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Date: 11/22/2022
SPRINGFIELD – Roughly a month after its initial formation, the Working Group on Civic Engagement hosted a community forum on Nov. 4 to gather public perspective on their ongoing work. The working group is assembled from community volunteers, including educators, medical professionals, entrepreneurs and community leaders.
Background
City Council President Jesse Lederman spearheaded the group’s creation, appointing 15 members and Ward 5 City Councilor Lavar Click-Bruce as chair on Oct. 4. In his remarks, Lederman shared his vision for the group as a crucial pillar for increasing civic engagement.
“I believe that community and public participation should be at the heart of the work local government does every single day. We need more community voices at the table to solve our city’s greatest challenges and develop the next generation of leaders,” said Lederman during the Oct. 4 press conference.
The 15 members include Edward P. Boland Elementary School Principal Lisa Wilson Bakowski, pharmacist Dr. Patrice Caudle, Pastor Gumersindo “Manny” Gomez, Mass. Senior Action Council member Mable Lene Sharif and President and CEO of WAMF Consulting Ron Davis.
Additionally, the group’s other members are Frank Ryan, Kareem Kibodya, Areliz Barbosa, Jasper Mccoy, Elizabeth Payne-Ghedi, Brenda Evans, Magdalena Gomez, Erica Swallow, Juan Falcon and Jada Francis-Fisher. Each will serve on the working group until the end of the year.
The Working Group on Civic Engagement hosted its first meeting in mid-October. Lederman shared that the group will look to improve turnout for local elections, increase the accessibility of local government entities and encourage residents to be more involved with the city’s numerous neighborhood councils, boards and commissions.
Community Forum
At the start of the forum meeting, Lederman stated that assembling the Working Group on Civic Engagement was a top priority when he was appointed City Council president in June.
“I believe that civic engagement and having as many people as possible in our city involved in the work of local government is really essential to the success of local government. I think our democracy functions best when we have individuals actively involved, holding elected officials accountable and making their voices heard,” said Lederman.
Members of the community aired their views on civic engagement in Springfield. Old Hill Neighborhood Council Chair and School Committee member Barbara Gresham inquired if the group could help provide greater insight on ballot questions during elections.
“When we have questions on the ballot, if we could somehow help our senior citizens understand those questions, what they mean, and how they would benefit them,” said Gresham.
Armoury Quadrangle Civic Association President Betsy Johnson argued for increased accessibility to council and commission meetings
“The current posting of when various council and other city commissions and meetings take place is horrendous. Who has the luxury of literally daily going into the website and checking if another meeting or another agenda gets setup?” questioned Johnson.
Deborah Huber stressed improved communication between residents and city officials. She described the communication process as a “black hole” as her complaint about a neighborhood issue was not addressed.
“Its extremely frustrating that there’s no follow-up,” said Huber.
Other citizen grievances highlighted improvements needed to the city’s 311 phone services and more opportunities for community members to remain civically engaged. Click-Bruce shared at the end of the meeting that the Working Group on the Civic Engagement will conclude their session by bringing recommendations to the City Council at the end of the year.
In the aftermath of the meeting, Click-Bruce and Lederman spoke to Reminder Publishing about the working group’s continued development. Click-Bruce shared that the group’s initial meeting in October went well.
“It was excellent … We talked about getting our young folks more civically involved and also keeping our seniors abreast as to what’s going on,” said Click-Bruce.
Click-Bruce praised the forum for bringing valuable ideas to the table. He said suggestions involving accessibility to information and improved communications will be immediate focuses of the working group.
“Those ideas are great … those are things we can work on right away,” said Click-Bruce.
Lederman shared that his takeaway from the forum meeting was the community’s desire for improved communication.
“I am really hearing first and foremost communication, especially two-way communication and follow-up from local departments and elected officials … Folks really want it to be more convenient to know at a base level what is going on,” said Lederman.
Whether it’s through the working group or recent ordinances tied to board and commission appointments and early-voting options for municipal elections, Lederman stressed the importance of improving civic engagement in Springfield.
“This is exactly why I chose as one of my first acts as president to appoint a working group, to bring some folks into the process who have been doing great work in the city, who have great ideas and who can with that diverse viewpoint, bring forward some of those ideas … It really is about rebuilding our municipal government apparatus and making it better,” said Lederman.