Last Friday’s Recorder column was another head-scratcher. The November 29 Greenfield Community Forum meeting, sponsored by Town Council’s Community Relations and Education Committee, was designed to give residents a chance to interact with their councilors and other town officials in an informal setting. As a member of the CRE, I can speak confidently that it was clearly marketed as a place for residents to ask questions and give feedback about town matters.
Unfortunately, turnout for precincts 4, 5, and 6 was not as robust as October’s meeting for precincts 1, 2, and 3, though we were pleased to have the opportunity to interact with the residents who did attend. There were probably an equal number of residents and town officials, and we sat around a big table while residents discussed their ideas and concerns.
Here are some of the topics raised by residents:
1)Status of the biomass plant.
2)Fuel/heat assistance, given that the federal aid to the state, which is then given to Greenfield, was cut by 50%.
3)Ways which small business startups could obtain seed money for funding.
4)Use of the Town Common and the process for obtaining licenses to assemble.
5)Parking fees, and whether free parking could be extended to 9am.
6)Leaf-blower noise.
7)Poet’s Seat gate – whether it could be opened to cars later in the morning to address safety concerns of early-morning pedestrians.
8)Obstructions high hedges and other plantings may cause to drivers, and enforcement if those plantings violate ordinances.
9)Healthy communities outreach, to encourage more walking. The concept of a “walking school bus” which would guide kids on safe routes to school.
10)How water bills are calculated.
11)Public smoking.
I’m not sure how an open, informal discussion forum translates to endorsement of “radically liberal” “proposed policy changes,” nor do I remember any councilor or town official endorsing use of town funds for item #3, or categorizing it as a way to “allow residents who can’t qualify for conventional bank loans to borrow money directly from the town.” Options such as the CDC’s involvement, and use of Kickstarter.com were discussed, as well as possible ways to communicate opportunities to entrepreneurs.
As this was an informal meeting, it was not televised, and to my recollection, no media was in attendance. Rest assured that “proposed policy changes” would continue to be raised to the public via the established protocol: through the office of the mayor, via a motion in a town council meeting, in special public hearings, via town boards, etc.
Meanwhile, I encourage residents, particularly those in precincts 7, 8, and 9, to attend January’s Greenfield Community Forum, scheduled for Tuesday, January 24 at 6:30pm at GCC’s Downtown Campus, on Main Street at Davis Street. And, as always, councilors welcome residents’ feedback, in meetings or otherwise. If you have any questions about the topics listed above, I am happy to try to answer them here.
