The Mayor and staff got off to a rough start in response to the virus by excluding the public from public hearings because it was technologically inconvenient.
But members of the public and City Council – most prominent among them Charley Able, Ramey Johnson, Anita Springsteen and Mike Bieda – raised some hell.
After two meetings without public input, the Mayor and staff conceded it is technologically possible to include the public and they will be included at the next meeting Monday, April 13.
Thank you City Council and pesky citizens.
The work session and meeting from this past Monday was recorded. It provided a wonderful revelation. The City Council, led by exceedingly thoughtful proposals from Dana Gutwein and Barb Franks, focused on the virus. They brainstormed about what the City can do to promote public health and join the fight against the virus.
Dana suggested re-soliciting grant program proposals from charity organizations to provide more money to organizations for virus fighting assistance – food bank, masks, information to the most vulnerable of our citizens.
Barb suggested getting together with small businesses and charities to see what suggestions they may have. Undoubtedly she would include volunteer residents in that discussion as well.
Ms. Vincent shared observations about that otherwise “invisible” mass of our population who live day to day without significant resources who were clustered with no distancing, without protective masks, hungry.
It was a really wonderful conversation and worth the time to watch. Makes us proud.
The consensus was clear that the virus presented new priorities, postponing other issues for a later day.
However, that sentiment was tempered with a realization that the “critical path” of the City business must continue. And also tempered by the reality that citizens’ concerns must not be ignored.
But, now that the citizens’ participating in public meetings has been restored (thank you again City Council), the new normal is beginning to look . . . well . . . normal for the democratic republic that we are, virus or no virus.
All please be safe.
John Henderson