Advisory Committees

By accident I attended the inaugural meeting of the Parks & Rec Advisory Committee Tuesday evening. It was preceded by the Government Affairs/Services Committee meeting devoted to the topic of economic development, which I attended deliberately. As we concluded, seven very enthusiastic individuals slipped into their newly appointed places. Members ranged in age from a high school senior to a senior citizen. They all held a common belief: recreation is good for everyone. Advisory committees are unabashedly "special interest."

When Assembly member Daymond reminded the group that they were strictly "advisory," and that requests for Assembly support may or may not prevail, one member wryly speculated, "Oh but if we have the community behind us, they will listen... ."

I was struck by the recognition that these advisory committees are exactly the right vehicles for "getting the community behind" an idea, a project, a perspective. I am less sure whether or not the committee needs to be aligned with the government. The advantage of a government based committee is that the committee's deliberations are then open to the entire community. If the committee is an ad hoc citizen's group or even a non-profit, supporters and critics alike might be less likely to participate. Lack of participation can lead to lack of insight and the failure to form a broad based concept.

So, my "special interest" is economic development. Originally I was skeptical of the idea of an "Economic Development Advisory Committee." But the enthusiasm of the Parks & Rec group perked me up. Why not convene a group of people dedicated to economic development and ask them to explore options in a public setting? I can't think of anything more exciting than discussing economic development with people who are as savvy about the benefits and needed infrastructure for economic development as the Parks & Rec people are about recreation.