Doing things just to say they did them...

So, I went to today's City event which was said to be a platform for citizens to give input about possible needs of the City, which in a later blog article was then said to be an OPEN HOUSE for the Economic Development Department. I wrote an earlier blog piece stating I was happy that at least the City is "trying" to meet the resident's half-way, but after arriving at the venue, the America On Wheels Museum, at 5:50pm and finding people already packing and out the door, I was kind of disappointed. I mean it's bad enough that the event was from 4pm - 6pm on a Monday when most are just getting re-acclimated to the working week and at a time when most are just getting off of work and/or getting their households together, but to not stay the whole time for the public's sake is ridiculous. (I actually had several people who were on their way call me and I had to tell them to go home because the "party" was already over.) An associate of mine actually did attend earlier and said it was a lively atmosphere. He said you were given color-coded stickers, depending on your residency location, and then you entered the room and approached several booths that had a list of issues and whatever you thought was the most pertinent issue listed is where you placed your sticker. He felt there was no real discussion of issues and most of the city representatives were involved in their own conversations. Unsure about everyone else, but I am tired of the City doing events that are inconvenient, poorly promoted, and, seemingly,only attempting to attract or not attract a certain demographic. Many may disagree, but I can only go by what I have witnessed and experienced over the years I have lived in Allentown....