Vote yes Nov. 4 to bring Prairie Village government into the future | Opinion

It’s easy to see why so many people get discouraged when news headlines fixate on dysfunction and drama in Washington, D.C. Our federal government is far away, mind-boggling in size and just plain complicated. Rightly or wrongly, it too often seems there’s not much an average citizen can really do to fix the problems there.

Thankfully, there’s an antidote to the discouragement you may feel about D.C.: getting more active in government at the most local level.

That’s been my experience with the local grassroots group PV United, which grew organically a few years ago as caring residents in my hometown of Prairie Village came together to make the voice of the people better heard by city leaders. We’re working as a team to protect our community’s unique charm.

Local participation is a breath of fresh air. City Hall is right down the street. Your City Council member is likely around the corner. And everyday folks truly can make a difference.

We’ve seen vibrant civic engagement as more residents are staying abreast of municipal issues and focusing on preserving and strengthening our quality of life.

One interesting result of this increased involvement is a ballot measure that Prairie Village voters will decide on Nov. 4. The question on our ballot will determine whether we maintain our form of city government, often referred to as a “strong mayor” approach, or take a step toward modernizing the original system.

It’s understandable that our form of city government is a topic few have ever thought anything about. But here, thousands of community members signed petitions to put this question to voters in the hopes of continually improving the way our city operates and responds to residents’ input.

Our strong mayor approach has been waning in popularity for decades now nationally, and moving forward from this system would allow Prairie Village to adopt a mayor-council-manager or council-manager structure that is more appropriate for a city of our size.

According to the International City/County Management Association: “There are compelling reasons why many of the nation’s most successful cities and towns have adopted council-manager government rather than the ‘strong-mayor’ form. Council-manager government encourages neighborhood input into the political process, diffuses the power of special interests, and eliminates partisan politics from municipal hiring, firing, and contracting decisions.”

The vote we’re having in Prairie Village isn’t a referendum on the past. It’s a look to the future, balancing a healthy respect for what works well now with a desire to benefit from the best practices and experiences of good Johnson County neighbors such as Overland Park, Lenexa and Olathe.

If we approve the ballot question, the City Council would then consider the people’s mandate as provided by Kansas law. While an updated way of doing things is developed transparently in a collaborative process with our elected officials, the city would continue to operate under the current structure. There would be no disruption to city services, business or budgets.

In this post-pandemic period, many people have come to better understand the impactful role cities play in our everyday lives, from public safety to road maintenance to valued amenities such as parks and pools. There are real household financial considerations as well, including fast-rising property taxes.

Most city issues aren’t partisan in nature, like we see at the federal or state levels. Closer to home, people from different backgrounds and diverse perspectives can find plenty of common ground. And that’s the best kind of representative democracy there is.

A yes vote on election day is saying yes to more consensus, less division and an even brighter future for the people in our magnificent little city.

Brooke Morehead is a 40-year Prairie Village resident and a former two-term City Council member.