WRITTEN PUBLIC
COMMENTS RECEIVED
From: Mark Elliot
To: City Clerk
Subject: Comment for study session item A2 - candidate forum Date: Monday, December 11, 2023 2:15:42 PM
CAUTION: External Sender
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Dear Mayor Gold and members of the city council:
A candidate forum is an important opportunity to hear the candidates talk unscripted. However I don’t want to see a repeat performance of last year’s candidate forum.
In that event, a self-appointed prosecutor, Robert Tanenbaum, who was moderating it, flogged one of our candidates to everyone’s embarrassment. Remember another time when the Southwest Homeowners Association struggled physically with a member of the public over possession of the microphone? I want to attend a courteous discussion that foregrounds issues rather than personalities. And I want our city to support an event that will address issues that affect all residents -- namely the sixty percent of residents who rent housing — rather than give voice to concerns that are relevant to the minority of longtime homeowner households.
If this is to be another parochially-minded event for grandstanding then let these organizations sponsor their own events.
Thank you,
Mark Elliot