Santa Monica’s mayor is almost always the new guy at the annual US Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C. While some city leaders across the country may serve for decades, Santa Monica’s City Council rotates the mostly ceremonial title of “mayor” among themselves every year or two, meaning when he or she steps into the Capital Hilton Hotel for the yearly meeting, they are looking at the event with fresh eyes.
For newly appointed Mayor Ted Winterer, he mostly liked what he saw.
“We are all taking the position that we are going to do our utmost to do what we want to do and if need be, we will dig in our heels,” Winterer said in a phone interview once he was back in Santa Monica (and back at his nine to five day job as a real estate marketer).
This year’s US Conference of Mayors took place just days before the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Winterer says it’s an uneasy time for mayors, regardless of political party.
“It will be challenging with the reduction of federal funding and preemption of what we want to do,” Winterer said of the current administration.
In recent years, Santa Monica mayors have shaken hands with President Barack Obama and attended his speeches while in Washington. For Winterer’s first conference, the keynote speaker was then Vice-President Elect Mike Pence.
“The president elect and I are determined to forge strong partnerships between the Federal Government and cities of this country,” Pence told the group of mayors. “We both believe you have some of the most important jobs in public service.”
But while parts of his message were comforting, the vice president underscored his commitment to local challenges by quoting Henry David Thoreau: “The government that governs least governs best.”
“I think that the common recognition was the next four years are going to be very challenging for cities,” Winterer said. “The president has presented a very dystopian view of what goes in in our urban centers. The reality is that cities have been a major component of GDP growth for a number of years.”
At the conference, Winterer attended sessions on the economy, job growth, and technology. He noted a particularly interesting session on autonomous vehicles from a representative from Ford promising driverless cars will reduce traffic and eliminate the need for parking garages. Another session held by a city planner suggested the very same technology could be a disaster by cities, taking commuters off public transportation and back into individual cars.
“I would say it was informative and at times inspirational,” Winterer said, adding that the diversity of mayors appeared to accurately reflect America. While they had differences, most mayors are dealing with housing shortages, mobility problems and homelessness.
“These are problems that transcend all political parties,” Winterer said.
However, it does appear progressive cities that wish to combat climate change or protect immigrants from deportation may face backlash from the president. Just days after the conference, Trump signed an executive order to strip federal funding for so-called sanctuary cities, where local law enforcement officers do not arrest or detain immigrants for living in the U.S. illegally.
Santa Monica is not a sanctuary city.
Winterer met with a group of mayors committed to fighting climate change through local policies. He came back home ready to roll up his sleeves and push sustainability projects and initiatives.
As for public works projects, they may actually get a boost from the Federal Government. During his keynote address, Vice President Pence said President Trump had a message for the group of mayors:
“Tell them we’re going to do an infrastructure bill and it’s going to be big,” Pence said.
kate@www.smdp.com
