Special Task force for Issue Advisory Groups

MINUTES

March 18, 2008
6:30 p.m.

HR Training Room No. 22160
316 North Academy Street, Cary, NC
www.townofcary.org

Present: Lori Bush, Tommy Byrd, Lloyd Hinnant (6:42 p.m.), Don Hyatt (6:42 p.m.), Susan Lawson, Vickie Maxwell, Council Liaison Julie Robison and Staff Liaison Teri Peralta

Absent: David Forvendel and Staff Liaison Bill Coleman

Guests: Elizabeth Ann Adams, Joe Ciulla and Karl Thor

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 6:39 p.m.

Approval of Minutes

Ms. Maxwell moved to approve the minutes from the March 11, 2008 meeting.  Mr. Byrd provided a second and the motion carried unanimously.

Old/New Business

Ms. Bush began by allowing each person to introduce themselves.  She then gave an overview of the purpose and mission of the task force and reviewed the draft application process.  She turned the meeting over to Ms. Maxwell and Ms. Lawson who reviewed the application form.

The guests were then given an opportunity to offer comments or ask questions about the process. Each of the guests participated and offered suggestions for making the application process more citizen-friendly. It was suggested that the criteria and examples could be included in a supporting document that would help an applicant work through the process.

Ms. Bush explained they would like to recommend that a Citizen Issue Review Committee (CIRC) be established from a random selection of School of Government alumni volunteers, and further discussion ensued as to how this resource could be best utilized.

The group then took time to run through a hypothetical issue from beginning to end and solicited more feedback from the guests.  After further refining the process, the guests were asked if they had any further suggestions.

Ms. Adams emphasized the importance of conveying to potential applicants that when they form a group they remember that they are looking for a change that will benefit the Town of Cary as a whole and as such are representing a diverse group of people.

Mr. Ciulla commented that it is important to remember that the average citizen often is not entirely familiar with how a government works and so any assistance that can be afforded to citizens wishing to begin this process should be so that they are not deterred from using the program.

Mr. Thor said he thinks this is an outstanding program and thought that Cary citizens would be up to the challenge, adding that as the program continues citizens will have a better understanding of how things work and everyone’s education level will be pulled up.

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 8:34 p.m.