Andy- THANK YOU - I wholly applaud your email and thoughts here as many Lincolnites would welcome such changes. Town Meeting is archaic to the point of being exclusionary and disenfranchising - as many point out, it is not in step with modern life. In our household, work and family commitments on Town Meeting Days prevent participation by necessity. A refresh on the format would reinvigorate the forum, allowing for the possibility of much broader participation. Imagine no postings, discussion or suggestion that decisions were made by the select few who could be physically present for such a length of time.
This can't be the first time these ideas have been raised. What has prevented action in the past and how can any proposed suggestions gain traction and then be implemented? Michael Dembowski Conant Road On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 11:57 PM Andy Wang <andyrw...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Unfortunately, there are specific rules that govern an Open Town Meeting > like Lincoln that do not allow for matters that are decided at Town Meeting > to be replaced by a traditional ballot vote. Given that the March 2024 > meeting will cover two "Hot Topic" Issues, the bonding for the Community > Center and the HCA rezoning, this one I assume is going to be a doozy. And > that's on top of all the other typical yearly business of the town > (presentations, budget, etc). > > I believe there is a possible mechanism to be more inclusive, if the Town > and Moderator decide to: > > I propose that we hold Town Meeting in *two* *sessions*. > > *Session A: **Presentations, Debate & Amendments only. * Views are > presented, debate to be had, and any amendments are to be discussed and > voted on. The meeting would be live, streamed, & recorded. The recording > would be made available for download after the meeting so people who were > not able to attend could catch up on all of the debate, or just educate > themselves on the issues that are of import to them. The moderator could > then simply adjourn the meeting without vote (on the actual question). > They have this power in general for cases when meetings run late and can > re-convene at a later date, provided that date is before the ballot vote. > > *Caveats:* > - Anyone attending on-line would NOT be able to pose questions / make > statements, this violates the rules of Town Meeting, you must be present to > be recognized > - Anyone not attending in person would not be able to vote on any > amendments > - All questions would need to be called, which closes debate > > *Session B: Voting. * This would occur on the last Saturday before the > last Monday in March as required by the town by-laws. Assuming people have > been to Session A or downloaded and reviewed the material that is relevant > to them, we now have a population of well-informed voters who can come in > and just knock out the votes in succession (the question would have already > "been called" in Session A, which closes further debate). This format > would be much easier for parents to allow a smaller fixed period of time to > vote on issues and anyone else with a busy schedule. > > The actual text of the by-law timing is here: > > *"The Annual Town Meeting shall be held on the Saturday before the last > Monday in March in each year at 9:30 A.M. for the transaction of all > business except that the election of officers and the determination of such > matters as by law are required to be elected or determined by ballot shall > take place on the last Monday in March, when the polls shall be open from > 7:30 A.M. until 7:00 P.M., or to such later time up to 8:00 P.M. as the > Moderator may determine, provided, however, that whenever the date for the > Annual Town Meeting, as hereby established, falls on the Saturday before > Easter Sunday, the Annual Town Meeting shall be held on the preceding > Saturday, although the Election and ballot questions hereinabove described > shall still be held on the last Monday in March."* > > Not covered in this: > - Military / Reserve duty votes are still not able to be counted > - Foreign nationals that live in town, and even those that live in town > and own property that would be impacted can not vote > - Proxy voting is not allowed > > Unfortunately, those would require many more changes, but I believe we can > do a two session Town Meeting under current guidelines. > > Of course, Town Council would have to review, but I believe this is in the > realm of the possible. NH has specific rules that allow for this, but I do > not believe that there are rules that preclude it in MA. And if there are > rules, I would propose that we change the by-laws to support this > structure. I believe this would make town meeting more accessible to a > wider range of town people and more representative of the desires of the > Town. > > Sorry...that ended up longer than I intended. I'll save my musing about > electronic voting and other efficiencies for another opportunity.... > > - Andy > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 9:07 PM Caitlin Hogue <hogue.cait...@gmail.com> > wrote: > >> Also, I apologize for writing students instead of kids in a sentence >> below — my work brain was apparently still functioning! >> >> Katy >> >> On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 7:49 PM Caitlin Hogue <hogue.cait...