of full-time elected officials. THe current design is designed to work for small cities with populations between 10k and 50k. I also believe that each city council member should represent their individual small local district and not the city as whole–that way, together, the city council could represent the city as a whole, and therefore better represent varied interests,
Do you think that students concern in city politics is really necessary for a change? I think most students are more concerned about current issues rather than a big picture that will never affect them once they are finished with school.
DeleteI believe Morgantowns system of government is a very good one. The 7 city council members selecting officials seems very efficient to me. The city council members know more about the candidates and what the represent than most of Morgantown's citizens. This could however cause a problem by taking away the people's choice of who they want representing them. I enjoy the fact that college students from other states are able to vote here in Morgantown. Some people say they dont want people from other states voting on issues in morgantown saying they arent informed, but i feel if they take the time to vote they take the time to know what they are voting on.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that the Morgantown should change the way it elects its city council. Morgantown is a small city, so the council-manager form is appropriate and works best for the city. Small cities are easier to manage versus taking on big cities. Having less people generally eliminates large amounts of concerns/issues, though you will definitely see some issues/concerns-they will be miniscule compared to those of a big city. Students make up a large portion of Morgantown, so some may argue that they should have a role in city council manners because they represent a majority. But, because I represent a student’s standpoint, I believe that being eliminating is not a big deal. For one, college students spend most of their time being concerned with their grades and career. Little thought and effort goes into local political matters. Also, many students who are eligible to vote in presidential elections do not take advantage of it and surely do not take advantage to vote for local elections. Therefore, it is just to leave the responsibility of voting for council-manager manners to those citizens who make Morgantown their permanent home and workplace. This population is better off informed and aware of local issues.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that council members should each represent small local districts vs. representing the entire city. There are 7 districts in Morgantown, and having this administration dispersed allows officials to pay close attention to concerns occurring in one specific district. Since Morgantown is a small city, it would not be too hard for city council member to represent the entire city, but spreading out city council members generates more attention being paid to issues/concerns in each district.
I think that morgantown should not change the way they vote for city council members. The way the morgantown has divided the town in wards. Since the city population is skewed by the university, the whole town should participate the same way. In state students should also be able to participate in the elections since the are directly effected by the election outcome. Unlike most major cites that have a swing in demographics, morgantown is pretty even across the board. One major election should cover everyone.
ReplyDeleteI also think that morgantown should not change their council management plan. This plan is uses for towns similar to Morgantown's population (10-50,000). This system is perfect because it removes administrative politics and focuses on what the public needs. The city manager is a perfect fit for morgantown, keeping a balance over the town. Hopefully the person elected has some experience running in some sort of government position and has a positive plan for morgantown.
Morgantown’s system of manager-council system is one that I think is fitting for our city. Morgantown being a mid-sized town allows for this system to work well. Other systems with mayors would not fit our region well as we do not need a “face” of the town which is a reason for many mayors nor do we need a power mayor to make major decisions. In our city, most issues can be handled by a city manager with the council adding to the decision making. Keeping up with new ordinances, rules and policies are all handled sufficiently by the two parties.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the system in which the council is elected, district or ward represented may be a better system for hiring. When I think of Morgantown I think of small communities, Cheat Lake, Sabraton, Downtown, Westover, Star City etc. I think having a representative from each ward may better represent the needs of each community within Morgantown. When It comes to students and how much of the population in Morgantown they represent, to me, is irrelevant. Many of the student population is from out of state and are transient residents. These students main focus is that of the University rather than the city it is located in. They are represented by WVU and I do not feel that their presence in the local government is valid nor warranted.
Overall, the system Morgantown uses is valid and working. Is there room for improvement and fine tuning? Of course.
