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Fight continues to change city council charter
A member of the Westland Area Commission (WAC) is continuing to fight to change how Columbus voters elect city council members. On July 18, Adam Slane offered a resolution urging Columbus City Council to reconsider its decision to not allow an amendment to its charter. The amendment would allow voters to decide if council should have representation from assigned districts as well as at-large members. Under the coalition’s proposal four members would be elected at large and seven more elected from different neighborhoods. A petition effort led by the Columbus Coalition for Responsible Government fell short of the 19,164 signatures needed to put the issue on November’s ballot. Slane said having all council members elected on an at-large basis does not provide adequate representation for areas like the Westside. “The Westland area is a forgotten area,” Slane said. Slane said this type of representation harkens back to the beginning of the country. “It was good enough for our founding fathers, it is good enough for us now,” he said. The resolution asks the commission to approve and forward its recommendation to Columbus City Council before July 30, since it does not meet in August. “This is the first time WAC had seen the resolution,” Slane said. Commission member Dave Van Order wanted to know if it fell within the commission guidelines. WAC Chair Linda Pitts assured him the commission can endorse issues, not candidates. Pitts was concerned about the quick turnaround and said she wanted time to study it. “There’s a lot of detail to digest in 10 minutes,” Commission member Ashley Hoye said. Commission members tabled a vote until a special meeting Aug. 15. “We’ll push to get this on the primary ballot,” Slane said.
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