Minutes 01-27-2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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26 up to a meeting. In one of her other counties they passed millions of dollars of human services funding and no one said anything; then they went to buy chairs for a courthouse and they had to come back three times. That's because everyone had bought a chair. They are going to do better at communicating because everything they do now will have a communications plan attached to it. But remember that just because a lot of people do not show up it does not mean they have not communicated effectively. Bonnie Hammersley said they need to be consistent about getting the word out, whether it is a big topic like fracking or something where there is no interest, it should have the same level of attention from staff in getting the message out, so everybody knows what they are doing in County government. Commissioner Jacobs said the County did a good job in 2004 when the school merger issue was raised. He said then-Commissioner Carey brought it up at a retreat. They organized it, they got public information out, they held public hearings, people had a chance to have their say, they received reports, and then they went through a process of decision making. People might not all have liked the outcome, but it was a controlled explosion that worked well. Another example, he said, was the Master Aging Plan. That's about 100 people working on something that is not explosive. There is a wide range of representation; they work on all these different options, and they come back with a plan. That's successful. Commissioner Jacobs said when they took over the animal shelter it was explosive. They put the issue out there, said there was a problem, people had extremely strong feelings, and they are way better off now with our Animal Services Department than they were back when they did not have it. Commissioner Jacobs said for the more explosive issues they need to be ready. They did not do such a good job with roadside recycling. There was too much confusion. Commissioner Marcoplos suggested that Board meeting agenda items have a sustainability or resilience Impact Note, much like what they do now with fiscal or social justice impacts. It would highlight the importance of environmental sustainability/resilience to the public and keep it on their minds. Commissioner Rich suggested that Commissioner Dorosin briefly relate each Board meeting to one or more of the Board's goals during his "Meeting in a Minute" recap. Travis Myren said it was suggested during the last Department Directors meeting that fifteen or thirty minutes be set aside before each Board meeting as an opportunity for each Department to update the Commissioners and the public on what that Department is working on, emerging issues, or accomplishments. They would orient the presentation to the audience, not the dais. Travis Myren said they are prepared to do this if the Board would like for them to do this. Chair Dorosin said that the idea runs counter to his "shorter meetings" initiative. However, the larger issue, he said, is that the Board meetings are not as transparent as they would like. Not that many people come, not that many people watch, and sometimes by the time they talk about something important the people who were there have left or those who were watching have stopped. I think that having Department updates is a good idea, he said, but I don't think adding them to our meetings will help. Commissioner Dorosin asked all the staff in the room if the Board is overlooking anything important in its stated priorities. He asked staff what they were hearing from the public that was not encompassed on today's monitoring and evaluation handout; what needs elaboration: • Bob Marotto, Animal Services Director, suggested that the community centers become a better point of contact between the County and community; this relates to the Residents Academy idea and to the larger issue of Communication, he said. Mr. Stancil agreed.