The larger issue is the current system of electing council members. Elections have for generations been used to disenfranchise groups of persons or concentrate power to a small elite group. Morgantown elects council to each of its seven wards although the person elected to represent a particular ward does not have to live in the ward. This system allows council members to be geographically concentrated within a small area which could lead to an unbalanced distribution of city services. An area where multiple council live may get snow removal before an area with no council members and a high concentration of less desirable residents. It is more desirable to have council members represent areas in which they live. The change to a ward represented by a resident of the ward would ensure that city services are evenly distributed and that issues particular to an area are heard and addressed by the city. In a city the size of Morgantown with a resident alien population (students) nearing the population of the city. I suppose there is a fear the alien population could assume a role in local government, but would this be such a bad thing? A fresh perspective could help the city be more progressive in finding a solution that would make living in Morgantown better for all.
ReplyDeleteI believe that every ward should choose its own representative. The current city wide system of choosing the seven council members segregates key members of the community and also neglects the specific needs of wards. Firstly, while it is believed that students are transient members of Morgantown and so should not be considered when it comes to forming important policies on the city they are actually a crucial part. Morgantown is a college town and so should be designed to fit this categorization. While students stay here four to five years on average, usually the needs that one might bring up would be those of the next, and so should be dealt with by making sure that students are represented. Secondly, by choosing a representative city wide, some wards would loose out on having a leader that fits their specific needs and personality, which is always a loss.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that the city manager system is the best. Politics often cloud the potential that a city can offer. With someone who does work based on professionalism and not popularity, a lot can be achieved.
In my opinion I do not think that Morgantown should alter the form of government in electing city council members. When looking at our form of government we in Morgantown have a council-manager government. I think this is a good fit for what we need in our city. Why need a bigger form of government that is meant for bigger cities when we already have a government that is fit for a smaller city. This type of government has advantages like taking all the politics out of the administration which causes less stress, it hires professionals in each ward to manage the city, recommendations on hiring, and gives info to the city council. Morgantown is classified as a college town. Why would we honestly want students representing Morgantown city council, Students are usually only here for the school year and in summer months they head back to their hometowns, and once graduating not a lot of them stay in Morgantown. Also, realistically how much to students know about politics without being brushed up on like in a class like this one. There is also the factor that most students just aren't registered to vote. Just one thing to look out for in this government is that it has a short shelf life. Even with that though I would not change Morgantown's form of government when electing city council members. If it is not broke, why fix it?
ReplyDeletei do not think that Morgantown should change the way that they elect city council members. I feel that the system they have in place is a good way to elect and have the right members on board. I think that unless someone has a different view of what should be changed in that area then the ward should be allowed to appoint them to it. I also dont think that we should change the form of government cause if were were to switch to council mayor because the mayor might abuse his power where as the way that it is set up now the council can manage what is going on to make sure its not getting abused
ReplyDeleteI believe that Morgantown should not change the way that they elect their legislative officials because I believe that everyone should get a say in who they would want or who they think would be the best to be on council. I understand that some of my fellow classmates believe that the way the election process is now that we are singling out students. But we also have to remember that most of the time students are just coming in and out for schooling and then as soon as they are done, a lot of them move away. So it is not fair for the people who call Morgantown home to worry about people who are just “visiting”. The representatives have good ideas and have good plans of action should be good enough for any “ward”, if it is working for Morgantown then why change it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I do not think that Morgantown should change its form of government from the current form. We need to remain to trust the people who elect the officials and that can keep this city running as a whole. I do not think that Morgantown is necessarily big enough to have their own full-time officials and with the amount of responsibilities that are required. I’m glad that the way Morgantown is run now, is that it doesn’t give one person full power, instead there are different people running it who also are helping with different agendas.
