Bratteboro’s Town Meeting Representatives are having a special meeting today to discuss and vote on the possible move of a police station to the north end of town. Just over 100 representatives are there, and voting begins at 10 am. Results later today.
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Not blogging
Rep actually says that they are voting on two problems – the police and the municipal station.
Funny. The municipal center wasn’t a warned topic. No decision needs to be made about it today.
Lots of arguments for moving the police station from board members and the town staff, except for Kate O’
Connor. People making some good arguments for not moving it, too.
A handful of people will decide!
A handful of people will decide!
Oh, christ. If the issue is so important, yet so divisive,why not have a town referendum?
One rep agrees.
Rep. Dora Bouboulis told everyone there that it should go to town wide vote.
It should be red, so I painted it blue
Another representative says it should be downtown, but voted for the station to move north. It’s urgent!.
Parry, thrust
Many reps doubting the move north, but town staff defends!
Thrust, parry
Other reps swayed by the arguments – no need to be downtown, work is done in cars, almost nobody walks in to the downtown location, it would be costly to stay, and so on.
Constituents?
Most “reps” are offering personal opinions. Only a few mention constituents.
I Me Mine
Quite a few reps, having voted, leave before the meeting is over and others are done discussing.
No more debate
Debate suspended due to lack of quorum. (i.e., Reps cause other reps to stop discussing.)
yikes
Very frustrating how so many reps left the moment they voted at 10:00 with so many people waiting to speak. Makes me feel like those voices had little chance of having an impact.
I for one didn’t make up my mind until about 2 minutes before the ballot closed, after everyone had finished speaking. So I was listening very intently for arguments that would sway me one direction or the other.
I am very concerned with how unrepresentative of the town at large this body seems to be, and how any mention of “putting it to the voters” in full referendums are met with scoffs. My impression is very few of the reps weigh their own opinion against those of the people they are supposed to represent.
If you don’t want to put it to a referendum because you fear the vote will go against you, maybe you should be casting your vote differently.
The more of these meetings I attend the more I am convinced that the representative town meeting body as a whole generally doesn’t have a clue as to the day to day realities facing low-income residents, who are the ones most affected and the ones most unable to have the time, energy, or means to attend meetings.
Yikes
All reps should have been required To stay until the discussion was over and the voting should have been scheduled post discussion. Shame on those who voted and left, for not affording everyone the courtesy of being able to be heard. Too bad if you had to stay longer it’s part of the job, you wanted it. This process seems dysfunctional and not an accurate representation of the general population, this process needs to be replaced. The politics in this town are generally dysfunctional that’s why everything needs to go to the general vote.
What is it about a town referendum...
“This approves the concept. At their regular Representative Town Meeting later this month, representatives will vote on the budget that contains this option. That budget, and other business, remains to be approved.”
What is it about a town referendum don’t the Reps understand? Especially the Pips who walked out after voting without hearing from all speakers?