Well, there will be no recording of last night's Planning Commission Meeting posted. It seems there was a technical glitch and the recording was lost. Am, I heartbroken over this. Absolutely not. I was never a strong proponent for having discussions about who should be on the Planning Commission to be in the public venue. I was (and still am) a proponent of the Town Council providing to the public a summary of why the person they chose was the best candidate at the end of the process.
I must admit that I fully agree with the decision that was reached last night to recommend the Town Council appoint Dan Canada to the Planning Commission. I do not base my assessment of that on personal likes or dislikes. I base my feelings on the months of reviewing the Planning Commission Meeting Minutes for the last 5 years. Granted, I have never received all of the Minutes that I requested, but the ones that I do have, I have read thoroughly.
Each and every time that an issue was studied, Mr. Canada's side of the discussion clearly showed a concern for the citizens of Christiansburg that was carefully balanced by the needs of the Town. In fact, it was seldom that I found myself in disagreement with any of his statements during the Town Council Meetings either.
I was very impressed by Mr. Canada's desire to go through the newest version of the Planning Commission Training Program and I hope the Town will support his desire to do exactly that.
I believe that Mr. Canada will be someone the citizens can count on to address a lot of the very hard issues that will be coming up in the future. It is also my sincerest hope that he will be one of the leaders in encouraging and engaging citizens to actively participate in town government.
It was a very gracious move on the parts of Mr. Huppert, and later in the meeting Ms. Dorsett, to step aside in favor of support for Mr. Canada. Both of these individuals would have been excellent choices for the position. It takes a great deal of inner strength, courage, and commitment to the public to step aside from any personal investment for the greater good. I am sure that Mr. Huppert and Ms. Dorsett will both continue to serve the community. (I already have several ideas for both of them as citizens!)
Tonight the Town Council will be having a discussion and possibly making a final determination on who to place on the Planning Commission. As a concerned citizen, I hope that the Council will appoint Mr. Canada to the position. If they do, I hope that Mr. Canada will continue to offer the insight into the needs of citizens that he showed during his previous time in that position.
(By the way, the Planning Commission Meeting Minutes are some of the most informative documents available. According to the Virginia State Code, where the Town Council is only required to have a minimum amount of information, the Planning Commission is required to keep full and complete documentation of their meetings. This is a great tool for evaluating performance and to develop a much better idea of exactly what happened and why. I do hope that the Planning Commission will start asking for staff analysis on projects that are proposed. While those are a great tool for the Commission to have in making decision, they are also a great tool for the Town Council. In addition, they are one of the best tools around for educating the public.)