After viewing the Morgantown City Council Meeting a week ago, I'm certain I've gotten a better understanding of local politics and the ways in which the 7 delegates from each local ward operated among each other. Though, there was little specialization except for the City Manager who oversees specific boards and services. The rest just seem to share responsibilities and address things as a collective; especially during preliminary meetings such as the one I witnessed where the council members just reviewed possible initiatives or referendums. This knowledge made me consider how beneficial the strong-mayor system would be for Morgantown given the specific problems we face not only as students but as residents as a whole. Our living space is seeing more traffic and commerce meaning the concern for pedestrian safety would expect to rise...the struggle between renters and landlords rages on and the issue of property rights comes into play; the point is, even with 2 examples of special concern, the city needs compartmentalization rather than a broad deliberation.
ReplyDeleteHaving a Council Strong- Mayor system would ensure the strong leadership that a median-size city such as Mo-town needs for direction and security. The pressure of special concerns such as; health rights, property rights, taxes as a whole, will ensure that the strong mayor that has more authority to make judgement will not abuse that power and just give in to political moves which ensure a safe seat for each election. The pressure from the community is enough to enforce the direction of public wealth. This new chief executive officer of the city can now make decisions for the city that which elected them to make tough decisions that ultimately have benefits that out-weigh the social harms. Also the full-time position is ready for the future; although each city has a system that compliments its size and strength there's no reason why Morgantown couldn't benefit from the strategic move to having a stronger mayor. With its median-size; roughly 10 square miles and (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgantown,_West_Virginia) "According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Morgantown has among the lowest unemployment rates in the United States as of early 2009." There's nor reason why Morgantown isn't primed for such a system...built for the future, to represent many people; regardless of diversity, problems that share a commonality and groups that focus on minority issues. If we submit to the weak-mayor system that we have now, with Morgantown's growth, the ability for the council to keep up with good representation falls away. We have to face it that a strong mayor is the way to go in terms of efficiency and effectiveness: specialization like this allows for confident decisions to be made regarding the budget and tax distribution as well (The State).( http://www.thestate.com/2013/09/28/3008927/take-a-closer-look-pros-cons-of.html)
-Zach Abe
Morgantown city council members should be elected by their own wards. The people who reside in those wards know who their candidates are and will have the best knowledge of their agendas. I believe that many voters are blind, and at large elections would allow for a biased look on candidates from other wards based on party affiliation and by word of mouth in a small city like Morgantown. In wards that are primarily filled with students I do not see the reason in allowing students to run for council or have a say in areas of Morgantown that are primarily residents. The majority of students here has no plans on staying in Morgantown after graduation and do not reside here full time over the span of their degrees. The locals would not see this as being fair, seeing as how outsiders are voting on legislation that will affect them in the long run and not the students who spend a small portion of their life in Morgantown.
ReplyDeleteCity Council members should be elected by their own wards, but I also believe they should represent the entire city of Morgantown. They live in one area of Morgantown, but have to travel and move about the city to live day to day lives. They are not quarantined to their neighborhoods and deserve to have a say on the road they take to a grocery store that is in another ward of town. Morgantown is not big cities compared to what a lot of us are used too, and cannot allow one person to delegate their designated district.
I believe the council manager form of government is the best for a small City/Town like Morgantown. This individual is un-elected and has to do his job right and effectively to keep it. He has no political ties and has no constituents to keep happy. The only thing the city manager has to worry about is the city of Morgantown and its people (not excluding city council that has a say in what he presents to them). Having a mayor is good in a larger city such as New York, Boston, Pittsburgh, etc. where it is primarily all political parties and where few stray away from their party lines. This allows for close elections and since larger cities have larger councils it allows for the mayor to take an executive roll like a governor.
-Eric Russo
I agree with many who have said that Morgantown isn’t a big city and doesn’t need a council-strong mayor form of Government.
ReplyDeleteFrom my understanding, the districts’ residents elect the council members to represent each district that in turn elect the city manager. An appointed manager by the council also eliminates politics from this whole process and ensures the policies made by the council are adhered to. As the Town of Coventry, RI webpage states, “it is the manager who is the chief executive and who is responsible to the council for the proper performance of virtually all administrative functions.” For those who think it is undemocratic, think of it this way: If the residents elected the council members for the appropriate reasons (to represent their district in the best and fairest way), then the council members would appropriately elect the best-qualified city manager that will fulfill his/her responsibilities. This is why it is always best to look into a candidate before choosing to back them up.