@gmail.com> >> wrote: >> >>> Babysitting has been offered recently. >>> >>> Respectfully, however, it’s not something that all parents can utilize. >>> Not all kids will be comfortable in a large group babysitting setting where >>> they don’t know the adults/babysitters. It’s not a great setting for >>> babies/toddlers who are napping (if they even take babies — I think it may >>> be school-age only). I also assume there is no medical staff so students >>> requiring a nurse can’t go (I may be wrong on that one). >>> >>> As a working parent who works in a public school and ends up at lots of >>> night meetings, I don’t want to spend my whole Saturday away from my kids. >>> Although these meetings are not that often, it actually does feel more >>> often than I would have expected. With a military partner, we often can’t >>> even send one of us to these meetings without paying for a private >>> babysitter (if we can find one). >>> >>> I share all this just to point out that this kind of babysitting isn’t >>> necessarily a solution for all and there are many of us who want to >>> participate but can’t given the length and timing of these meetings. Given >>> this, any votes that happen at these meetings likely are not representative >>> of the town as a whole. I realize that town meeting structure is a state >>> issue, not something that we can change on our own, but I think it’s worth >>> noting. >>> >>> Also — I’ve seen many people tout the benefits of hearing the discussion >>> at town meeting before a vote. Given that’s it’s 2023 and we can all share >>> our thoughts in advance online, in videos, and via email, I don’t think >>> that’s a key outcome (for me at least) anymore. >>> >>> Best, >>> Katy Hogue >>> >>> On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 6:58 PM Joan Kimball <selene...@gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> It always has been hard for people with young children. They used to >>>> have babsitting. Do they still? >>>> >>>> It is a big chunk of time. But it's not that often in comparison to >>>> the hours and hours that volunteer town officials put in. >>>> >>>> Guess it can be seen as the price of democracy? >>>> >>>> Joan (former LWV president) >>>> >>>> On Mon, Nov 20, 2023, 6:28 PM Rob Haslinger <rob.haslin...@gmail.com> >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>>> Being new to town I’m not terribly familiar with the town meeting >>>>> process. I will note however that for those of us with time consuming >>>>> responsibilities (in our case small children) it may be challenging to >>>>> attend a lengthy meeting despite caring deeply about the issues and doing >>>>> our best to stay informed. Just a comment, I may be missing something >>>>> about how this works. >>>>> >>>>> Best regards to all >>>>> Rob Haslinger >>>>> S Great Road >>>>> >>>>> On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 5:53 PM Margo Fisher-Martin < >>>>> margo.fisher.mar...@gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> Hi All, >>>>>> >>>>>> I also agree that this should be a ballot item. If we can vote for a >>>>>> new school by ballot, why can’t we use the same process to vote for other >>>>>> extremely important town changes - ones that will impact our everyday >>>>>> living here and our taxes? >>>>>> >>>>>> Respectfully, >>>>>> Margo Fisher-Martin >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 5:22 PM ٍSarah Postlethwait <sa...@bayhas.com> >>>>>> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>>> A town wide secret ballot would be a great idea to make sure a wider >>>>>>> audience gets their voice represented. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> I also encourage anyone not familiar with the proposed rezoning >>>>>>> options to visit this website to gain a better understanding of the >>>>>>> magnitude of the proposed changes and Lincoln’s uniquely impacted >>>>>>> position. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> LincolnHCA.org >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Sarah Postlethwait >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> On Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 4:17 PM Tom Kennedy < >>>>>>> t...@kennedygroupboston.com> wrote: >>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Part of the discussion at last weeks planning board meeting is >>>>>>>> noteworthy, but has not been mentioned here. >>>>>>>> There was substantial discussion, maybe even consensus, on a none >>>>>>>> of the above option. Even a planning board member and some of the >>>>>>>> “working >>>>>>>> group“ were in favor. >>>>>>>> Yet when the vote came up for a warrant article, that was not >>>>>>>> mentioned. >>>>>>>> Another part of the discussion was the fact that town meeting >>>>>>>> determination is “skewed“ by attendance and timing. I have observed >>>>>>>> this to >>>>>>>> be absolutely true. >>>>>>>> It is my belief that something which will so radically transform >>>>>>>> our community should be voted on in some form by secret ballot. It is >>>>>>>> also >>>>>>>> my belief that that will never happen. >>>>>>>> Tom Kennedy >>>>>>>> -- >>>>>>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>>>>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>>>>>> Browse the archives at >>>>>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>>>>>>> Change your subscription settings at >>>>>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> -- >>>>>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>>>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>>>>> Browse the archives at >>>>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>>>>>> Change your subscription settings at >>>>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> -- >>>>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>>>> Browse the archives at >>>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>>>>> Change your subscription settings at >>>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>>>>> >>>>>> -- >>>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>>> Browse the archives at >>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>>>> Change your subscription settings at >>>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>>>> >>>>> -- >>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>> Browse the archives at >>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>>> Change your subscription settings at >>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>>> >>>> -- >> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >> Browse the archives at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >> Change your subscription settings at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >> >> -- > The LincolnTalk mailing list. > To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. > Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/ > . > Change your subscription settings at > https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. > >
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