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COUNCIL CORNER Council Corner: The view from under the bus By John Stromberg DailyTidings.com By John Stromberg Posted Oct. 6, 2015 @ 12:01 am By John Stromberg Posted Oct. 6, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Dear Carol: Somebody said to me after your Sept. 22 Council Corner article, “That really threw the council under the bus!” I’ll share how things look from this angle. First, the clever but cynical tag line “we’ve got the government we deserve” was disrespectful of what I consider an intelligent, hard-working and responsive council. I hope you just got caught up in the rhetoric and didn't really mean it the way it came across — but isn't so much of what we do about communications? I will stipulate that when people try to communicate with the council at business meetings the result is a grotesque user experience. It exists because the law requires it for planning, ordinances and resolutions. Free-flowing conversations between citizens and the council would derail important decisions that need to be made on time. We do, in other ways, foster better communications between the public and the council. The listening session about deer I hosted last week with your help worked because it was just about listening. There was no pressure to produce decisions. This relaxed atmosphere took pressure off speakers and allowed us to absorb what was said. This session fed into an Open City Hall forum on the city website, which as of Monday had been viewed by 172 people, 52 of whom posted responses (24 were “On Forum,” meaning the posters identified themselves, and 28 not). Open City Hall produces input of a different quality, more thoughtful, more carefully composed, etc. People have time to think and we get creative insights, something sorely needed with the deer issues. The “On Forum/Off Forum” aspect is worth mentioning because the council decided a couple of years ago it would not take input from anonymous posters. If citizens want to participate they have to stand up and be counted. I think that also applies to fact-finding and fair argument. Many citizens get involved because they're outraged about something and often do not fully understand the factual context. Sometimes their avenue into the issue is a social media page that frames the issue in a one-sided, inflammatory way that plays fast and loose with facts. The council must find a fact-based context for decisions, because it is responsible for doing what's best for the community as a whole. We are aware of how difficult it is for a lay person who has little knowledge of complex governmental issues of even a town as small as Ashland to get an adequate grasp of a particular decision. To work through to a good decision and bring along members of the public from a particular point of view requires a lot of effort, especially in Ashland where we have such intelligent and engaged community members. I frequently meet with staff to work on preparing presentations to be comprehensible but not dumbed down. Over the past couple of weeks Councilor Pam Marsh and I had three two-hour meetings with city staff to try to relate the extraordinarily complex Normal Neighborhood Plan decision process to issues raised by the public without losing people with technical planning terminology. We have had meetings with other staff to prepare for the visit from DEQ and Union Pacific representatives concerning getting a whole-site cleanup using rail cars to remove toxic soils. To successfully communicate, there has to be a factual base for our conversation. For concerned citizens whose initial perception of the subject has been partial, or factually incorrect, it is difficult to be interested in facts if they undermine one's argument. I call on advocates for citizens groups, whether councilors or citizen activists or social media denizens, to avoid ignoring or misrepresenting facts in order to keep passions high and instead contribute to a common understanding of the facts upon which the council can base its decision. Well, I'm running on and don't want to get hit by another bus, so I'll just thank you for sharing your thoughts and say that I and, I'm sure, the council are more than willing to work with you to improve the many ways we and the citizens we serve communicate. John Stromberg is mayor of Ashland. By John Stromberg DailyTidings.com By John Stromberg Posted Oct. 6, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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