Signal Hill Mayor Ed Wilson (far right) and Police Chief Michael Langston introduce Jeffrey Laabs (far left), a new Signal Hill police officer, during the Signal Hill City Council meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 7.
-Staff Writer-
Signal Hill’s registered voters will continue to have the option of voting at one of three polling places during municipal elections.
The City Council at its meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 7 denied a request from city staff to consolidate the three locations into one central neighborhood voting center (NVC) that was planned for the Signal Hill Park Community Center.
City staff proposed consolidating the polling places because of a reported low voter turnout and increase in vote-by-mail ballots, adding that it would have saved costs and staff time and made it easier for voters to locate where to cast ballots. Councilmembers, however, said the change would have further limited voting access, which is a fundamental right of all citizens.
“I didn’t like us consolidating the polling places in the past and the precincts, but we did, “ said Mayor Ed Wilson. “At this point, I don’t want to see further consolidation. I’d prefer to see expansion, but I know that’s hard to do. Voting is such a fundamental right, and it’s something that I take real personal, and I just don’t want to see people feeling that they’re left out of the process.”
Instead, after discussion about the issue, the Council directed staff to reconfigure the polling locations for the March 4, 2015 municipal election to make the locations more “geographically dispersed” for voters.
It was brought up that, during previous city elections, residents in the north end of the city have not had their own polling place in their precinct and have had to vote in either a location in Long Beach or on the east side of Signal Hill.
City Manager Ken Farfsing recommended that, for the next municipal election, the City make voting available at the Signal Hill Park Community Center, the Discovery Well Park Community Center and Burroughs Elementary School, for north-end residents, if permitted by the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD).
While the original proposal by staff was shot down, some councilmembers said they liked the idea of making polling places less confusing for voters.
“I think the concept of what you’re trying to do is good for the residents because a lot of people get confused,” said Councilmember Michael Noll, who said that the school should be made available for voters in the north end and west side of the city.
Signal Hill Deputy City Manager Becky Burleson said that for the upcoming Nov. 4 election, LBUSD is permitting voting at Burroughs Elementary School, which was closed down a few years ago at 1260 E. 33rd St. Burleson said she would contact the school district to see if the site is available for future elections.
Vice Mayor Larry Forester was the only councilmember who spoke out in favor of staff’s plan for a central polling place.
“We’re small, and we’ve always been very responsive to our voters, but, again, in 2.2 square miles, [and with] 6,500 registered voters, I’d have a problem with a whole series of voting places,” Forester said. “I would be strongly in favor of a community voting center, but it’s a council majority.”
City staff made the recommendation for a central polling location after interviewing poll workers following the city election last year. Farfsing said that there are too many polling places and poll workers have reported “sitting and doing nothing for hours on end.”
“In listening to our poll workers, we believe these neighborhood voting centers make a lot of sense,” Farfsing said, adding the County of Los Angeles used them in the last election.
Burleson said that the City’s three precincts would be split up at the NVC at different tables, making it easier for voters to find in one central location, rather than having to travel to another location.
She noted that the City originally had five polling places but they were consolidated to three locations in 2007. In 2013, the polling locations in Signal Hill included the Signal Hill Park Community Center, the Family Church at Cherry Avenue and 21st Street and the Discovery Well Park Community Center.
Previously, the City had used the Willow Ridge condominium clubhouse as a polling place, but voters expressed concerns about getting past security and gaining access to the private complex. Prior to 2007, Burroughs Elementary School was used as a polling place for voters in the west side and the north end. But, because of space constraints at the time, the location became unsuitable, she said.
Burleson noted that consolidating the polling places would have reduced costs for printing election materials and required fewer bilingual translators of foreign languages. Election code now requires both Khmer and Spanish translators, she said.
Burleson said staff proposed consolidating the City’s three polling places mainly because of the City’s general low voter turnout and an increase in absentee voters that have left polling places inactive.
She said vote-by-mail or absentee ballots “outnumbered” polling-place ballots last year, with 725 voters casting ballots by mail and 583 voters turning in ballots on the polls. She said the percentage of permanent absentee voters in Signal Hill has double since 2009 and have made up over 50 percent of voters since 2007.
Burleson said election statistics for the 2013 general municipal election indicate that the City had a 21.29-percent voter turnout, which was a small increase from the 17.67-percent voter turnout during the municipal election in 2011.
Carol Churchill and Maria Harris, who both drafted a tax-oversight ballot measure, known as Measure U, which prompted the City to hold an election in June, both urged the Council not to consolidate the City’s polling places.
“I’m definitely opposed to this,” said Churchill. “If you listen carefully to what the staff report said, the pros are geared towards helping making a convenience for the staff. You do not hear any pros for making this convenient for the voter. That’s your job. Voting is a civil right. Women fought for that right. You’re representing working mothers. You’re representing low-income heads of households who have to take off the time to get to a poll to vote. Not everybody votes by an absentee ballot.”
In other election-related news, the Council unanimously passed a resolution supporting Proposition 1, a $7.5-billion statewide bond measure proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown to pay for water projects and conservation measures related to the drought.
In addition, the Council received a report from city staff on Proposition P, a Los Angeles County ballot measure known as the Safe Neighborhood Parks Measure. However, the Council did not take any action in support of or against the measure.
In addition, the Council passed a resolution opposing Proposition 47, a statewide ballot measure known as the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act of 2014, after Police Chief Michael Langston gave a presentation on the measure.
Langston said the measure would add to negative effects caused by the State’s early release of prisoners, also known as the “realignment” legislation, that the Legislature enacted to deal with the State’s overpopulation of prisons.
Proposition 47, which Langston called “unnecessary,” would create savings for the State by reducing the classification of most “non-serious and nonviolent property and drug crimes,” according to a staff report.
Langston said the measure would create a new crime called “shoplifting” and change certain crimes from felonies to misdemeanors, effectively creating “no punishment” for such offences. He said the statewide measure would allow for some 8,000 felons to be released early.
Other Council highlights
Signal Hill Mayor Ed Wilson presents a proclamation and certificate to the players, coaches and “team dad” of Team Long Beach, champions of the national U.S. Golf Little League. A trophy that the team won was presented to the City and will be temporarily placed in Mayor Wilson’s office.
Oil-code amendment The Council approved a contract with Sespe Consulting, Inc. to prepare environmental documents for the City’s proposed oil-code amendment to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act. City staff said the City’s oil code amendment, which staff has been working on to address changes to the Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources’ (DOGGR) abandoned-oil-well-certification program, has been completed. Staff noted that it’s not clear whether the City would propose drafting an environmental impact report or a negative declaration on the oil code amendment. DOGGR no longer makes a determination regarding “equivalent” standards and this “hampers development opportunities in the city,” according to a staff report. The oil-code amendment would recognize equivalent standards when making land-use decision consistent with past practices.
The next Signal Hill Council meeting is scheduled for 7pm on Tuesday, Oct. 21 at the Council Chamber.
