“From Backyards to City Hall”

One evening in September, cool in the way evenings in Los Angeles are even on the hottest days, I joined a group of Angelenos from all over the city in a Silver Lake backyard.

Forty or so of us, representing the broad demographic makeup of the city, gathered to discuss the reforms we would most like to see incorporated into a revised City Charter. This type of meeting was new to me. I knew no one there and had no idea what to expect, but I was hoping for an informed and purposeful look at the ways we could come together as a community to effect positive change.

WHAT EXACTLY IS LOS ANGELES CHARTER REFORM?

In 2024, Mayor Karen Bass created the Los Angeles Charter Reform Commission in response to multiple Los Angeles City government scandals, including the leak of a racist tape featuring City Council President Nury Martinez, Council members Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon, and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President, Ron Herrera. Its task is to update and revise LA’s Charter - basically the city’s constitution - which defines the “roles, powers, and responsibilities of City officials and departments.” This is the first significant update to the City Charter since 1998 and the best chance Angelenos have to make City government more responsive to their needs.

BACKYARD BIG IDEAS

To that end, the LA Forward Institute has organized Backyard Big Ideas. LA Forward and its non-profit arm, the LA Forward Institute, work to build community, engage regular citizens in the political process and give residents the knowledge, skills and power to “ensure our political system prioritizes our common needs above special interests.”

At the September event, a facilitated discussion followed a short primer on the City Charter from the LA Forward Institute team. During the discussion, each participant, including me, had five uninterrupted minutes to focus attention on their reform priorities. Comments ranged from the need for better and faster street and sidewalk repair; to the importance of unarmed critical response teams and better ways to address police abuses of power; to instituting ranked choice voting and expanding the City Council. The tone was respectful, passionate and generally progressive.

Two Commissioners, Chair Raymond Meza and Commissioner Andrea Mac, had been invited to attend as observers. Afterward, they were asked to summarize what they had taken away from the discussion. Then, building on the success of the first Backyard Big Ideas, LA Forward held another, similar event in DTLA on December 18, with two other Commissioners attending - this time, Martin Schlageter and Carla Fuentes.

Although the public can attend Commission meetings in person or on Zoom and can comment on agenda items, each speaker is limited to two or three minutes.

With only three months remaining until April, when the Commission must present its recommendations to the City Council, informal meetings like these help expose the Commission to the broader concerns of city residents.

Check the LA Forward Institute website for upcoming events as the deadline for reform recommendations approaches.

For more information on the Charter Reform Commission, visit: reformlacharter.lacity.gov