Mayor or city manager?

A special meeting was held by the city council, Wednesday, January 26, to discuss and approve calling for an election in the City of Bristow on April 5, for the purpose of submitting a question to the registered voters amending the Charter to change the form of government from a strong mayor-city council form to a council-manager form of government. The council voted 4 – 3 in favor of the proposed election.

Will the voters vote to change our form of government? Will a city manager better serve the community than a mayor and will he be as dedicated to the community's needs as a mayor? Before voting, education about the two positions is vital to make sure our local government runs as smoothly as it has been run for several years.

The city manager and mayors positions are two of the most presitgious positions in local government.

With a mayor-council form of government, the mayor is voted into the position by the people. The mayor represents the people and with this proposal, the mayor's position will just become a title or ceremonial, with no authority to make city decisions.

A city manager is a hired ex ecutive officer of a municipality who works outside of the political realm to keep operations running smoothly. City managers are resposible for planning, directing, managing and reviewing all activities and operations of the city. The manager is hired by the city council, based on his education and experience in local government, and reports directly to the city council. The city manager normally has complete control over all employees hiring and firing and all city operations. The city council is required to turn over all citizen complaints to the city manager and he decides what action, if any, to take to solve the issue because the city manager has responsibility for all the administrative functions of the city government.

Education about both positions is the key. Before voting, one needs to make sure they understand what changing the form of government will do for our city. The council intends to hold public forums that registered voters can attend to better educate themselves on both positions before taking to the polls and voting. Voters will need to decide what they feel is best for the city of Bristow and which position, mayor or city manager will better serve the needs of the community. We will let you know when the forums are scheduled.