We also lost on the ecological and urban planning front. The pedestrian-oriented European city centers that Santa Monica seeks to emulate, embody a seamless web of walkers, bikers and skaters. The ban here took us away from this type of consciousness. We failed miserably to make the needed paradigm shift. The ban also has caused us to lose on the democracy front.
Good government seeks to meet the reasonable, yet sometimes diverse needs of a community.
The best policy-making comes when we seek common ground, rather than allowing 'might to make right'. One can only wish city board and commissions involved that sought the ban, had first used their resources to bring all stakeholders together. A small meeting of representatives could've been convened, followed by a widely-noticed public workshop. Hopefully the time is soon that the city will reconsider this issue and overturn the ban. Of those who have contacted me to say they disagreed with my position, most actually were focused on skateboards and didn't understand I was focused on roller skating.