REDONDO BEACH : City Kills Public Vote on Trustee Term Limits

The City Council killed a plan that could have imposed term limits on school board members.

The council voted 3 to 2 on Tuesday against asking voters to decide in March whether to limit Redondo Beach board members to two terms and divide the school district into five regions, each with its own board representative. Council members Joseph Dawidziak and Marilyn White supported the plan.

The changes would have required a City Charter amendment. A city commission proposed the ballot measures that would have made school district elections more like council elections. Council members are elected by district and are limited to two terms.

The school board unanimously opposed the plan. An attorney representing the school district told the council that the changes are unnecessary. He said the district’s current system works fine and added that changing the charter would conflict with state laws and probably result in a costly legal battle.

“I’m asking you not to declare war on the school district,” attorney David G. Miller told the council.

Dawidziak disagreed. He said the council should give voters the chance to decide the issue. “People are fed up with government not doing it right and want a say-so in the process,” he said. “I trust (the voters) to do what’s right.”