Your Participation Can Make a Difference.

What Happened in a Small Town in New Hampshire
Demonstrates the Power the Community Can Have.

I have been thinking for some time about the role that “ordinary citizens” play in the operation of our government. Whether at the local, county, state, or federal levels, I feel it is the responsibility of our citizens to stay involved somehow, and that extends beyond simply voting in elections (which take place twice a year, at minimum, every year).

Our board takes on some weighty matters, and I’m specifically thinking of how we spend YOUR money. The budget for the “general fund” is around $10 million per year. Other budgets (sewer, golf course, etc.) are all in excess of $1 million annually. What I’m saying is that tens of millions of dollars are spent each year, and we hardly get any push back or requests from residents to clarify the process.

I’m in my second term as a commissioner. There are some hot-button issues where we get passionate feedback from our residents (the Westover development proposal and unfounded “group home” scare come to mind), and while it can be unpleasant and contentious at times, I know that I appreciate seeing my neighbors feeling passionate about things that are important to them. Our board and our staff do a good job in allaying fears and helping to clarify misunderstandings and statements that have been “whispered down the lane” to ensure our residents are fully informed about anything occurring here in the township.

Obviously I’m biased, but I think our board does a thorough job. Not everyone will agree with all our decisions, but I hope the residents realize we do not take any matter lightly. There is significant behind-the-scenes communication with our staff to ensure we are educated enough to act on matters that come before us. We try to think a step or two or three ahead about the consequences of our actions and how they’ll affect the residents – remember, we live here too!

I’m using a lot of words to make a larger point: I read an article in the New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/10/us/croydon-free-state-politics.html) that discusses issues in a small town called Croydon, New Hampshire. To summarize: the residents didn’t get actively involved in their local government until something drastic and unthinkable happened (the school budget was voted to be slashed by 50% without a plan for the smaller budget). This happened because the residents were not paying attention.

There was a fairly radical resident who was resentful of paying what was perceived as a high tax rate for lackluster results. Never mind that you cannot apply arbitrary performance metrics to a school like you would apply to employees of a business, this decision caused chaos among the school board and parents of students as well. The resident convinced enough of the elected officials to vote to decimate the budget. Fortunately, New Hampshire law permits budgets to be rejected by the public, and that is what happened in this case (by a vote of 377-2, no less!)

One Croydon resident said that this could have been avoided by “Showing up. That’s the big lesson, and not just showing up, but also knowing what’s going on.” Another said such a thing “could happen most anywhere.” This spurred a lot of folks to get more involved by attending meetings, offering public comment, and generally being more aware of how things work. Some folks even are going so far as to run for their locally elected offices. 

I’ve observed varying degrees of participation by West Norriton residents in our government in my four+ years on the dais in the township meeting room. Remember: in Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, he reminded us that America’s form of government is “of the people, by the people, for the people”. To honor this exhortation, and for a government to be effective, it needs to be run by competent, compassionate, attentive people, and those people need to be closely observed by their neighbors. Too often I’ve looked into the audience at our meetings and seen a number of attendees that I can count on one hand with fingers left over, or even zero people.

We are about to borrow in the neighborhood of SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS for construction at Jeffersonville Golf Club, and we have not heard a peep from the residents about it. I know that the meetings we hold are not exactly exhilarating, but we NEED you to attend when you can. Thankfully, we do not have radicals on our board of commissioners, and I cannot envision a time where we would ever take a chainsaw to our budget, but it’s still the responsibility of the citizens to direct the government and make sure we know what’s important to you.

I hope to see you all on the first and second Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. Our board of commissioners is made up of your neighbors. If you’re attending a meeting for the first time, please let me know so I can express my appreciation in person. I’m always glad to talk to my neighbors!

Where Can I Recycle Used Batteries?

Please don’t throw away your used batteries! These batteries are fully recyclable, and we have set up a collection tube for used batteries at the West Norriton Township Administration building. 

Since 2021, we have recycled more than 100 pounds of used batteries, sending them to a recycling company instead of a sanitary landfill.  At the recycling center, your used batteries are processed, then turned into new steel products, brick colorant, and even fertilizer for corn and soybean farmers. 

When batteries are discarded, they usually end up in a landfill, eventually deteriorating over time. Their contents could potentially mix with groundwater and impact the local aquifer. So next time you have some used batteries, please bring them to the Township building and look for our collection tube (pictured below). If you have any questions, please contact us at EAC@wntwp.com.