Vote on City Issues Online – Soon!
Decatur Metro | August 18, 2008Many have wondered when/if the city of Decatur would officially join the online discussion, allowing for public input outside the commission room. Well that time is nigh upon us my overly vocal contemporaries.
The city is currently working on a 3-month pilot project with Peak Democracy through the Alliance for Innovation to bring Decatur civic issues online sometime next month. (Apparently, we were one of ten cities picked nationwide because we’re so civic-ly inclined. So be proud. )
But this isn’t a traditional blog, thankfully.
Instead, here’s the way it will work. The city will post an issue on the Peak Democracy site, with potential “pros” and “cons”. Then each resident will have the opportunity to vote “yes” or “no” on the issue and attach a comment. But you only get to comment once. So its a lot more difficult for things to get out of hand…though I have to assume that if you started dropping f-bombs regarding your dislike of artificial turf at DHS or the heartless cyclist that made you late for pilates class, your comment would be deleted or blocked. Also, I believe (though not confirmed) that residents will have to use their real names, which might restrain comments a bit.
As Linda Harris noted in an email about the program, the city doesn’t see this form of feedback ever taking the place of public participation, but hopefully will enhance it. Also, those afraid to speak amidst their rabid neighbors (I know people often mistake my salivary gland problem for uncontrollable anger) might be more willing to voice their opinion.
Personally, I believe this is a smart compromise for the city. They are able to get the issues out there and gauge opinion, but don’t have to do much moderating. They can happily leave that fun to me and other Decatur bloggers.
This will be a three month test initially. After that, the city will provide feedback to Peak Democracy about the site, since it sounds like its still in a beta-phase. In turn, Peak Democracy will provide the city with a report about residents’ comments. (Perhaps this is something that can be submitted during city commission meetings?) Then we’ll see where it goes.
I’ll let everyone know once the first questions are posted.
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I’ll be watching this closely. I do public process work all over the country and have yet to find any type of online community forum / discussion board that presented an accurate reflection of the community at large.
They are invariably dominated by activist voices. Generally happy people have opinions, but they’re far less likely to take any extra steps to voice them. As we’ve discovered through subsequent polling or referendums, issues discussed online often seem far less popular than they actually are.
I haven’t utilized Peak Democracy and am curious how the test will pan out.
When has politics not been dominated by activist voices. Hence the silent majority. Politicians have always counted on the fact that most people won’t get up off the couch for anything short of free beer. Now they don’t have to get off the couch to have a say in things. Whether anybody at city hall believes the folks is another matter. I always know what’s good for me and for you too.
A very interesting prospect and I’ll follow it closely. Thank you for sharing this initiative – very progressive and Decatur should be proud!
@Scott: Regarding online forums being dominated by advocacy voices, I agree that is natural and seems to be universally a limitation. I hope that the planned site does require real identification of posters, though, as speculated above. I believe this will help enormously.
Online posting by anonymous users removes the normal pressure of civility enforced in the “real” world. It is the same dynamic that leads to road rage – we feel separated from “the other” and therefore our egos and more primal urges run amok. Technology evolves fast, we evolve more slowly – kudos to Decatur’s leadership for trying to help us catch-up!
Amen to that, Kim. At least in my experience, the greatest value of such tools is that they expand opportunities for engagement. Oftentimes, the primary complaint of citizens as it relates to local affairs is either that they were unaware something was being considered or that they were not afforded sufficient opportunity to provide their input. This proposal has good potential to address both in a positive way.
Make participants identify themselves, just as they would in a public meeting, and it’s a winner.
Thanks to all of you for typing what I wanted to say about this…I too look forward to this new avenue for appropriate participation.