There has been some confusion regarding my involvement in the establishment and reinstatement of the Lewes Board of Public Works Citizen Roundtable.
Let me set the record straight. It was never my intent to suggest that the reinstatement of the BPW Citizen Roundtable meetings following the May 2011 election was my initiative. It was, however, and continues to be an integral part of the communication program that I proposed to my fellow board members.
When I was elected to the Lewes Board of Public Works in May of 2011, I promised to communicate clearly and improve the amount and quality of information provided to the BPW customers. To that end, at the June 22, 2011 BPW board meeting, I announced the kick off of a communication outreach strategy that I developed with the BPW general manager. The goal of this program was and continues to be to communicate better with customers and stakeholders in the community.
The elements included in this program are:
• Information papers
• Public information displays at Lewes public events (Historic Lewes Farmers Market)
• Public engagement opportunities (Citizen’s Roundtable, Coffee with the General Manager)
• Speaking engagements
• Bill stuffers (information papers; water quality report, etc.)
• Facility tours (wastewater treatment plant)
• Media outreach
• Customer newsletter (quarterly)
• Website updates (with greater frequency and new features)
• Social media (i.e. Facebook; Twitter, email notification)
• Emergency notification (stakeholders, media and customers)
• Public Power Week Open House
At a recent meet and greet for candidates, I stated that the Citizen Roundtable meetings should be used to explore and seek input into a more broad range of BPW-related issues expanding upon the information provided at the public monthly BPW Board meetings. We all agree that open, honest and clear communication is essential to all government activities.
I welcome the opportunity to further discuss these and any other matters of concern to Lewes citizens.
Candace Vessella
candidate, Lewes City Council
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to newsroom@capegazette.com. Letters must be signed and include a telephone number and address for verification. Please keep letters to 500 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content and length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days. Letters restating information and opinions already offered by the same author will not be used. Letters must focus on issues of general, local concern, not personalities or specific businesses.
