Tuesday, North Liberty voters will have an opportunity to change their city government structure by enacting a ward system (wherein voters in four parts of the city elect council members to represent them) and the whole of the city directly elects a mayor and two at-large council members.
I have been thinking, as an outsider, what I'd do, if I were in a North Libertarian's shoes. I would think it would be tempting to change the form of government because of how dysfunctional it appears to have been in the recent past. A good question to ask is what would be gained by a ward system?
The single benefit I can see is it would allow true district representation--that is one person to represent the viewpoint of a ward. The downside is that the whole of the city's interests might not be served if pork barrel politics take place. For instance, if Ward A council member wants a park and Ward C council member wants unfettered development, there is likely to be horse-trading to accomplish these dissimilar goals--neither of which may be in the city's overall interest. It could reasonably argued also, that a ward system could lead to gridlock if council members dig in their heels over pet projects. Finally, regardless of where a person lives, the whole of the council does make decisions that effects everyone. Does it make sense for only people in one area of town to choose a representative for them when who they pick also is a vote for the whole of the city?
In cities like Chicago where there are aldermen, this form of government has been known to be very inefficient, not to mention corrupt.
Obviously the current form of government has its problems, but it is the result of personality and philosophy differences, no the form of government that is to blame.
If I were in North Liberty, I'd stick with the form of government and work on electing officials that will work together in a way that benefits the community.
At the very least, get out there and vote!
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