The need for a minimum wage, locally and nationally, will be the subject of this evening’s Culver City Democratic Club meeting in the Rotunda Room of the Vets Auditorium.
City Councilperson Meghan Sahli-Wells and Santa Monica Mayor Kevin McKeown, both ardent supporters of the minimum wage philosophy, will interpret their reasons at the 7 o’clock monthly meeting.
How different are Culver City and Santa Monica?
Ms. Sahli-Wells will be up for re-election in April, seeking her second and final term – because of term limits.
By contrast, Mr. McKeown has served 17 consecutive years on the Santa Monica City Council, and he was elected mayor 11 months ago.
Here is a closer look at each of them.
Ms. Sahli-Wells:
As Culver City’s immediate past mayor, Ms. Sahli-Wells is entering her fourth year on the dais. She has championed initiatives she believes will improve the lives of children in her community, and she has led efforts to address water conservation, active transportation, affordable housing, homeless services, and comprehensive oil drilling regulations.
With a passion for analyzing complex issues and encouraging community engagement, she says her ultimate goal is finding solutions that promote a resilient, sustainable city.
In addition to her City Council duties, she is on the national board of Local Progress, a network of hundreds of elected officials from around the country committed to a strong economy, equal justice, livable cities and effective government.
Regionally, she serves on the board of the Expo Line Construction Authority, currently overseeing the construction of Expo Phase 2 from Culver City to Santa Monica, and on the Energy and Environment Committee for the Southern California Assn. of Governments, the nation’s largest metropolitan planning association.
Prior to joining the Council in 2012, Ms. Sahli-Wells spearheaded a number of community initiatives and has multiple community leadership roles.
She co-founded the Culver City Bicycle Coalition, one of the first local chapters of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, and Transition Culver City, part of the international Transition Network.
Mr. McKeown:
Mayor McKeown started in municipal government with his very first job as a high school intern for the city of New Haven, CT. He left local government for 35 years to pursue careers in radio, advertising, and computer technology before returning to city hall with his 1998 election to the Santa Monica City Council.
Now in his fifth term, Mr. McKeown was the City Council’s liaison to the Planning Commission for a decade. As mayor, he recently led the Council to unanimous adoption of a new citywide zoning ordinance, building on a visionary and sustainable Land Use and Circulation Element.
Demonstrating that the path to the mayor’s office does not have to be linear, Mr. McKeown was a physics major at Yale University when his interest in electronics led him to the campus radio station. The late 1960s combination of music and politics inspired him to become one of the first FM rock air personalities, eventually managing radio stations in San Diego and Los Angeles.
Mr. McKeown later became an advertising creative director and voice-over artist before returning to his love of technology as computer consultant for the Santa Monica public schools, a position he still holds today.
On the City Council and as mayor, Mr. McKeown focuses on affordable housing, social justice and environmental sustainability. He devotes much time and energy responding to residents, and his leadership in helping people become more involved in local government is longstanding. Mr. McKeown came to the Council after chairing a neighborhood group, serving on the Santa Monicans for Renters’ Rights steering committee, and sharing his professional expertise as a founder of the city’s Public Electronic Network and a member of the Santa Monica Telecommunications Working Group.