People have brought also up the topic of student representation. Yes, students are underrepresented, but it is best to keep in mind that WVU is NOT the city of Morgantown but a university WITHIN the city. As many have already pointed out, a majority of the students are only in Morgantown 9 months of the year and have no plans for permanently residing here. I’m sure the council keeps in mind how the university benefits as well as affects the city without the students having an official representative. For more reasons, I would advise re-reading Trinity Gray’s post where she said, “students do some ignorant, stupidity ridden things”.
As to how each council member is elected, I think that’s best left as is too. Having part-time members doesn’t necessarily mean they’re partly dedicated. As aforementioned, Morgantown is not a big city and doesn’t require that full-time attention from council; that is what the manager is elected for. The manager of course has people who work with him in regulating the city, making the number of people to contact even more diverse. I agree with what Joey England pointed out when he said, “They often have family members that also live in the area… they are interested in the success and well being of the city as a whole, and not just a specific district.” If I understood correctly, he means that the council members have things at stake, things they want to better within the city and that aspiration usually begins at home- where things affect one directly. This in turn will bring policies that could benefit those in the council member’s similar stances or situations. Said policies will eventually be enacted by the city manager. Again, this is why it is best to look into who one is voting for.
In conclusion, I think Morgantown’s current council-manager form of government and way of elections suit the town and should not be changed.
No, I believe Morgantown has a very effective way of choosing and electing its council board here. There really doesn't seem like there is a necessity to change how it operates at the very moment. I understand the direction that you are trying to portray and that is "should students elect their officials?" In my opinion that is a very simple yet extensive explanation, No. I say no because this puts too much power invested into the students here at the university. In Morgantown, students spend only a short amount of time here 4-5 years, and only are reside here for about 8-9 months at a time. Therefore, the council should not change how it operates for students, they should continue to focus on the people whom have invested their lives in Morgantown for the time being. Getting technical, I also believe that the City council members should have say for the general population of the city instead of their intended ward. This is a city wide election therefore I believe that even though they were selected to represent their specific ward, they should have say in everything pertaining to the city limits, it only makes sense. If they didn't have say then this wouldn't be as effective of a style of government in my opinion. I believe what Morgantown traditionally has done with the Council-Manager is perfect for the city because it eliminates all political influence and keeps focus on the people. I understand that a council mayor may be more appropriate for a larger city such as Pittsburgh, NY, or Columbus, but here in Morgantown I believe they are effectively eliminating politics with the Council-Manager, which proves they are getting the job done on a steady basis. In the near future, if the city intends to grow and become larger on a population scale, the demand for a Council-Mayor will be much more evident. I think that the shift would help the city if it became more than its medium sized metropolitan area. In conclusion, I think the system of government set up here in Morgantown has a history of being effective yet successful with the style they use. "Why change what is broken?"
ReplyDeleteI don't believe Morgantown should change the election process for counsel members or mayors. As of now I feel Morgantowns system works. Most citizens in this ward know the city well enough to know what's best despite the difference in landscapes the city is separated into. Also most students aren't dedicated to the city as much as locals meaning they don't necessarily care about city elections. The city also can benefit from having its council members also working jobs, such as locals who own businesses have say in the government. Council-strong mayor form of government may be best for bigger cities that aren't college towns for sure, however in Morgantown as well as my hometown, the previous system has success. In the end you want your city/town to be elected by educated townspeople who care about their local government and citizens.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Morgantown should change the way it conducts city council elections. It is not fair to the citizens who reside in the different wards to have to have their representatives elected by the whole city. The city as a whole does not have each individual ward's interests at heart, and therefore cannot elect the best candidate. By changing the election process, I do not believe that a student would be elected to the council. Most students in Morgantown, I'm sure, do not vote in Morgantown, if at all.
