Manhattan Beach will appoint poet laureate
Poetry won an unlikely victory in an unlikely place earlier this month. The Manhattan Beach City Council, despite staff misgivings, voted unanimously to establish a poet laureate position within the city. The council allotted an $8,000, two-year stipend and another $5,000 for a small budget for the poet to oversee, with an eye toward furthering poetry within the community. The cost was never the issue. Senior Recreation Supervisor Eric Brinkman told the council that staff had neither the time nor expertise to manage a poet laureate. He noted that what artistic expertise exists among staff tends toward visual arts. “In conclusion, staff recognizes the value of poetry and the work of our local poetry community, and this recommendation is not intended to diminish either,” Brinkman said. “The primary concern is not the artistic value of the proposed program, but the additional administrative and ongoing staff commitment required to establish and sustain it, particularly given our existing workload and approved work plan priorities.” His bureaucratic language was met, appropriately enough, with community poetry. Bob Perkins, a poet, painter, member of the Poetry Circle and Mira Costa…
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