Scarborough Town Hall
SCARBOROUGH — Join Scarborough town councilors for a chance to speak to them about current issues facing the town at Council Corner Live.
The Scarborough Town Council has created a new forum to speak with resident’s face- to-face. The first Council Corner went live on March 31 at 5:30 p.m. The event took place in-person at the Town Hall, located at 259 U.S. Rte. 1. Residents also participated through Zoom and could view the session through YouTube.
“We created Councilor Corner Live because the Communication Committee wanted to explore additional venues that allow for more two-way communications between the public and elected officials,” said Town Council member Jonathan Anderson. “While there are many opportunities to participate at our Council meetings, workshops, and committees — we’ve heard people are either intimidated given the format or it just isn’t conducive for two-way engagement as speakers are limited in time because there is usually business we need to attend to. The chair is allowing responses during public comment, which is also a great new innovation to allow for a response to the public.”
Their first topic was called “Let’s Talk Growth.” Growth management was identified as a priority in the next five years in the Community Survey that was sent out to residents in fall 2021.
“In order to allow for greater discussion in a more informal setting, the Committee proposed we pilot something like we did on March 31st that allows elected officials to engage with the public where there can be more back and forth,” Anderson said. “Mostly to listen, but also to educate and inform. I’d say with the attendance and the appreciative feedback we received, it was a success. Many people stated they felt like they were heard, which is excellent. We had about 27 people in the room and another 20+ online. Our topic was on ‘Let’s Talk Growth,’ which was derived because in our Community Survey, growth management was identified as a priority in the next 5 years and we knew in order to encourage participation, it had to be a relevant topic,” Anderson said.
About 50 residents attended and participated, which is more than they have had at any of their other forums, he said. Many residents highlighted their concerns with growth and their perspective on the Down’s Exemption.
The councilors have proposed having these meetings bi-weekly going forward. They have selected the end of June for the next meeting since they are conducting Budget Round Tables this month, which is a similar format to the Councilor Corner Live, where it is an open discussion between councilors, but this forum includes the Scarborough School Board.
Many residents expressed how much they liked this new forum as it gives residents the chance to speak on issues. Councilors still encourage people to attend council meetings, offer public comment, email counselors, or call them directly. Their information can be found on the Town Website at https://www.scarboroughmaine.org/government/town-council
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