Rebuild Government Proposals Bolster Diversity, Neighborhood Participation
| By bonnykinney on June 18th, 2010 | 2 Comments  |
The community coalition Rebuild Government is making good on its promise to take public questions and concerns to the Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter Commission, as commissioners continue to draft a new metro government charter. After hearing input from citizens, especially at Wednesday night’s Digital Community Forum, Rebuild Government has proposed to charter commissioners an Office of Diversity and Small Business and a Neighborhoods Commission established in the new charter.
The Office of Diversity and Small Business would encourage the metro government to buy more goods and services from locally owned small businesses, including those businesses owned by minorities and women, while still monitoring cost-saving measures. The office would also foster the start-up and growth of small businesses in the metro government area.
The Neighborhoods Commission would monitor a wide range of policies and programs affecting neighborhoods, including traffic, parking, recreation, street improvements, zoning, police protection and overall livability. The Commission would also make sure people who live in neighborhoods affected by government action are properly heard.
“One of the missions of Rebuild Government is to keep open the lines of communication between everyday citizens and the Metro Charter Commission. Our citizens want a community where their children can grow up safely. They want neighborhoods that will encourage their kids to stay in the area and plant their own roots. That is why we’re suggesting these ideas to commissioners,” said Rebuild Government Executive Director Brian Stephens.
The Metro Charter Commission approved the recommendations and will be working them into the new charter. Commissioners will present a draft summary of their policies to the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Commission at 4 p.m. on Thursday, June 24, at The FedEx Institute at the University of Memphis. From there, commissioners will hold public hearings throughout July.
Those scheduled right now include:
July 8, 2010: Memphis Botanic Gardens, 5:30-7 p.m.
July 15, 2010: Southwind High School, 5:30-7 p.m.
July 22, 2010: Ed Rice Community Center, 5:30-7 p.m.
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...New Government Allows Reserve Area to Vote on Annexation
| By Rebuild Government on June 10th, 2010 | 2 Comments |
The Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter Commission agreed today that annexation by the new metro government won’t take place in certain areas if people in those areas oppose it.
The vote, considered a centerpiece in the new metro charter, represents a major change in past annexations here, where citizens have been denied the right to vote on whether they are annexed by a city.
If the metro government were to be enacted, the growth plan for the next ten years would mean:
- The City of Memphis reserve areas become the “urban services district reserve areas.” This means people who live within these boundaries get to vote on whether they want to be annexed.
- All suburban cities will have their same annexation reserve areas. Residents in those cities will not get to vote, but will continue under the existing agreement and enjoy the same rights they do currently.
“We know that people who live in reserve areas of Memphis have worried for years about their neighborhoods being annexed by the city without their approval. With the new charter, we wanted to empower these citizens by giving them a chance to vote for or against annexation before it happens,” said Memphis and Shelby County Charter Commissioner Rufus Washington.
“Our goal is to create a better metro government, not one that stifles people,” Washington added.
“I like the idea of having more choice in deciding the future of my family and my neighborhood,” said Ryan Goble, a concerned citizen who lives in unincorporated Shelby County.
The Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter Commission will file the new charter with the election commission by August 10, 2010. Memphis and Shelby County citizens will vote separately on the new charter November 2, 2010.
Contact: Bonny Kinney
Communications Director
Rebuild Government
(901) 275-5500
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Getting Taxes Right for a New Government
| By Rebuild Government on June 4th, 2010 | 2 Comments |
|
|||||||||
|
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...
