Minutes

Town Council · from the Town's website · 1 page · 6 KB
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Listening Post
June 24, 2026. 6:00-7:05
Attendees:
Suzanne Swope (Chair)
Paul Riordan
Marty Finn
Erin Barcellos
Tom Derderian
John Morgan
Joe Ramano
Summary 
This was the final Listening Post meeting for this season, held on June 24th to discuss the town's
newly approved budget and community engagement issues. The participants focused extensively on
communication challenges between town government and residents, with participants expressing
concerns about limited transparency and inadequate information sharing through traditional methods
like the newspaper and WCAT. Key discussion points included the need for a centralized
transparency portal, better meeting minutes across all committees, mandatory Zoom recording of all
meetings, and improved reporting structures from committee chairs to the town council. The group
also discussed strategies to increase community engagement, including welcome initiatives for new
residents, better outreach to renters, and creating more welcoming town council meeting
environments. Additionally, the conversation touched on grant opportunities and transparency
around existing grants, with participants noting that while the town does receive grants, there's
limited public knowledge about them. The conversation ended with a brief discussion about
upcoming tree planting on Revere Street, where participants debated optimal locations for new trees
given environmental constraints.