Welcome to a periodic feature, exclusively offered for our members. “Tell Us Your Story” is your chance to get feedback from ELGL members about a specific topic or policy. Today, we’re tackling virtual open houses and town halls.
Here’s the email from an ELGL member:
“Virtual open houses or town halls seem to be all the rage these days – especially for public works projects. But I’ve never seen one or used one that has really made me feel engaged and I’m worried that we’re doing a disservice by offering this service, thinking that just because we put together a stand-alone web site, we’re fulfilling a citizen engagement obligation. What are some characteristics of virtual open houses or town halls that are important and meaningful? What companies are actually producing effective online tools? I would love to hear from cities that are actually using online engagement town halls or open houses effectively, instead of just one-off web pages that more or less check the box for “online engagement” as it relates to public projects.”