Civility, Interrupted
Scarboro Pond Bridge
Last night, at the Westborough Public Library, the Division of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) held the first of five public hearings . More than 50 people and several interest groups turned out to hear the agency present the draft recommendations for Forest Futures. It was stated that a main reason for the public meetings and request for input was to repair the distrust between the agency and general public.
After a 15 minute presentation about the recommendations, the room was broken into groups for discussion, provided a professional facilitator and asked to vote on the recommendations. It was here the system went off the rails. The group did not want to be broken up and stoutly said so, calling first for a vote to force change, then with that failing to alter the event structure, refusing to move into the discussion groups or cooperate with the assigned professional facilitator. Of the hour alloted for group discussion, approximately 40 minutes (in one group) was dedicated to vetting frustrations about DCRs attempts to subvert the public meeting process. In the end, the exercise became about DCR volunteers addressing and placating the statements of the vocal dissenters. The non-dissenting members quieted into providing little more than a thumbs up or down regarding an issue.
Of the 10 recommendations to be considered, the group barely made it through three. Perhaps this is democracy in action. Perhaps this is the natural way: When the public does not feel empowered, disproportionate force will be asserted when engaged.
Still, it will be interesting to see if the upcoming meetings are restructured- and if they will now include a security detail.
Here are the times and locations of the remaining meetings:
Saturday, February 6, 2010
10 a.m. – Noon
North Adams Public Library
74 Church Street, North Adams
(Snow date: Saturday, February 13)
Saturday, February 6, 2010
2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Berkshire Community College – Melville Hall Room 201
1350 West Street, Pittsfield
(Snow date: Saturday, February 13)
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
5 p.m. – 6:45 p.m.
*Amherst Regional Middle School – Cafeteria
170 Chestnut Street, Amherst
**Tuesday, February 9, 2010
7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Amherst Regional Middle School – Cafeteria
170 Chestnut Street, Amherst
Thursday, February 11, 2010
5 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Taunton Public Library
12 Pleasant Street, Taunton
(Snow date: Thursday, February 18)
Great blog post – i love the picture! I stumbled you.