4 minute read
Neptune’s realm
10 | January 20, 2022 | Dunwoody Crier | AppenMedia.com/Dunwoody
OPINION If everyone jumped off a cliff, would you?
A song popped into my head the other day.
“Birds do it, bees do it, even educated fleas do it.
Let’s do it; let’s fall in love.”
What triggered this Cole Porter tune (I recommend the Ella Fitzgerald rendition) was the turmoil I encountered recently trying to get the agenda packet for the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners meeting before its 5 p.m. start.
Here’s why it matters:
Most local governments follow an agenda when their elected officials conduct business.
Along with the official agenda is an agenda packet that provides background information on each item. It gives elected officials and the public important details about the scope and history of the item up for consideration.
An agenda item may include a request to rezone a parcel from low-density residential to commercial. That’s pretty cut and dried.
PAT FOX Managing Editor pat@appenmedia.com
Rookie in the packet biz
What you don’t know
But, what the agenda won’t tell you is that the parcel is bordered on all sides by low-density housing with 1-acre lots, or that the parcel runs along a portion of Smith Road that may not support increased traffic from commercial development. It probably won’t tell you that the local planning commission voted against the rezoning and that scores of residents have signed petitions against it.
That kind of information would likely be in the agenda packet.
That’s why agenda packets are important. They arm residents with the background they need to understand whether a pending decision may affect them or their quality of life. Residents may want to offer their thoughts to their commissioner about a measure before – not after – it comes up for a vote.
The earlier those packets are made available to the public, the better.
Most Metro Atlanta cities and counties make agenda packets available days in advance of meetings, usually at least three days ahead.
Roswell does it, Alpharetta does it, Milton does it, Johns Creek does it.
Even Gwinnett, Fulton, DeKalb and Cherokee counties do it.
Forsyth County doesn’t.
It was only last October that Forsyth County began posting agenda packets online at all. It took them two years and more than $67,000 in software to do it. Officials originally estimated having the system in place in late 2019, well before the pandemic struck.
Last October, when the system launched, officials hailed it in a press release as “another resource to have a transparent government.”
That’s a bit of an overstatement if the packet is made available a mere three hours before a meeting, like it did April 7, or five hours before the April 21 meeting.
If a resident learns of a significant issue the same day the County Commission is scheduled to decide it, and that person wants to attend the meeting, how is it possible to ask the boss to leave work early, arrange for childcare and navigate rush hour traffic to arrive before the gavel falls?
Gwinnett County has posted its agenda packets online for over 10 years. Residents have had access to background information about their Board of Commissioners meetings on Fridays, four days ahead of the Tuesday morning work session and evening business session.
Gwinnett County Communications Director Joe Sorenson told me the commission felt it was important for residents to have a heads up on matters that might affect them.
“We do want to give people as much time as possible,” Sorenson said.
It’s not always easy to sew up all the details by the Friday deadline.
“Some go down to the wire,” he said.
And, sometimes, issues pop up at the last minute that require commissioners and staff to announce updates to the packet during the meeting, Sorenson said. But those cases are rare.
Fulton County posts its agenda packet online the Friday before the County Commission’s Wednesday meeting. That gives residents five days to scan it for matters they want to act on. Maybe they will email their commissioner or attend the meeting.
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A silent response
Forsyth County Commissioner Todd Levent raised the issue of agenda packets at the April 7 business meeting, suggesting they should be moved up in priority to give residents a better opportunity to plan ahead for matters they’d like to speak on. He suggested a 24hour window.
No other commissioners weighed in on the proposal.
None.
County Manager Kevin Tanner explained that some measures up for consideration require last-minute updates, and rounding up details from different departments can cause delays in finalizing an agenda packet.
By all accounts, Tanner is a capable county manager, and his staff works hard to provide the county with the best service tax money can buy.
That staff could probably do more to inform the public about details of commission meetings if elected officials considered it worth the time, staffing or money it would take.
While Forsyth County distinguishes itself for its near-comatose approach to publishing agenda packets, it does one thing as well as any other county.
Like all other government bodies, Forsyth County has an organizational chart. Forsyth County’s is among the best. Search online for: Forsyth County, ga. organizational chart.
Go to the very top, right above the “Board of Commissioners.” There, you’ll find one listing in big, bold type. It says: “Citizens of Forsyth County.”
