The Mayor Shall Make an Annual Report to the City Council As to the Conditions and Affairs of the City.”
This presentation fulfils the Charter requirement that “The Mayor shall make an annual report to the City Council as to the conditions and affairs of the City.” 1 In ancient Roman religion and myth, Janus is the god of beginnings and transitions, and thereby of gates, doors, doorways, passages and endings, a suitable icon for this presentation for several reasons. Janus is usually depicted as having two faces, since he looks to the future and to the past. It is conventionally thought that the month of January is named for Janus. This report has two parts: The first part describes Richmond in many different ways. The second part describes the many projects and programs that the Mayor’s Office will prioritize in the coming year. 2 First of all, I want to thank Mayor McLaughlin, the City Council, Bill Lindsay and his management team and all City employees for a great eight years. Richmond has truly changed for the better, and we want to continue the momentum. 3 I want to introduce the Mayor’s Office staff. Everyone knows Terrance Cheung who moved over from Supervisor John Gioia’s Office. David Gray, who was a City Council intern while in graduate school at Cal, recently relocated from Louisiana. And Alex Knox, a Richmond native, headed up our successful election campaign. 4 The mayor’s job description is in the City Charter. Richmond is a Council‐Manager form of government and the city manager is the City’s chief executive. The mayor does not run the city, but according the Charter, has a number of responsibilities and a staff of three to research, advocate, educate and lobby.
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