ReplyDeleteI would advocate for the council-manager form of local government. It seems to work for Morgantown, so I see no reason to change it. According to this article, https://government.georgetown.org/city-management/council-manager-form-of-government/ , it is the manager's job to bring a professionalism to the city government that it might not have otherwise.
I think that Morgantown should elect their representatives in seperate wards. I do not think, however that the students should be the one to elect them. Most students are here for a short amount of time and most are here for the school and not local politics. I think that because the short amount of time stustent incvest into Morgantown, that there might be a lot of reckless representatives being elected. It might not be taken seriously by some of the student body. I think that Morgantown should consider a council-strong mayor because this would creat more professionalism in dealing the issues. Put someone in charge who knows what they are doing and can take the time and effort to deal with important issues. Morgantown might have to increase the wage but I believe that this particualr situation it would be beneficial to spend the extra money. I think that it woul yeild possitively in the growth of Morgantown.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Morgantown should not change the way the council is elected because i feel it is the best and only way to elect officials. I feel that each ward should be represented properly and the best way to do that is only have that ward vote for there representative. The problem with that is the ward that has a majority of student will not be represented well, having a small voter turnout making it an unfair way of electing. Most of the students don't live in morgantown and will probably be gone after they graduate so why should they be represented. I think that the city council should each represent small local districts instead of the city as a whole to represent the people in each ward better.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the city of Morgantown should keep the council-manager form of government because it is a smaller city. Morgantown is not a huge, populated city so i believe that having the council makes it easier for the people in morgantown to be represented better. I dont think the council should be a full time job. There is a lot of power to non-elected officials, but they are hand picked by the council to be in that position. The people voted on the council to represent them so who the council picks should represent the people well. I believe that Morgantown is just not big enough of a city to change the way it runs it's government so it should not change to the way major cities in America run.
-Jeffrey Cazenas
I believe that Morgantown should definitely change the way it elects its council members. When it was brought up in class that the representatives of each of the 7 wards were elected by the entire city and not only by the people of those particular wards, I was very surprised by that. It makes no sense to me that people outside of a certain district or ward should be able to vote for people inside that ward. How could they possibly know what is in the best interest of the people that live there if they don’t also live there themselves?
ReplyDeleteIt amazes me that this is the way their system works. I grew up in a town in Northern New Jersey where the voting system is vastly different from the way it is here in Morgantown. In my hometown, the officials are elected by people only in the respective districts. You don’t have county wide elections for representatives of wards. I realize that the population differences dictate why it’s done differently in my hometown, but I think the same type of thing could easily be applied to Morgantown.
I don’t know why it can’t be changed to be different. And while we’re at it, I do think that giving the students their own representative or set of representatives would be a good idea. There are almost 30,000 students at WVU that make up a very large portion of the Morgantown population so to ignore them any longer I think is extremely unfair
After reading up on the various systems out there, and given the fairly small size of Morgantown, and the huge proportional amount of seasonal residents that are not eligible to vote in local elections, I think the current system where officials are elected city-wide is the most fair system. Each ward has less than 5,000 people and the tendency that these local elections has a low voter turnout would give small amount of people too much power in my opinion. I would even like to stretch it farther and keep all the 7 seats open for anyone regardless of where in the city they live.
ReplyDeleteAlso I think the city-manager system is very suitable for Morgantown. I think a mayor with power is good for many mid-sized cities but in the case of Morgantown, that again has a large seasonal population, giving a person executive power without this person being elected by most of the actual population is wrong. I think all of this together makes up the best compromise along with the fact that the student population is discriminated against, as most of us only live here for a few years and then leave. It would be fair to have rules for anyone running for an elected position to be a resident in the city for at least a few years before they can run in order to avoid people to think about their own short-term situation and not what’s good for the greater good.
-Carl Bojesson