Students Take On City Hall, Golden Triangle

The Golden Triangle, a prime piece of real estate located between the intersection of Interstates 15 and 215 in Murrieta, was once slated for a retail and entertainment hub.

As plans for it fell by the wayside, there have been new talks of reviving the project, just as Murrieta Mayor Randon Lane has brought back a long-forgotten piece of Murrieta tradition--a day when students run the show.

Lane said he has been pushing to bring back Youth in Government Day, something that City Hall did years ago but got lost somewhere along the way.

So Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, and with the help of City officials, students are putting together a project proposal for the Golden Triangle.

Seventeen Murrieta students were chosen on the basis of their application, grades, extra-curricular activities and community service.

"We got a huge response from students," Lane said.

The group of high school seniors and juniors packed into a narrow conference room at City Hall on Tuesday, dressed in crisp slacks and starched dark dress shirts. Many chatted with their doubles--the city employee they are shadowing--and tried to get a feel for what the officials do every day.

"City government is all about being responsive to the people," Councilman Rick Gibbs confided in his intern. Gibbs animatedly explained that elected officials had an obligation to their constituents, and said that fulfilling those obligations was an official's main job.

The students started shadowing officials Tuesday and were scheduled to pick back up where they left off at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, studying their daily tasks and meetings. They are set to participate in a mock City Council meeting Wednesday at 2 p.m. after watching the real Council meet on Tuesday.

After wading through the legal and personal issues involved with the proposal, they will craft and vote on a measure, just like the real Council does every week.

The program was designed to help connect high achieving high school students to local government, and help them better understand what the City does for its citizens, Lane said.

"I want our students to see how government functions first-hand," he said. "Not just reading about it. Not just hearing about it. I want them to see and be a part of the decision making process we go through."

Lane will be mentoring Ian Osburn, a Murrieta Valley High School senior and captain of the school's Mock Trial program. Osburn said he hopes to go into politics after college, possibly at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He asked to follow Lane specifically to get a better grasp of how things work at the top.

"Honestly, I'm just interested in government in all its levels, and I wanted to see how City government worked," Osburn said. "I'm taking government in school right now, and this is a different level that I haven't learned about yet."

Other students participating include Nick Roweton, Vista Murrieta’s Senior Class President, who is shadowing the Mayor Pro Tem Doug McAllister, and Avronia Mourkus, Murrieta Mesa’s Vice President of California Scholarship Federation, who is shadowing City Clerk Kay Vinson.

Before leading the students through a tour of City Hall Tuesday, Lane asked them a primer question to help put the City's financial stature in perspective. "How much do you think this building cost?" he asked, gesturing to the warm yellow walls and finely polished floor of the City Hall entryway.

One student tentatively said "$10,000," before sinking back into the group of her peers. Lane shook his head, and another official pointed up at the sky, mouthing "higher."

Another offered up "$130 million," and Lane again shook his head.

The answer: $13 million, a hefty sum for the City, Lane said.

Happy that it all came together, Lane sees the event being done semi-annually--once in the fall and once in the spring.

"The goal is for each mayor to do this twice," he said.