HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-03-31-2020-min (Steering Committee)
Meeting Notes
Steering Committee – March 31, 2000
Steering Committee Members Present:
Fred Merrill, Helen Cohen, Peter Enrich, Paul Mammola, Marjorie Platt,
Fernando Quezada, Todd Burger, Peggy Perry, Chuck Benson, Tony Siesfeld
Working Group Members Present:
David Kanter, Donovan Chin, Don Brezinski, Henry Liu, Tom Harden, Dan
Deutsch, Judy Uhrig
Consultants Present:
Wendy Rundle, Suzanne Orenstein
Staff Present:
Rick White, Candy McLaughlin, Monicka Tutschka
Call to order
Fernando Quezada began the by welcoming Helen Cohen’s return and thanking Work Group chairs for coming to
the Steering Committee meeting. Candy McLaughlin informed both Steering Committee members and WG chairs
that the Future’s Panel audio and visual tape are available and can be found in the Town Manager’s Office.
Attendees introduced themselves to the group and Mr. Quezada asked each of the work group chairs to discuss their
successes, failures and concerns with the group. Mr. Henry Lui, chair of the fiscal stability work group, began by
apologizing for their late submittal of the Environmental Scan. He stated that their group was presently working on
the “goals, actions, measures, and resources need” piece of the 2020 Vision project. They have struggled with the
vision because each member of group has a different definition of the phrase “managing fiscal stability”. Mr. Liu
asserted that the Town staff has been helpful, however, he mentioned that the Steering Committee liaison has not
always been available. The group has decided that it would not be in the best interest of the 2020 Vision process if
they went back and redid the Environmental Scan. They will be incorporating some of the CPG’s comments into
the next phase of the process.
Tom Harden, chair of the managing growth group, stated that the 15 people who are part of the group work well
together. The workload has been evenly distributed. The group struggled to finish their Environmental Scan on
time. Presently, they are drafting their vision statement and they have over 30 identified goals. Mr. Harden is
concerned about the inherent conflicts between the goals. They are not sure whether they should prioritize the goals
by taking a vote or if they should try to reach a consensus. Should they attempt to resolve classic conflicts such as
open space vs. development or should they simply articulate the conflict? He would also like to have some guidance
with the outreach component. They are considering having a single meeting with key constituencies present
(Conservation Commission, Planning Board, Lex Hab,etc.). They are also considering going door to door with their
list of goals in order to get a feel for what the community is thinking about this issues.
David Kanter, chair of the fostering a sense of community work group, stated that the have 15 members. 10
members regularly attend meetings and 2-3 step forward and share the work. He believed that the Environmental
Scan outline distributed in January was an excellent guide to the ES process. Mr. Kanter was somewhat
disappointed with the synchronization of the CPG feedback and the deadline for the environmental scan. The work
group wanted to hear feedback sooner. Nonetheless, they are steadily moving along in the process. A vision
statement has been drafted. They have found 15 institutions that they will contact as part of their outreach process.
Their vision statement will be turned into a questionnaire for the outreach. The work group is developing action
items and these items are being carefully constructed to ensure that their future goals are carefully linked to the
present situation. Mr. Kanter feels that the time-line is tight but achievable. He hopes that more collaborative
dialogue will occur between work groups and he is somewhat concerned about how exactly to open the channels of
communication between the work groups and how to ensure that information doesn’t fall between the cracks.
Don Brezinski, chair of the educational excellence work group, believes that there is significant overlap between the
groups. His group struggled to define educational excellence and educational success. In the group’s environmental
scan, each member took a small piece of the large topic. The group is presently working on their vision piece and
then they will move to the goals aspect of the process.
Donovan Chin, co-chair of the managing transportation work group, stated that he and his group have finished the
vision statement and are beginning the goal matrix. Like David Kanter, he would like to receive feedback earlier.
He believed that a mechanism needs to be put in place to coordinate communication with other work groups. A well
defined conduit is necessary. His group would like some help with the outreach process. They do not want to do a
mass mailing and they are having a public meeting, however, they only anticipate 20 individuals to show. He was
uncertain as to how to get the word out.
Dan Deutsch, productive connections between citizens and town government chair, asserted that the topic of their
work group is somewhat vague and therefore difficult to grasp. He recognized considerable overlap between his and
other groups. He appreciates the active feedback from the town staff (police, fire, recreation, etc.). Their
environmental scan was short but on target. The group developed consensus and he believes that their task is
feasible. He would like to find ways to provide TMMA with information and enhance the web-site. The group also
considered having a town ombudsman. Communication between businesses and others, as well as direct polling
will be part of their outreach. He would like to see more communication between work groups.
Mr. Quezada then thanked the chairs from the work groups for presenting their material and stated that the staff
would be working on ways to perform outreach. He also encouraged all the work groups to interact so that
information would not fall through any cracks. Possibilities to ensure cross fertilization include: a) having someone
assigned to inform one work group of another work group’s concerns b) work groups inviting other work groups to
attend their meetings; c)leaving information at the library; d)using the web-site and e)attending Steering Committee
morning meetings.
Mr. Quezada promised to send this week’s Steering Committee minutes to the Work Group chairs.
Peter Enrich stated that some of the goals can be resolved while others cannot. It is enough if the works groups
identify tensions and trade-offs between goals. The work group product does not have to be a solution to a problem;
it can simply indicate the choices that need to be made before any solution can be put forward.
Wendy Rundle promised to deliver the CPG’s comments on the environmental scans to the work group chairs by
next Tuesday. The information that will be sent should help the work group move forward. Some work groups
might have to go back and revise their environmental scans.
Mr. Quezada again thanked the work group chairs for attending the meeting and hoped it was beneficial for all.
Adjourn