It's so much easier and more fun for people to stay home watching American Idol and eating tater chips, then moan and gripe about what their local government does.
I think if you can't go to a meeting and show interest, try to find out what's going on, then keep your mouth shut.

Thanks Mayor for the updates.

Even though I live inside the city limits of Statesboro and have no say so in the matter...

I think that the people who did attend should be rewarded for their attendance. Why not give them a break on next month's water bill (or maybe the next 2 or 3 bills)? Or something to show your appreciation.

Word will get around and maybe more people might start attending more often.

It is government's responsibility to announce the meeting at least once...then it's up to the people.

The people of Register could have formed a posse and gone door-to-door, made phone calls, delivered flyers or something to make sure they were informed of the meeting. Not every one reads the paper or road signs.

Maybe the mayor or council members could go door to door inviting people to the next meeting...instead of just showing up to campaign.

But then again like my tagline says..."Noise from the mind of a fool...that's me!"

Gawalkman, thanks for the thumbs up. I quite enjoy this method of communication; I know there are some avid readers of the blog section in Register and I'm always interested in their comments.

It is, however, just one way in which we try to keep the citizens informed. As I said earlier, we also sent one notice and one reminder (in the newsletter), and we announced it on the town sign on Main Street. I think to go beyond these measures borders on badgering and I'm not willing to go there. Yet.

As intriguing as your idea to reward attendees is, that, too, enters unseemly territory: We'd be bribing citizens to be informed. Not willing to go there, either. Ever.

We will continue to give ample notice and reminders of important meetings and events, but, then, we just have to rely on people's sense of civic responsibility and community involvement to bring them in. We're grateful for those who do attend--they come to see their town's business being conducted and we hope they leave asssured. If they have concerns, we want to hear about them.

Many people care enough to complain and talk about you, but not enough to actually talk about the subject. These people who complained about your increse are probrablly the ones who complain about what the city doesn't do. They don't care that you don't have the money, or why you don't have the money. They actually want you to have the money, as long as it is not there's.

Sometimes it just a matter of common people not understanding Robert's Rules of Order and how that is used to control the actions at a meeting. How many people know what point of inquiry, point of order, privilege, parliamentary inquiry, questions, and other such terms mean?

Gawalkman, I suspect there are congressmen who don't understand Roberts Rules of Order! We don't subscribe to that method of meeting management; it's just too unwieldy and formal. Our meetings have agendas, naturally, and we follow the order of the agenda. The only other basic rules we follow are to expect courtesy and civility and to allow people (council members and the public) to speak without interruption. We also impose a time limit for comments (3 minutes), but we've never had to cut someone off.

None of us who are elected are professionals in the field of municipal governance. We're just your neighbors who've volunteered to serve our town. We don't use mysterious language, we don't subscribe to back-door dealings. All that we do is public knowledge, and that's as it should be.

The people who failed to attend the meeting just didn't care! However, when the time comes to pay the increase they will whine and complain. You can't let this situation bother you. You did your part, and they muffed theirs. That's life - join the fray or shut up. As I often told my students before I retired, "Life is change. Growth is optional. Choose wisely." Many of those students went on to bigger and better things. The rest are still trying to figure it out. Those are the ones you don't worry about, because they never will get it.

Unlike many on here, I'm not going to say that because they didn't attend the meeting they don't care, but that's part of it. It's possible people had other commitments and couldn't make the meeting.

Did you (or any of the council) receive any phone calls, emails or letters regarding the increase? That, to me, is a bigger indication of apathy or not caring than not being able to attend one meeting (even with plenty of notice).

My hat is off to you, Mr. Mayor. I admire your open minded and pro active attitude toward city government. I like reading your blogs explaining issues to the people you serve. I wish more of our local mayors would do that.

You know, NowhereMan, that's a good point. We received one email expressing unhappiness with the situation, and that's it. Using that as a measuring stick, I guess we can say that we've done an adequate job of explaining why the rate increase is necessary.

Naturally, averageworkingguy, we're always tickled to receive pats on the back, especially since it's the only compensation we receive for our work, but it's probably more important to receive those disgruntled emails and calls because a) they gives us a sense of how our work is being perceived and b) they provide a one-on-one way to talk to our constituents and perhaps allay their concerns. I'd rather have someone tell me directly that they're unhappy so that I have an opportunity to ease their distress than try to read silence.

We will be presenting our FY 08-09 budget to the public this coming Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in the town's Community Center. This is an opportunity for the townspeople to see what we're doing with the town's money and to comment (in favor or against)on the decisions that Council has made.

Of course, citizens are entitled to this information throughout the year at Town Hall...maybe not in the same format as the annual budgets, but they should be able to get a sense of what money's going where.

Somebody ought to ask Brooklet Mayor Joe Grooms and Portal Mayor Larry Motes why they don't blog. Ms. O'Grady, what you are doing is really cool. I live near Register, not inside the city, but close enough and I give you thumbs up on being so involved in reaching out to people.

OK, stop all of you! You're making me blush!

I would never presume to tell my fellow mayors how to do their job; each of us has our own style and I just happen to be comfortable with the written word. This communication outlet seems tailor-made for "getting the word out." All I know is, a lot more people know what's going on in Register through the newspaper blogs than they ever did before...and conversely the Council and I get a lot more input from our townsfolk this way. It's a win-win situation.

It is still a good attempt your making to keep people involved, although it seems those of us who don't live in Register have more to say than those who do.