As election day for Christiansburg Town Council draws nearer, it becomes important for citizens to pause and take stock.
Do you vote in town elections? If not, why not?
Local government has a more direct impact on your quality of life than national elections. For Christiansburg residents, this means town council, county board of supervisors, and school board elections.
At a minimum, citizens have access to these elected officials through regularly scheduled meetings. Do you attend any, just to hear what's being discussed? Or do you rely on the media or an associate to inform you about public business. Is a "second hand" view really adequate? (
Both town council and the school board will meet at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 15th. Council at Town Hall, Roanoke and East Main Street, the School Board in the Junkin Street offices.)
For town citizens, only council seats will appear on the upcoming ballot May 6th, so it should be easy for even the most simple of us to focus on this election. Issues -- as discussed at
recent council meetings and at the two
candidate forums held thus far --include open government (FOIA), public participation, budget (revenue sources and expenses), and service delivery.
Recently, there has been concern about council being
misinformed about basic Freedom of Information Act (
FOIA) laws which were established over 40 years ago. Additionally, the extended construction disrupting commerce in the central business district or possible increases to taxes assessed by the town have created discussion. More
zoning concerns are being voiced, as are infrastructure issues such as water/sewer and road construction -- all growth related topics.
Questions about how the community pool (now slated to be an ACC sports venue for Virginia Tech hosted events), will affect town services have come up -- what are the ongoing costs to operate such a facility, what will residents have to pay to use it? Council seems to believe "it's all good" yet
uninformed about any specifics.
Concerns, too, are being voiced about being the only remaining locality with
May elections -- another subject council and citizens should become more informed about especially as this relates to costs, public participation, and use of scarce town resources.
Given that town elections have been recently determined by as little as 8.45% of all registered voters, and given the growing complexity of issues -- it is becoming even more important town residents exercise.
Not just at the
rec center, rather at the polls as well.