Special to the Gazette
The Outreach Committee of the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) held its regular monthly meeting this past Tuesday evening. On hand for the session were chair Katherine O’Shea and fellow committee members Michael Reiskind and Doug Rand.
Prior to the meeting, the members heard from area resident Luisa Harris, who spoke of the need for improvements to the pool at the Hennigan Community Center. Although the committee members noted that the Hennigan Center does not fall within their specific purview, they acknowledged the issues Harris raised and expressed their support for her endeavor.
The principal business of the meeting consisted of making plans for the upcoming biannual election for seats on the JPNC in June. The JPNC consists of 20 members, five of whom are elected at-large and five each from the three districts, A, B, and C.
The members discussed Saturday, June 7, as a possible date, though they raised the issue of a potential conflict with a Muslim holiday on that day. They also discussed the possibility of June 8 and June 21 as alternate dates.
O’Shea noted that they will post the election handbook two months before the election. She also said that the committee will discuss election training materials at its March meeting. There will be separate training sessions for the three ombudspersons and the poll workers, whose principal jobs include ensuring that individuals are voting in their proper districts (A, B, or C) and maintaining the integrity of the voting process and ballots.
The members discussed using the same polling locations as last year, which were at JP Licks, Stop and Shop, and the Centre Food Hub (which was used because the original choice of location at the Forest Hills station required a $200 fee). The need for tents also was discussed in view of the rain that occurred during last year’s election day.
There also was a short discussion of the need for a fourth location in order to count the ballots, which O’Shea said was conducted last year at South Storage, later in the evening of election day.
The members also brought up a suggestion raised by JPNC member Peter DeCotis at the JPNC’s last meeting about whether the JPNC should even hold elections.
Reiskind noted that some community councils in the city are appointed by the mayor or by institutions within the area.
O’Shea acknowledged that the current election process does not encourage widespread participation by the community.
“I understand where Peter is coming from because we have an election and we don’t even have a full council,” said O’Shea. “So it’s not a competitive election, which makes it feel like a formality. But I also do not see what we would do if we do not have an election.
“We could make it easier to get on the ballot,” continued O’Shea. “But I think that it would be difficult to figure out an alternative, other than that everyone who is on the council stays on the council and that new members are voted on by the members.”
Reiskind also pointed out that any change to the election process and the manner of choosing JPNC members would require a change to the JPNC’s by-laws.
The committee said that they will present their proposals for the June election at the next meeting of the JPNC that is scheduled for February 25.