AJC > Sandy Springs > Blog > Archives > 2008 > April > 15 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USDo you know what’s happening in Sandy Springs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Now and again I’ve fussed and fumed like an old scold over the lack of enough of us getting involved and knowing what’s going on around town.
I think it’s a safe bet more Sandy Springsteens know the status of Britney Spears’ mental state than we do what our elected city council members are up to.
The latter has gotten a little easier, meaning there are fewer excuses for being ignorant. Assuming, sadly, anyone was looking for an excuse to be so.
The Sandy Springs Council of Neighborhoods has launched a Web site that tracks the vote every councilperson has cast from the beginning. That would be Dec. 5, 2005 for you Britney fans.
Simply by clicking past tmz.com over to www.sandyspringscouncil.org, it is now possible to easily pulls one’s head from the sand, know what’s going on, and who voted how to make it so.
The only way it could be more user friendly would be if they gave away coupons for donuts.
And I really do think this is a great idea and a wonderful tool, but there is some sadness that citizenship has to be made so rudimentary.
If you don’t want to make time to go to city council meetings, you can access what happened on several Web sites. You can sign up for e-mail updates from your council representative and stayed informed that way. Assuming you know the name of your council rep.
I get that it takes some extra effort to stay informed. You have to get off your couch, turn off the TV and do something. Conduct an online search, make a phone call, talk to a neighbor, read the paper.
By the time most people become aware of a decision they disagree with it’s usually too late. The discussion is long since ended and the votes have been cast. The battle cry of the uniformed could be: “Nobody told me!”
To which I would reply: “Did you ask?”
There’s that old 60’s pabulum that if you aren’t a part of the solution you’re part of the problem. For the sake of this discussion I would suggest morphing that to: “If you haven’t taken the time to know what’s going on, you might want to keep the old pie hole shut.”
Permalink | Comments (6) | Post your comment | Categories: Jim Osterman
Comments
By jcr
April 15, 2008 8:34 AM | Link to this
Sometimes, it might be a bit overwhelming or intimidating speaking out at the city level. If so, one should consider starting at the neighborhood level. Get to know your neighbors. You might be surprised at how many actually share your thoughts, concerns and frustrations. However, rarely does one speak up or step up. Getting involved in the hoa is one way to start. Get your feet wet, you can only go up from there. Some areas have councils of hoas before you hit the city/county level. You must act if you want a say in which direction your city or community grows.
By Derek Korn
April 20, 2008 10:36 AM | Link to this
Okay let me start here; what happened to all the nice trees in front of Sandy Springs Plaza? they have done a great job with the remodel but removing the trees? ….that shot everything else down.
By DJ
April 22, 2008 12:00 PM | Link to this
Sandy Springs is getting all of the Plaza’s to remodel. They are all starting to look great. They are replacing trees with trees. The city requires so much green space for all of them.
Good Job SANDY SPRINGS!
By Carla
April 23, 2008 4:15 PM | Link to this
That’s very good information. It’s not easy managing time to participate as much as I’d like, but having better access to the information helps - although it’s still hard to get around the feeling of not being heard (uni-directional communication) until someone “powerful” or the media helps the voices & opinions of the represented to be heard and considered.
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