Show THE COMING CITY ELECTIONS only six more weeks and again our citizens will have to go to the polls the election this year will be for the purpose of selecting a mayor four councilmen one of the five councilmen councilman to hold over sor jor another two year term a city recorder and a city treasurer so far nothing has been done for holding the primaries and getting the campaign under way and with the exception of some unconfirmed talk that dr I 1 L A poulson is being groomed for mayor no personnel has been mentioned the plesent incumbents cum bents from mayor down to city treasurer have done commendable work and there is hardly a doubt that some of the councilmen and probably the recorder and the treasurer will be and if nom 1 also elected the may however might be contested because F G Al martines artines the present mayor has had two terms and in spite of the fact that he has contributed perhaps more than any of his predecessors to bringing system into the city administration principally the finan cial part of it it is doubtful whether the people at large will be willing to let him have a third term if he is nominated again he probably will win the election on the strength of his performance during his previous terms some time ago the advisability was considered of putting the administration in the hands of a city manager supervised by a city council while perhaps conditions in richfield at the present time are not ripe to consider such an important change it cannot hurt to at least discuss the matter a little it was after the big flood in galveston texas in 1900 when the city of galveston found itself unable to cope with conditions under the mayor and council plan that the commission rom mission form of city government was introduced A special commission of five men was formed to run galveston Gal under the emergency created by the flood and this form of government proved to be successful further experience however demonstrated that where five commissioners of equal responsibility run the city government ern ment lack of a directing authority prevented efficient operating what the commission form amounts to is to use business terms a partnership of five men A partnership of two is bad enough a partnership of five is is well nigh inconceivable potash and are not in it it was then in 1915 that the city of staunton virginia conceived the manager plan this plan fitted in with the american idea of efficiency it was applying to the city government the principle of business management and accomplished the sep aeration of the legislative and administrative istra tive powers of the city government it works in this way that the council meets decides on a policy and hires a manager to run the business the manager has complete control of the administration if he makes a good record he keeps his job if he makes a poor record he be is fired this is the way in which every business corporation of any size is operating why not the city the idea is at least worth some dis gussion cassion sus cus sion |