At the City Council meeting on the evening of Monday, September 9, the council members all received a raise.
According to a staff note, “State law, Government Code Section 36516, authorizes a city council to adopt an ordinance establishing a salary based on a city’s population. In 2023, the state law related to City Council compensation was amended with the passage of SB 329, which increased compensation thresholds, provided a methodology for future increases, and listed limited guidelines for determining salaries. Based on SB 329, for cities over 35,000 up to and including 50,000 in population, such as Culver City, the salary may be initially established up to and including $1,275 per month.”
While it seems slightly awkward for the sitting members to be voting on their own raise, there hadn’t been a salary increase since 1991, when it was set at $485 per month.
The vote was a unanimous 4-0, with Council Member Albert Vera absent fo this meeting.
Action Item 2 (A2) called for, “Discussion and Direction on the Public Input Plan to Determine the Future Use of the City-owned Property at 11029 Washington Boulevard Including a Proposed On-site Temporary Art Project.”
The issues here revolve around how much effort and money to put into a building that may well be demolished down the line.
“Between 1953 and 2023, the property was used as the Martin B. Retting gun shop,” reads ther staff note. “Escrow closed on October 18, 2023, and Martin B. Retting closed and vacated the site by January 2024. The City has repainted the exterior of the site and installed a fence to secure the parking lot. The City’s Artist Laureate Katy Kranz installed a temporary mural project on the exterior of the building.”
Discussion on how to move forward, with involvement from the public, was unanimously approved.
Finally, Action Item 4 (A4) raised the issue of whether the Culver City Council should, “Potentially Adopt a Position, or Take No Position, on the Los Angeles County Government Structure, Ethics, and Accountability Charter Amendment Ballot Measure, which will Appear on the November 5, 2024 Ballot.”
The Council voted unanimously to take no position at present.