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| The Jensen Webster house on Noll Road |
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There seems to be a prevalent attitude in City Government that the Citizens should be informed of policy, rules, and ordinances. Government sets up the procedures, and the people must follow. We in city government inform people. We have newsletters, websites, press releases, and televised council meetings. The only way people inform city government is the 3 minutes we give them at city council meetings or they can write a letter.
Citizens have no consistent way to tell us what they want.
This is wrong and must be corrected.
We in city government must always listen to the citizens of our community.
How can we set up a process so that we can always be informed about the opinions and direction the citizens want us to follow?
The Neighborhood Congress would be an advisory body for the City Council. The City Council and Mayor would be in attendance for each Neighborhood Congress Meeting.
The Neighborhood Congress would be a codified policy (we would write an ordinance to enforce its creation) where on a quarterly basis members from the community would come together and inform us of their concerns, interests and needs. Each home owners association located within the City of Poulsbo would send one representative from their neighborhood. Those neighborhoods that do not have homeowners associations would petition the Neighborhood Congress for inclusion. Therefore areas such as Old Town, 23rd Avenue, 10th Avenue, West Viking and Torval Canyon would also be included. Obviously the specific details of the representative process would have to defined and understood so that the Neighborhood Congress would be fair and inclusive of all the Citizens of Poulsbo.
What are the neighborhoods?
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10th Avenue
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23rd Avenue
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Alasund Meadows
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Applewood
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Austerbruin
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Bay Watch
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Blue Heron
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to be built on Noll Road
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Caldart Cottages
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Caldart Heights
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Chateau Ridge
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being built on Caldart
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Cook
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being built on Finn Hill
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Crystal Glen
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to be built on Sunrise
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Deer Run
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Forest Rock Hills
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Johnson Ridge
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to be built on Johnson
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Kevos Pond
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Languanet
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to be built on Languanet
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Lincoln Park
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Mariners Landing
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Meggers Court
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Meredith Heights
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Mesford at Noll
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to be built on Noll Road
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Mountain Aire
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to be built on Noll Road
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Noll at Lincoln
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to be built on Noll Road
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Noll Valley
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Old Town
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Poulsbo Gardens
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Poulsbo Meadows
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to be built on Noll Road
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Poulsbo Place
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Ridgewood
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Snowberry Bungalows
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being built on Caldart
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Stendahl Ridge
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Talons Glen
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being built on Caldart
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Torval Canyon
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Vetter Homesteads
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Viking Park
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West Viking
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Some of the above neighborhoods have not been built yet. But they will be. And as they are built, and our newest residents move into our community, we need a way to hear their voices.
This concept is reflective of our new land policies. In the past, people built their own homes. Now large developments occur with the creation of homeowners associations that govern what people can and cannot do in their neighborhoods. We have the creation of a new level of government that is not reflected within the policies and procedures of the City of Poulsbo.
What would this accomplish? A consistent way we can listen to the neighborhoods. We in the city have ways to listen to our business owners (Chamber of Commerce, Historic Downtown Poulsbo Association), we pay attention to the Port of Poulsbo, we listen to our various civic organizations, we certainly listen to the Marine Science Center, but when and how do we listen to the people living in our neighborhoods?
The Neighborhood Congress would be the voice of the Citizens of Poulsbo. We must listen to them. We must understand their concerns. Three minutes at a podium in front of the City Council is certainly not good enough.
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