The longstanding custom of making assignments by seniority irks incoming at-large city councilman Phil Mendelson (D).

"It’s the same old same old way of doing things," he said. "Voters said they want something different. Three incumbents got rejected. Actually, seven — if you count the four mayoral candidates who got trounced."

If he had his way, Mendelson said he would serve on the Finance and Revenue Committee, the Consumer and Regulatory Affairs Committee and the education committee. But he said he recognizes he’s the low man on the totem pole.

"I fully expect I’ll have to go in there and fight for the assignments I want," he said.

Mendelson said he’s ready to clash with the old ways of doing things, even if he has to lose sometimes.

"Really it’s a balancing act," he said. "It’s a balancing act between the old ‘go along to get along’ and trying to bring in a more realistic approach."

Mendelson said his main interests are in the areas of taxes, finance and development. He previously worked as a staff member for former Ward 3 councilman Jim Nathanson and former council chairman David Clarke from 1989 to 1986.

Mendelson said he doesn’t deserve the "anti-business rap" he got during the election season. For example, he advocates repealing the personal property tax businesses pay on computers, vehicles and other property. "It’s a disincentive to business," he said.

He said he also would repeal the "arena tax" currently levied annually on all city businesses to support MCI Center.

"We have to find an alternative," Mendelson said. "It’s offensive to neighborhood businesses who derive no perceived benefit from the arena. For the merchant out on New York Avenue or Connecticut Avenue it’s offensive, even if it’s only $25. A lot of big business groups were behind the arena, but no one was thinking about the vast number of small businesses who find the tax obnoxious and burdensome."

Although he said he isn’t sure how he would make up for the lost revenue, he said he would make it a priority to find a way. "Taxes should be fair and simple," he said.

Mendelson said he doesn’t want to stop big business, just "redirect" it.

"Big downtown development almost always shortchanges depressed areas," he said. "The government has got to work harder to redirect it."

He also said he’s wary of falling for development trends that could turn out to be fads.

"Right now there’s a lot of talk about ‘interactive entertainment,’ but I’m not sure how much of that this city can really support. My vision for downtown is housing and outdoor shopping areas with department stores as anchors," he noted.

Much of the city’s development has occurred without regard to the Comprehensive Plan, a document mandated by the city’s home rule charter that lays out broad guidelines for everything from land use to human services, Mendelson said.

"The document has become less of an honest plan and more of a political document with developers getting to a council member and getting changes made without any analysis."

Mendelson said the city’s planning capability has dwindled dangerously, with staff of the planning office cut from 80 to about 20. He pointed to hundreds of amendments to the comprehensive plan proposed by the mayor and pushed through the current council, in spite of requests from him, Mayor-elect Anthony Williams and other council members-elect to delay the amendments until the next council session.

"It’s very difficult for anyone to understand what’s going on with that document," Mendelson said. "It’s like the D.C. budget that got tacked onto an omnibus appropriations bill. No one even knew what they were voting on."

Recently Mendelson has lobbied for stricter controls on trash transfer stations and opposes building a prison in Ward 8. He said the plan to build a new convention center downtown is "very much a mistake" and plans to make sure the convention center authority sticks to its budget and follows through on its promises of local jobs, environmental compliance and historic preservation.

He also promised a get-tough attitude in reforming the management culture in city government.

"A little enforcement — threatening discipline and backing it up with reality — sends a signal. Council has to change the kinds of questions we ask.

"You promised you would do these things. Well, did you do them? We aren’t going to forgive you for not doing them. It means getting rid of decision makers who are not doing a good job.

"A lot of it is attitude. If you have a no-nonsense person at the top, it trickles down. The word gets out — he’s not kidding."

Copyright 1998, The Common Denominator