Meetings, Bloody Meetings

I love John Cleese, not as in Eric the Half Bee, but on an alien, distant shore sort of way and I often think about his management video when I sit through meetings at work or, more often, when I attend municipal meetings. (someday, this entire space will be nothing but a hyperlink; thank you, Al Gore, for inventing the Internet and all the interfish caught in it, amen.).

There's a lot of downside to living in a small town, having lived in large cities for much of my life, but one of the things I like where we live now is the opportunity in a city of about 36,000 folks (there's some cool info at that link, like how our houses are over 100K cheaper than the Connecticut average, which is fair since the income levels are lower as well--but heck with the numbers, LOOK AT THE PICTURES) to watch how people, elected and appointed, work the levers of governance on one side of the machine to produce the products, be they public education, trash disposal, police and fire protection, new sidewalks (figure Mr. Ripley will like that reference, believe it or not; Mr. Davis, probably not so much) and the creature comforts we just take for granted.

As I mentioned last week, your town/city probably has a website and depending on how well-developed it is (and I have some experience with this stuff and it's one thing to say 'let's set up the site to do this' and quite another to actually get it done) and the City of Norwich's website is not only an excellent calling card for one and all, but for those of us thorns who actually live here, we can do stuff on line instead of having to troop downtown. Okay, you can't get pony rides for your birthday, no matter how far in advance, or completely, you fill out a Citizen Service Request, but it's quite a handy-dandy Popeil-like item. I aspire to be half as functional and as least as decorative as the website before I expire (not quite an even-money bet, so far).

In Norwich this week, it's not a quiet week in terms of public meetings, but many of them are more of the 'managing the white space' variety as opposed to broad and bold strokes. It doesn't make them less important or vital, but if you don't have a familiarity with the issues that some of these meetings are involved with, it can be like watching a tele-novella with the volume off. (Except for my somewhat acerbic observations, which run as subtitles.....)

Tonight at 5, in Room 206 at City Hall, it's the Redevelopment Agency.

Tuesday

There's a Board of Education monthly meeting at 6 PM in Kelly Middle School (where voters last November approved a referendum initiative to, basically, rebuild the school from the inside out; be advised, this is a link for this very important group (in terms of impact generated and public funding needed to operate) but the site isn't up to date unless you'd like an agenda of the March '08 meeting or the minutes from nine months ago).

Happening at the same time and perhaps as important to your household, because their decisions drive the costs of drinking water, sewer, natural gas and electricity to your home and business, is the Board of Public Utilities Commissioners' meeting on the second floor at 16 Golden Street. Their minutes and agenda are available at 173 North Main Street but that's only okay because they really should be available, imho, through the office of the City Clerk and also posted on line on the city's website. Kids, we're almost nine years into the Next Century, feel free to use the technology we've now had for decades and be here now.

Wednesday

I'd attend just because I like the name, Dangerous Buildings Board of Review, at 5:30 PM in the basement conference room at 23 Union Street. Yes, it's serious business and, no, I'm not goofing on them-I think we could goose attendance and participation in municipal meetings by spicing up the names. Okay, maybe nothing changes by adding Stormy to the Harbor Management Commission-but what if it does? Remember, you read it here first.

You've read in the local papers about applicants for, and discussions about, the Sachem Fund (a cooperative venture between the Mohegan Tribe and the City of Norwich). Here's a chance to watch how decisions are made, there's a Sachem Fund Committee at 6 PM in Room 335 at City Hall.

Thursday

There are SIX different meetings on Thursday and I am dumber than a box of rocks on almost all of them-so if you attend and see what looks like a balding piece of gravel, that's me. Here's something on the two about which I know something.....

You've heard of Breakfast with the Beatles? How about an 8 AM meeting with the (Norwich) Community Development Corporation Board of Directors at 77 Main Street? Over the summer, they hired an Executive Director, Robert Mills, and if you've lived in Norwich for more than an hour, you've heard NCDC used as an explanation, as an expletive, as a promise, as a threat and everything in between. You owe it to yourself (and them) to learn more; but you won't find it here, at least not yet.


The Recreation Advisory Board meets at 6 PM in their building up at Dickeman Field near the tennis courts. I'd suggest wearing sneakers just in case there's a pickup game after the meeting.

Saturday

Saturday, 10 AM unti 2 PM at the Otis Library. Candidates' Forum.
Invitees include: State Senator Edith Prague, D, unopposed; 42nd District Representative, for Ledyard and Preston, Tom Reynolds, D, unopposed;46th District Representative, for Norwich, Melissa Olson, D, unopposed and 47th District Representative, for Canterbury, Norwich, Scotland and Sprague, Jack Malone, D, opposed by Christopher Coutu, R. I don't think when it comes to something as important as how we're governed, you can have too much information though from the looks of the above roster, it seems you also can't have enough candidates in opposition. If you live in this region and are eligible and registered to vote, you owe it to yourself and to me, your neighbor, to learn about the people seeking your support.

And if I can offer you an item a week from today, 29 September at 6:30 PM in Room 335 of City Hall is a Freedom of Information Act, FOIA, workshop, run by the State of CT Freedom of Information Act Commission that's always interesting to those who hate being told 'you cannot have information' by a city or state agency. It's a great refresher on what is considered public information and what can, and must, be protected and monitored (and why).
The previous Norwich City Council had to attend one of these as penance for its casual and cavalier (so said some) regard for both the letter and the spirit of the laws and look at how well all that has turned out (we also replaced five of the seven people on the City Council). It helps when involved in the play to have the playbill and understand each character's lines, to include your own. See you at something in the course of the week, unless your luck is really good.
-bill kenny