TOWNHALLS: DEMOCRACY IN ACTION

(Full Disclosure: The author, a retired newspaper reporter and political consultant, lives in Grove City less than one mile from a proposed data center. He has friends and family who live even closer.)

Townhall meetings are part of the very fabric of America.

New England communities began holding them in the mid-1600s, long before the Revolutionary War and the U.S. Constitution. “Town meetings have been practiced in the U.S. region of New England since colonial times and in some western states since at least the late 19th century,” according to Wikipedia.

And cities in New England, the Upper Midwest and Plains states continue to have them to this very day. Modern-day advocates “have presented the town meeting as a setting of ’empowered participation’ in which thoughtful deliberation between all participating individuals can coexist with a sense of engaged citizenship and responsibility for solving local problems,” according to Wikipedia.

It’s called DEMOCRACY.

Today, members of the U.S. House and Senate regularly escape the isolation bubble of Washington, D.C., to hold townhalls in their home states and districts. Those in Congress who refuse to hold them are rightly criticized for being out of touch with their constituents back home.

City Council member Mohammed Omar recently held a successful townhall meeting in Grove City. On April 24, about 80 residents attended a townhall meeting where five panelists discussed the pros and cons of data centers. The townhall, sponsored by Progress Grove City, a local activist group, was held in the Quinichett Pavilion in Urbancrest. After the panelists spoke, the meeting was opened for comments from the audience.

It’s called DEMOCRACY.

In a recent interview, City Attorney Stephen J. Smith said he feared such meetings might become rowdy. Some pro-data center residents might be hesitant to speak their minds, he added.

But Smith is an attorney who is used to the very structured atmosphere of courtrooms where judges often rule with iron fists. Smith also participates in City Council meetings where citizen participation is limited. Residents can speak for only three minutes. Speakers can’t ask follow-up questions. There is virtually no back-and-forth feedback from the audience.

A townhall meeting convened to debate data centers would be more free-wheeling. Anyone and everyone could have their say — residents, City Council members, Mayor Ike Stage, representatives of the proposed center’s Texas developer. In other words, both pro- and anti-data center people.

A moderator could be chosen to help ensure decorum is followed. To accommodate more citizens, the venue could be significantly larger than City Council’s chambers. But such a meeting should not be convened immediately. Most Grove City residents still are unaware of the proposed data center west of Harrisburg Pike. To ensure higher attendance, City Council should wait to convene one. City Council has the legal authority to sponsor such townhall meetings, Smith confirmed.

It’s called DEMOCRACY.