"Is there a better way to run a meeting?" we asked back in September 1997 after a Los Altos City Council meeting went to 3 a.m.
That session was a glaring exception, but there were others, run by previous mayors, that allowed numerous speakers to ramble for all (or more) of the five minutes allotted to each.
Still other meetings were strung out as some council members engaged in lengthy, impromptu debates over process.
We're happy to report that today's council meetings bear no resemblance to their predecessors. And we have Los Altos Mayor Lou Becker to thank, in part, for the current efficiency.
Starting Dec. 15 of last year, Becker moved the meeting starting time a half-hour earlier, from 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., and has now initiated an ordinance to set that 7 p.m. time in stone. The first reading of the ordinance was heard at last week's council meeting. A second reading adopting the law was scheduled for last night's meeting.
In addition to the new starting time, Becker runs no meeting past 11 p.m. Items not addressed in the four-hour meeting period get moved to another meeting.
We see only good results from these changes. The shorter meetings cut the fat of idle chatter and allow the council to get down to business. This is beneficial not only for the applicants, Becker said, but for city staff as well, which has already put in a full day.
Some might counter that shorter meetings create a council tendency to ram actions through without thorough discussion.
But really, do we want our council members deciding on items with the fatigue factor setting in, especially since four of the five members currently have full-time jobs?
All of the council members bring strengths to their positions. Kris Casto is fair-minded and brings the experience of her planning commission days; Francis La Poll brings a needed legal perspective to the group; King Lear offers a straight-forward, problem-solving approach based on his engineering background; and John Moss adds a quiet, yet direct approach to resolving issues.
But through his initiative and leadership abilities, Becker has shown that, yes, there is a better way to run a meeting.
We welcome these significant changes that we feel will ultimately result in a more effective city council.