Posted by Anne Winburn
I want to thank President Cobin for hosting last night’s CCSD Objectives Town Hall meeting.There were some questions raised about how to conduct a town hall meeting so I did a quick Google search and came up with 3 interesting links of guidelines for Town Hall Meetings. They are for specific issues, but if you take the high view and just look at process, they are very helpful.
http://www.dav.org/voters/documents/town_hall_meeting_kit.pdf http://www.jointogether.org/resources/pdf/townhall.pdf http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Lunch/Downloadable/small.pdf
Last 5 posts by anne
- Landwatch San Luis Obispo County position on the Hearst Corp Request for lot line adjustment
- Landwatch San Luis Obispo County position on the county COSE
- "...County officials in San Diego recently gave the Palomar Mountain volunteer fire department a grant to buy gel that residents can spray on their homes."
- Public Information Requests
- About the "Community Park"
I hope the next town hall meeting changes the entire format. Anne Wyatt was unnecesary and redundant going on and on on for a long 30 minutes the same thing over and over . No wonder half the people left early. Writing down questions was a wasted effort and having to wait for an answer another poor decision. I think the directors took too long in in presenting their side of the story and should allow the residents more time after all the directors get a meeting every month to spin their story so the town hall meeting is our time. I was unimpressed with the information Peter Cahllotdot put up on the screen .Half of the story on each set of facts was missing.
And I think that Joan Cobin has to learn to hide or get counseling on her distain for the residents of our town. She started off the meeting with an under the breath comment about her and the GM’s spending practices in Washington brought up by a resident. And her radio interview where she remarks that people can give up eating pizza once a month so as to apply that money toward increased rates is reaching the level of SNL live humor.
For a first try, I feel that the Cambria Town Hall Meeting this week was a good effort. Perhaps I feel this way because I did not have high expectations of accomplishing anything other than getting the process started. As I stated at the meeting, I hope and expect that this was the first of many and that the Town Hall meetings will occur regularly, maybe once a month. It would be effective to have the meeting either a week or two weeks after the regular monthly CCSD meeting, which would (a) give the public fodder for their discussions, (b) provide time to get the concerns aired onto the following CCSD agenda, and (c) keep the CCSD aware that Cambrians care and are watching.
I have spoken with several people at the first Town Hall meeting and it was clear to them and to me that the biggest concern was the dual issue of distrust of the CCSD and the acrimony resulting from it. The distrust is partly historical and partly of the current board. One reason, mentioned often at the meeting, comes from the “secrecy” or lack of openness in the CCSD process, i.e., Cambrians finding out about problems after they have already been put in process. (Law suits come to mind as an example.)
The water issue, of course, is one of our biggest concerns, if not the top concern, yet most of the people I know have little idea where the desalination stands in Cambria’s plans or what the alternatives are. It seems to me that it should be the CCSD’s responsibility to take several tactics in getting this information to the public, rather than an occasional brochure or an invitation to come by the CCSD office to look at documents. A town with our small population should be a place of sharing information, not a place where the citizens are seen as impediments to the process of governance. More information is better than less information. Better we get too much than too little. This can overcome misinformation and the problem of festering gripes.
And one more thing: I believe a Town Hall meeting should be an event where Cambrians’ questions are answered, if not then, at least a progress report on answering the question at the following meeting. The more this happens, the less distrust and acrimony. The more we have these dialogs, the fewer gripes. Maybe.
I just hope the Community will vote the current Board members out of office this November. A change is needed so NO re-election for any Board current members, a complete turnover is needed for the ugly war between the CCSD Board and the people of Cambria to end. Victory to the people, for a change.
though it has been mentioned before, the reality is that only 3 of the 5 objectives were reviewed before the meeting was ended. there was never another meeting to cover the other 2 objectives which are equally as thorny as the first 3.
And then, the board approved the objectives as proposed. No changes incorporating input from the community. No followup community vetting of the un-discussed goals.
SO much for soliciting community input to help define CCSD goals and ensure that they align with the Community’s view of what Goals the board should have.
The CCSD board has demonstrated time and again that they do not care what the community thinks.
It’s amazing how the US Presidential Campaign of 2008 have changed the face and decorum of Town Hall Meetings.