Communications

« return to issues list

One of my objectives has always been to enhance communications with the residents so they are aware of events taking place in City Government. I am always asking for their input on the issues of the day.

Before I initiated the sign-notification policy on properties that were appearing in front of the Plan Commission for Land Use Change Approvals, neighbors had no idea about these land use change petitions. The Zoning Board of Appeals and the Historic Preservation Commission sign notifications followed.

I was also very vocal about the need to have the City Council meetings on cable (channel 10) available for all our city's residents to view. We now have live meetings on the web, which you can view at this link. What is really neat about our live meetings on the web is that they are archived and you can see them anytime. They are also indexed based on agenda items so you don't have to watch the entire meeting to find an issue important to you.

In addition, residents can make suggestions real-time during meetings. Just email me at SteveMandel@comcast.net during the City Council meetings and let me know your thoughts!

When the Internet began to develop, I met with the library and city staff and provided the leadership that kicked off the community internet web page. The City of Highland Park website followed a year later. We now have bill payments for water and vehicle stickers online. The public is currently able to download our electronic agenda and City Council packet on the internet. Not only can the public download the packets but we can eliminate tons of paper work and staff time compiling all of it.

Following Councilman Koukos's lead, I started to publish a newsletter called "On The Table" in 1998 for the citizens to hear about what was going on at the City Council level of government. You can now view this as a blog by clicking here, as well as sign up for my email edition here. While I have gotten a little heat for sharing my thoughts with the community through this newsletter, I have gained much from the feedback received from the citizens.

I have constantly pushed to have issues discussed far ahead of City Council action (at least two public meetings). I have also promoted information of all of our capital projects on the internet and available at city hall for public inspection. We should continue to use electronic media to the maximum extent possible to inform and network with our citizens.

We now provide free wireless Internet access in our Central Business District for the convenience of shoppers and residents.

For over a decade, I have been taking these issues to the cutting edge and will continue to reach out of the box for the betterment of our residents.