Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1944-01-08
AIexandrians Launch
Move 10 Change Form
Of City Government
Whitton Heads Drive
To Have CounciImen
Elected at Large

Robert G. Wilton, administrator
of the Alexandria Hospital, and re-
firing president of the Chamber of
Commerce, last night was named
chairman of an Alexandria citizens
committee that will seek legislation
to permit referendum on change
in the form of city government.
Alexandria now has a council city
manager plan, with a nine-man
council, six of whose members repre-
sent wards, and three of whom are
elected at large
The form was adopted in 1882 and
supplanted flve-man at-large
council. Critics of the old form
based their opposition mainly on the
TACT that vacancies were filled by
the remaining members of the
council.
The proposed form calls for a
seven-man body elected at large,
with vacancies to be filled by gen.
eral election.
Will Circulate Petitions.
The group plans to circulate petit
lions asking State Senator Andrew
w. Clark and City Delegate w. Sell
den Washington to introduce an
enabling act in the State Legislature
to permit the referendum.
The meeting, held last night in
the auditorium of the Virginia Public
Service Co. Building, was attended
by representatives of various sec
lions of the city, the majority of
whom appeared to favor the change
in government.
Charles M. Jones presided until
the selection of Mr.. Whitton as
chairman, but no one group of per-
sons claimed credit for calling the
meeting.
Those in favor of the proposed
change cited the fact that election
of council by all qualified voters
was more democratic than the pres
ent system whereby each voter has
voice only in the selection of the
three at-large members, and one
ward man.
They also claimed that the growth
OF the city is uneven, and results in
a large proportion of the population
concentrated in the fifth and sixth
wards, with two men representing
almost as large a group as the four
other ward councilmen combined.
Delaney Opposes Change.
The possibility of annexation and
the need for additional wards would
create an unwieldy council, they
claimed, in addition to the fact that
an at-large council would be better
able to serve the interests of the CITY
as whole.
Chief proponents of the present
system were Second Ward Council
man Paul Delaney, who claimed that
If the present system of group rep
resentation is not democratic, then
neither is our national system of
representation, and Sixth Ward
Councilman Charles Burgess, who
claimed a portion of the credit for
the change to the present system.
The proposed change was cham
ploned by William K. Coakley, presi-
dent-elect OF the Chamber of Com
merce; Stanley King, United States
commissioner; Mr.. Whitton, Mr..
Jones, Martin Greene, business
manager of the Chamber of Com
merce; Edmund TIGER, former coun-
Gilman during the fve-man council |
system, and other men prominent
in civic affairs.
Mr.. Clarke attended the meeting
and said referendum is the proper
procedure to determine whether the
people of the city want change.
How Petition Reads.
The petition which will be cir
culated for signatures and then pre-
sented to the State representatives
reads as follows:
I'VE, the undersigned qualified
voters of the City of Alexandria,
Commonwealth of Virginia, do here
by petition you to introduce in, and
cause to be enacted by the coming
session of the Legislature an en-
abling act whereby the qualified
voters of the City of Alexandria
can vote to amend Chapter III, Sec
ton of the charter to provide as
follows:
That on and after September /,
1914, the council of the City of Alex
andria shall consist of seven men,
bers who shall be elected at large
from the qualified voters of the
city and they shall serve for a term
of three years from the LIST day of
September. 1914. provided, however,
that at the first election in June,
A1944, only four members will be
Nected, the present three at-large
members to retain their term until
its expiration, Vacancies in the
councils shall be filled at a special
electionsto be held within go days,
and thes ELECTION shall be for the
unexpireoh term