HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-04-14-2020-min
2020 Vision Committee
Minutes of April 14, 2011
7:45 a.m.-9:00 a.m.
Selectmen’s Meeting Room
Members present: Fernando Quezada, Chuck Benson, Bhumip Khasnabish, Dan Krupka, Marian Cohen,
Jane Warren, Peter Lee, Margaret Coppe, Peter Enrich
Staff: Candy McLaughlin
Action Items:
Request update on MAPC grant opportunity
Schedule additional focus groups in May and June
Think about how to structure a ten-year review of Committee work
Meeting Began:
7:50 a.m.
Revisions to the section about Demographic Change in the minutes from the March meeting
were discussed.
Demographic Change:
Marian expressed her frustration about seemingly changing signals from the Town regarding the
MAPC grant, and said it would be too bad for the Town to miss this great opportunity. Dan said
he thought that MAPC liked Lexington’s proposed project to answer questions about the growth
of the senior population, and that this was what Aaron Henry wrote up and what MAPC included
in the grant. Candy responded that her understanding was that the project outlined in the final
MAPC grant document was different. Committee members expressed their hope that the project
would not die, and asked for a report regarding progress at a future meeting. Candy will talk
with the Town Manager about how to keep 2020 Vision in the loop on this issue.
Dan and Marian reported that their presentation to the Human Rights Committee promoted good
discussion. One take-away was that Lexington is not seen as welcoming to African-Americans;
Marian said that issue is likely to grow for other minority groups as well. Fernando suggested
that the Committee should recognize growing demographic diversity as progress toward an
expressed community goal, along with increased protection of open space.
Focus Groups:
Peter Lee said that a focus group with CAAL will be scheduled for Wednesday or Thursday,
April 27 or 28. Peter Enrich and Jane Warren agreed to facilitate and record comments. One
more attempt will be made to schedule focus groups in May or June with: the Chamber of
Commerce (Janice); Rotary (Alan); GWAC (Margaret, who will also contact Citizens for
Lexington Conservation); LexFun (Ann); and the TMMA Executive Committee (Barry.)
Additional Outreach:
Chuck said the difficulty the Committee is having in scheduling focus groups may indicate a lack
of engagement with the 2020 Vision process. He suggested a new townwide survey to capture
views and attitudes and help prioritize issues. This would provide broad outreach and be
confidential so people might be more candid in their comments. Discussion ensued about how
best to conduct such a survey but no decisions were made.
Evaluating Effectiveness:
Marian suggested that the Committee review what has resulted from its work so far, and whether
there have been clear outcomes from the Task Forces. Fernando commented that we have taken
inventory periodically and now at the halfway mark would be an appropriate time to measure
progress. There was discussion about how to measure what is working and how to identify
effective processes so they can be repeated. Dan added that it would also be good to identify
what recommendations the Committee needs to take action on.
Meeting Adjourned:
8:55 a.m.
Next meeting is scheduled for Friday, May 13 at 7:45 a.m. in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room.