Drenched in Vanilla Twilight (Norwich Meetings 25-30 January 2010)

This new year, 2010, that arrived with such hopes and high expectations is already almost a month old, or will be by the time we reach the end of this week. How did that happen-and when? Perhaps the good news is that if you've holding off buying a calendar, you should start to see some great prices on them as the deep discounts kick in. That's an economic stimulus we can all get behind.

Municipal government works only as hard as we, the people who live in our millions of towns and cities across the country, help it work. Everything from picking up trash as you go for a walk around the block, to testifying at a public hearing on a zoning change or offering yourself as a candidate for an office, each a small step by itself, adds up to a larger way forward.

I fear we've spent too many years in this Experiment Called the United States getting too comfortable referring to others as 'them' so that 'we' will have someone to blame. The danger of finger pointing is that three of the fingers point back at yourself. Perhaps if, instead of balling out fingers into fist we offer them as a hand up to someone else in need, together we can make where we live better for all of us. If we don't at least try, we fail and we've long since reached the point where failure can be an option.

This afternoon at five in Room 206 of City Hall, it's a regular meeting of the Redevelopment Agency, about, and from, whom, in the coming weeks and months, based on the City Council's Saturday conversations, we will all soon hear much more.

Tuesday morning at eight, in their offices at 108 New Park Avenue in the Business Park, it's a regular meeting of the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board who balance a (comparatively) global perspective with local implementation.

There's a Norwich Board of Education Policy Committee meeting at 3:30 in their central office, across from the Norwichtown Green. A check of the NPS website will shed no light on what this committee has been involved in, as the schedule for "2008-2009" (sic) Policy Committee meetings has NO minutes of the hours they were in session at all.

At five, in Room 210 at City Hall, it's a regular meeting of the Harbor Management Commission. A review of their December meeting minutes suggests progress continues on both the reconstruction of the seawall and the Yantic dredging (maybe more with the former than the latter because of regulatory interfacing). I follow the former mainly because I enjoy the walk from the pump house to downtown along the Heritage Trail, regardless of the season, and hope to soon begin again to be able to do that (now that I have these bionic knees, it's that or SYTYCD, and no one should have to choose that).

At six, across town in their conference room on Golden Street is a regular meeting of the Board of (Norwich Public) Utilities Commissioners/Sewer Authority (the former includes a presentation on the Norwich Community Development Corporation by its Executive Director, Bob Mills. I'd expect one topic will be a work in progress, their Strategic Plan, and the impact the Saturday conversations with the City Council are having on it).

Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 is a meeting of the Norwich Board of Education Building and Space Committee in the central office. The only mention I could find of it wasn't on either the Board's or City's website, per PL 8-03, but in a local newspaper. In light of the scale and scope of this group's purpose, the multi-million dollar expansion and improvement of Kelly Middle School, a better effort, a much better effort, needs to be made to keep the public informed.

I realize that can be a thankless task, sometimes, as someone who sat on volunteer committees and wondered where the heqq all the folks I'm trying to help are on any given afternoon or evening. Speaking of which, there seems to be a vacancy on this committee which means if you were wondering how you can help make where we live better, the first step is to go here and apply. I like that the form asks if you are a registered voter, but even better, that it does not ask about your political affiliation.

Later Wednesday, at five, in the Planning Department's basement conference room at 23 Union Street, it's a regular meeting (I suppose) of the Dangerous Buildings Board of Review. Sort of subsets of this board, are both the 21 West Thames Street Committee and the 751 North Main Street Committee which meet, one right after the other, after the Board of Review meeting, and/or starting at 6:15 PM whichever comes first (your mileage may vary). All three are missing posted copies of their December meeting minutes.

And at seven, to the left of the sand trap (where's Mark Twain when I need him?) over at their conference room in their facility, it's a regular meeting of the Golf Course Authority.

Thursday morning at eight, in their offices at 77 Main Street are both annual and regular meetings of the Norwich Community Development Corporation Board of Directors. NCDC, along with other members of the 'alphabet soup' coalition of development agencies, is working more closely than perhaps at any time in its history with the elected leadership of Norwich as the city's downtown development arm. Perhaps, like me, you don't know what you don't know about their role, make-up and function. Thursday morning could be a good time to learn-but if you can't attend the public meetings,as I have done in the past, you can request a copy of the agenda and previous meetings' minutes.

Perhaps, but only perhaps, Thursday afternoon at 5:30 in Room 335 of City Hall is a meeting of the Sachem Fund Board listed in one of the local newspapers, though not on the Municipal website. In reviewing their October minutes, the most recent ones posted, I'm trying to grasp the impact of paragraph 5b on a funding proposal for the former YMCA, since what I understood of what I was heard (not always what I was told) seems to be the opposite of what is considered a permitted use of funds. It's a feast or famine with me-I read too soft or too hard-never just right.

In the same vein as the previous note could be a meeting of the Recreation Advisory Board, maybe at six in the Recreation Department Office, next door to Dickenman Field, at least according to a newspaper.

And at seven, there is a Democratic Town Committee meeting in City Hall, usually held in Room 335. Anyone can attend, you do not have to be a registered Democrat. They're not big on pony rides-no need to ask how I know that.

Friday morning at 7:30 (but come early because the acoustics are awful even if there's a mike and speakers) is a roundtable with Mayor Nystrom sponsored by the Norwich Council of the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut in Room 335 of City Hall. There's a cost to attend, $5 for members and $10 for non-members.

And Saturday morning, at eight, in Room 335 of City Hall, the Council, Mayor and City Manager will continue to wrestle and wrangle with the data and details being developed by NCDC, Rose City Renaissance, Downtown Neighborhood Redevelopment Zone (missed them last week) and the Redevelopment Agency, the 'alphabet soup' agencies I've mentioned, as they sift through dozens of sources of information to build a a body of factual assumptions upon which to construct an economic development plan tied to community needs, strengths and abilities.

More facts, less emotion-not quite as catchy as Don't Crush that Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers (and you thought I made that up?) but maybe we really do need something with more utility and less futility. "I'll find repose in new ways/Though I haven't slept in two days. 'Cause cold notalgia chills me to the bone."
-bill kenny