About this website
This interactive website is about working together to make Los Alamitos better by providing a public forum and local information. The goal is to get Los Alamitos residents, staff, and officials to work together for the common good.
This website is designed to be an open forum on Los Alamitos City issues where everyone can freely discuss local issues in a frank but respectful forum. Where your opinions post at the speed of light, and where mine and yours can both be challenged and discussed freely.
It’s available 24/7/365 to all the residents, businesses, City Council Members, Commission members, and city staff of Los Alamitos, our neighboring cities, and anyone else interested In local issues.
It’s hosted by me, Dave Emerson, a long-time Los Alamitos homeowner, businessman and educator. My wife and I have raised our three children here. I think it’s one of the best places to live on the planet, but it does have it’s problems, from traffic to development to gophers and coyotes. With more teamwork, proactive thinking, and long term planning by the City Council, city staff, and city residents, these challenges can better be addressed, and our town can become an even better place for our kids and grandkids in the years ahead.
Over the years our Council Members have done many things right. However, for the last ten years the Council’s failure to consistently work as a team has kept them and our town from reaching anything approaching full potential. (For examples of this lack of teamwork, check out my August 25 post contrasting our Council with our medal-winning woman’s water polo team.)
This blog grew out of my fall, 2008 campaign to become a Los Alamitos City Council member. Fortunately (for my family & peace of mind), I didn’t get elected, but I sure learned a lot and had some fun for three “action packed” months. There seems to be a need for a place in cyberspace where people can discuss Los Alamitos issues and inform each other, so for now, at least, this little corner of the internet lives on.
This website can serve our community as an electronic town hall where all are free to discuss their concerns.
Your input, feedback, criticism, ideas, and priorities are all welcome. I invite my fellow candidates to post here in the spirit of a civil discussion.
I need to get my 17-year-old son to figure out how to enable comments on this “About Us” page. However, it’s easy to comment from any other post. All you need to do is fill in the comment box at the bottom of the post. If you can’t find it there, then click the blue word “Comment” or “Comments” under the headline.
You can use your real name, initials, or a name you make up for this blog. Just keep the language and tone appropriate for our family-friendly small town, and try to be concise. (I’ve found it’s a good idea to re-read your comment, preferably out loud, before clicking that “Submit Comment” button.)
Working together, let’s fix Los Al!
How to Contact Me
Feel free to call me at 562.430.0262 or 562.822.SOLD, or to e-mail me at RealtorDaveE@msn.com
Historical Footnote
In case you’re wondering why on earth I decided to run for Los Al City Council one Friday in August of 2008, here’s the heart of the candidate statement I turned in on that day. For a mere $1,400 which I’ll never see again it was translated into 4 (count ‘em!) additional languages & mailed with all Los Alamitos sample ballots.
I’m running for Los Alamitos City Council to promote and build what legendary UCLA basketball Coach John Wooden referred to as “Team Spirit: An eagerness to sacrifice personal interests or glory for the welfare of all. The team comes first.”
That sort of “team spirit” led Coach Wooden’s teams to achieve an unprecedented 10 NCAA National Championships. It was the difference between the disappointing 2004 Olympic basketball team and the gold medal 2008 team. And it can make our Los Alamitos City Council more effective and our city an even better place to live.
For the last ten years the Council’s failure to consistently work as a team has kept them and our town from reaching anything approaching full potential. (For examples of this lack of teamwork, check out my August 25 post contrasting our Council with our medal-winning woman’s water polo team.)
I’m running as an independent candidate to try to get the two blocks that have dominated our City Council to work together.
Priorities:
1. Improve traffic flow: Make traffic an ongoing top priority for all levels of city government. (For specifics on traffic, check out “7 ways to cut local gridlock.”)
2. Encourage long-range goals and planning: Take proactive steps to make our city all we want it to be for our kids and grandkids.
3. Encourage our Council to work together. . . with our neighboring cities, the Base, our school district, and, most of all, with each other. Additional priorities are outlined and can be freely discussed throughout this blog, including in my September 8th post, “8 key issues in the Los Alamitos City Council Race“
Experience:
8 years as a school teacher and administrator will be useful in working with our School Board.
28 years experience as a local Realtor gives me insights into housing issues and skills at bringing people together.
Community service as an Assistant Scoutmaster, youth sports coach, and church board member prove commitment to teamwork and our community.
