History of the Process
The Community Conversation Series began on September 18, 2007 when the Tolland Town Council and Town Manager hosted the first Community Conversation; click here for details on this meeting. Over one hundred enthusiastic Tolland residents and Town staff gathered together to begin discussion on issues pertaining to the theme of “Your Town, Your Budget, Your Future: Tolland at a Crossroads.”
The Town Services Community Conversation continued on October 18th with a second meeting at the Fire Training Center; click here for details on this meeting. The Board of Education held its first Community Conversation on October 16th at the Tolland High School. Detailed information on these meetings may also be accessed using the links to the right.
For those residents who were unable to attend the evening conversations, an additional meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, November 13th at 10:00 AM at the Tolland Senior Center to present the information discussed at the previous forums.
These community-wide conversations are intended to embody democratic principles of equality, inclusiveness and collaboration. The conversations are based on the ideas that:
- People care about the communities they live in and want to make them better
- When everybody is included in public life, everybody benefits
- When all kinds of people develop trust and relationships through face-to-face dialogue, new ideas and approaches emerge
- Community change is more likely to last and deepen when individual and collective actions are tied together
Following the October 18th presentation, two smaller work groups were established to begin to address five issues pertaining to Town Services. The issues are:
- Develop a Vision, Policy or Results statement for Town Services
- Review and comment on the major activity centers and their cost as identified by Town Staff
- Review and comment on Town Revenue data
- Provide suggestions on cost efficiencies for Town Services
- Provide suggestions on methods for communicating information to the general public
Each group worked diligently on all of these issues independently through mid-January and on January 17, 2008, another townwide community conversation forum took place to hear the groups report on their results and to reach a consensus amongst all participants on a response to the issues identified. The final reports of the three groups are posted below for your review.
At the Townwide Community Conversation session held on January 17th, the Town Manager worked with group participants and other interested citizens to reach a consensus on a final blended report which took into consideration suggestions from all three groups. The final blended report is also posted below for your consideration.
All participants are to be congratulated for the excellent work that they did and their willingness to devote substantial time to the process. The information produced will be used by the Town Manager and the Town Council as they prepare and review the 2008-09 budget.
For more information on the process, please view the history of the process page or contact the Town Manager, Steve Werbner.
Group 1 Recommendations
Group 2 Recommendations
Group 3 Recommendations
Vision Statement Pertaining to Town Services (Blended Report)
Click here to return to Community Conversation Series homepage