Awhile back the current council chamber was designed, funded and built. Those behind the project apparently presumed that the citizens of Ashland were not much interested in the running of their government. Another view is that the sizing of the chambers was a conscious act to limit public access. I think that I know the truth of this matter.
Regardless of your view, things are too small there. Every time a controversial measure is discussed, the public overflows out into the lobby and out of the building. Oh, for the days when the public got so discouraged that they went home and reorganized the pantry.
Efforts to include the public interactively through the Internet with the Council are greeted by the City with all the enthusiasm usually reserved for lean budgets and public accountability. It's just so much more easy to encourage public input, then make it so difficult that knitting and cross-word puzzles become more attractive options.
So, here is the dirty little secret. When topics draw the public, the meeting space overflows and is in violation of Fire and Life Safety Codes. If a private business does this, we flow enforcement officers into the breach, issuing citations and closing down the operation. When the City does it, well, err...Let's gavel this meeting to order and not pay attention to the law.
The Council says that you must attend meetings in person in order to speak. We're paying for AFN, several times over, which has the capacity to allow otherwise, yet City Council meetings are a one-way deal for those not inclined or able to park their backsides in a small, hot room.
What's wrong with Digital Democracy? Why can't Ashland promote it, using the remarkable power of the Ashland Fiber Network?
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