It's Time to Ask A Council Member Again!

Vol. IV, No. 20 - Council Members Quarterly Meeting to Be Held Saturday

Back in 2017, Council Member Todd Severt and I ran for City Council with a desire to improve communications between city hall and the residents we serve. Part of that effort was the establishment of the quarterly “Ask-A-Council Member” workshops.

These workshops weren’t designed to discuss pending legislation, but were a more general discussion to bring the residents and council members closer together in a way to facilitate open dialouge on those items that residents wanted to bring forward.

Many of the issues that were brought up were the bread and butter concerns that make up local government — Everything from faded stop signs to parks that needed attention to mailboxes in new subdivisions. These were types of the issues that took up a lot of the discussion.

But many of these fruitful discussions also focused on how the government works. There were questions about what departments were responsible for certain functions. Other questions included the role of council in the decision-making process. These discussions were always informal and informative.

The format allowed for a free-flowing discussion of our community without having to navigate a city council meeting and waiting until the very end to have an opportunity to discuss issues. And while city council meetings are opportunities for residents to express their concerns, these meetings aren’t necessarily the best format to have an open dialogue between residents and elected officials. Many council members remain tight-lipped during the time they have to speak to the public, which often gives a less than welcoming demeanour to those wishing to address issues. In addition, these meetings can be intimidating; it’s not always pleasant to stand behind a podium and succinctly talk about issues that are important.

There was a huge need for a more neutral, more hospitable way that residents and council members could interact and these quarterly meetings are accomplishing that goal. And true to its word, this quarterly event has been as neutral as possible, getting city leaders out of city hall and in other places to meet residents, such as the Library, the Lincoln Center, the Senior Citizens Center, the Hayner Center and the St. Patrick’s Soup Kitchen, just to name a few.

Each time one of these events is held, it seems that more and more residents come out and talk about the issues that matter to them as these events have attracted a number of residents to show up and learn about their local government.

The next “Ask-A-Council Member” workshop is coming up this Saturday, June 13th at 9:00 a.m. at the Troy-Miami County Public Library, the meeting will be in the downstairs conference room. Coffee, donuts and juice are always provided.

Our readers and our residents are encouraged to attend this important event!

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This Month, we are doing something different! We are partnering with the Troy-Miami County Public Library by using this platform to raise funds for the Dolly Partin Imagination Library locally here in Miami County! Through the Dolly Partin Imagination Library, children from birth to Kindergarten, can get a book delivered every month to their home at no cost.

And while Dolly is a huge help, she picks out the stories and she works with the publishers, there is still a local cost to the program. Your donations through our “Buy Me A Coffee Page” will help get these youngsters on the right track to a life-long love of reading!

Thanks to John And Kim, Rachelle. Loraine and a special anonymous donor, for your recent donations to this effort. So far this month — 70 books have been purchased! Thank you!