Culver City Receives Report on First Civic Assembly

Published on August 14, 2026

Three photo collage of Civic Assembly discussion.jpg

Over the past several months, 60 Culver City residents took part in the City’s first Civic Assemblies, contributing more than 1,500 hours to learning, deliberating, and developing ideas for how the public can have a greater voice in the City’s budget process. 

A Civic Assembly brings together residents selected through a civic lottery to broadly reflect the community. Participants are given the time, information, and support to learn about a complex issue, consider different perspectives and trade-offs, and develop informed recommendations for City leaders. 

For Culver City’s first Civic Assembly, residents were asked to consider one question: “How might the City of Culver City increase public participation in the budget process?” 

Their work resulted in 42 resident-developed recommendations that are now being reviewed by the City. The City has committed to a public response outlining how the City can act on the recommendations, planned for the September 28 City Council meeting. 

The process produced more than just recommendations. Over multiple days together, participants met neighbors they might not otherwise have encountered, exchanged personal experiences and perspectives, and built new connections across the community. Participants described feeling heard, more connected to Culver City, and proud to contribute their time and ideas to the City’s work. 

“It was a really great chance to meet other Culver City residents from a diverse social strata, not just our own neighborhood and socioeconomic bubbles, and many of us became more civic-minded, and we all felt a real connection in the room.” 
— Civic Assembly participant 

Developing Culver City's First Civic Assembly

The Civic Assembly was initiated following City Council direction in October 2025. Following a competitive process, the City Council selected the Center for New Democratic Processes (CNDP) to design and facilitate the Civic Assembly.  

The original design called for 30 residents, randomly selected to broadly reflect key demographics in Culver City, to participate. As planning progressed, the process evolved into two interconnected Assemblies: the first focused on understanding the current budget process and identifying challenges and opportunities, while the second built on that work to develop recommendations. 

Assembly #1: Understanding the Budget Process 

The first Assembly took place in May 2026 and brought together 30 selected residents. 

Participants built a shared understanding of how Culver City government operates and how the City develops its budget. They explored how funding decisions are made, how departments identify priorities and funding needs, and where residents currently have opportunities to participate in the process. 

“As a so-called informed citizen of Culver City for over 15 years, I pride myself in knowing how my city works. But after joining the Civic Assembly, I quickly realized I have no idea how this place functions.” 
— Civic Assembly participant 

The Assembly identified challenges related to: 

  • Access and communication;
  • Awareness;
  • Budget constraints;
  • The complexity of understanding and engaging with the budget process;
  • Competing interests and priorities;
  • Different understandings of what participation means; and 
  • Perceptions about whether participation has an impact.

Participants also identified opportunities related to: 

  • Amplifying existing activities and resources;
  • Using the community as a resource;
  • Data and reporting;
  • Creating a stronger pipeline for participation; and
  • Building on existing community interest. 

Each of these areas includes more detailed findings and observations from participants. The full discussion of challenges and opportunities can be found on pages 42–56 of the final report. 

Assembly #2: Turning Ideas into Recommendations 

A second group of 30 residents came together in July 2026 with a different task: turn the challenges and opportunities identified by the first Assembly into ideas the City could act on. 

Participants started with the work of the May Assembly, then dug deeper. They heard from 10 Culver City-based community organizations and City department representatives, asking questions and testing potential recommendations against both community experiences and the realities of how the City operates. 

Participants from the May Assembly also returned to share what they had learned, helping provide continuity between the two Assemblies. 

Over the course of the Assembly, participants discussed and refined potential actions, weighing different perspectives and considering what could make public participation in the budget process more meaningful and accessible to the broader community. 

“It’s important for my fellow Culver City neighbors to know that the work accomplished was a group effort that included a lot of conversation and discussion and varying perspectives, and that we tried to keep the entire community in mind.” 

— Civic Assembly participant 

Each participant received three votes to identify the actions they believed should be the highest priorities. The result was 42 recommendations, ranked by the level of participant support they received. The full list begins on page 68 of the Participant Final Report. 

The top five recommendations, shortened for readability, are listed below: 

  1. Meet people where they are: Hold events at locations where people are already gathering and/or using city services.
  2. Feedback loop and impact documentation: Document how feedback and input shapes the budget and is incorporated throughout the budget process.
  3. Neighborhood Ambassadors, Champions, or Groups: Coordinate residents who examine more localized concerns, serve as sources of information and points-of-contact for bi-directional information flow, and gather qualitative feedback.
  4. Budget Recap: Publish data (ongoing and annual) to track how shifts in the budget occurred.
  5. Specific / Direct asks: Create a list of specific invitations for resident action / requests / feedback.

What Happens Next? 

CNDP and Assembly participants presented the process, recommendations, and their experiences to the City Council at meetings on June 22 and August 10. Council Members expressed their appreciation for the significant time and thought participants contributed and committed to providing a public response to the recommendations. 

City staff are reviewing all 42 recommendations and will return to the City Council on September 28 with a public response outlining what is already underway, what can be incorporated or expanded, and where a recommendation cannot be implemented at this time, an explanation of why.  

Where a recommendation cannot be implemented at this time, the City will also explain why. Providing that response is an important part of the City's commitment to greater transparency and ensuring participants and the broader community can see what happened as a result of the Assembly’s work. 

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