[MissoulaGov] committee update 1-28-09

[Jed Taylor]

A couple things for the list.
 
I think the concept of using a communications tool to better share ideas and
activities can only be beneficial to both the Council and the public.  As
you're probably aware, though, there are better solutions than SharePoint, a
typical M$ product that does nothing well except provide a revenue stream
for Redmond from those who only consider M$ products.  For instance, the
City could offer a phpBB-based collection of forums (see
http://www.phpbb.com/) where some areas are view-only for the public and
others are specifically designed for public participation.  Using such a
solution would address any and all concerns about 'sunshine', allow
controlled participation where appropriate, allow anyone to view
discussions, provide an archive of discussions, and allow for even greater
public participation.  Oh, and it's free, too.  And Open Source, so it's
modifiable.  As someone who participates in a variety of phpBB-based forums,
it's easy for me to imagine how beneficial such a system would be to the
City in terms of increasing openness, communication, participation, and
documentation.  I would encourage the Council to look into this, especially
since someone's already investing time and money in SharePoint.
 
And speaking of investing money....  The Council voted on Monday to spend
$186k of the public's money on a peer review of the Russell & 3rd EIS,
right?  So what, exactly, are the citizens of Missoula getting for this
expense?  We already know what transportation engineers (people who love to
build roads) favor, and we already know that there's considerable public
sentiment against so much asphalt as well as its effect on the neighborhood
south of 3rd street.  And we already know that there's a well-considered
counter-proposal (the 3+ plan) available.  Is this expense simply a CYA
project to protect the decision-makers from the public fallout that's sure
to result if the preferred solution in the EIS is actually constructed?  Is
there a reasonable expectation that the peer review is going to produce a
recommendation that's different from the EIS?  Will a part of this $186k
peer review include an analysis of the 3+ plan and a compare-and-contrast of
the plusses and minuses amongst the current EIS preferred solution, the 3+
plan, and whatever else the peer review consultancy comes up with?
 
I would appreciate it greatly if someone could explain simply and clearly
what $186k is buying that Missoula doesn't already have.
 
Thanks.
 
 
 

  _____  

From: missoulagov-bounces at cmslists.com
[mailto:missoulagov-bounces at cmslists.com] On Behalf Of Bob Jaffe
Sent: Wednesday, January 28, 2009 23:01
To: missoulagov at cmslists.com
Subject: [MissoulaGov] committee update 1-28-09



Greetings,

 

<snip>  

 

 We finished the day with Committee of the Whole.  We had the
administration's legislative update. Ross Best came to the Monday meeting
and he was  here today to complain about the public notice and involvement
for the City's lobbying efforts.  He heard that a SharePoint system had been
developed for us to track bills, get updates from the lobbyist and comment.
He lamented over how this is all private and should be open to the public.
He complained that all the public knows is the two words on the agenda
"Legislative Update." There is no other additional info to know what is
going on. Up until a couple of days ago this is the way it was for us too.
We would see the two words on the agenda and the Mayor would come and give a
verbal report. Other than whatever notes we took we would have nothing.

 

The new system is a little better but it is still pretty clunky. The way
SharePoint has been implemented it is kind of like a really low end blogging
platform. Each bill is like a discussion thread and then there are some
comments. They are working on a way to make it all publicly accessible. All
that is really needed is the list of bills the City is taking a position on.
I haven't really seen a whole lot in the comments that are valuable. The
stuff from the lobbyist is generally comments like "I met with so and so
today to discuss this." Not really any useful insight into the status or
process. I'm hoping there is actually something going on there for all the
money we paid.

 

<snip> 

 

Bob Jaffe

Missoula City Council, Ward 3

 <mailto:bjaffe at ci.missoula.mt.us> bjaffe at ci.missoula.mt.us

406-728-1052

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