The Greensboro Department of Transportation (GDOT) is asking for public input on the proposed public participation plan for the Greensboro Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (GUAMPO).
GUAMPO manages the federally required transportation planning process for the area. Since almost all transportation projects involve some federal money, it means that GUAMPO handles the transportation projects for Greensboro, most of unincorporated Guilford County, Oak Ridge, Pleasant Garden, Sedalia, Stokesdale and Summerfield.
The proposed changes to the public participation plan include:
- A better timeline of past changes to the document that make for friendlier reading interpretability by the public.
- An acknowledgement that documents will no longer be widely distributed, rather, they will be made available upon request at select locations including the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Division 7 office and the Guilford County Board of Commissioners office.
- New language on virtual meeting procedures that give the Transportation Advisory Commission (TAC) chair more discretion to call for electronic meetings under a wide range of circumstances and not solely during periods of disaster or emergency.
- Minor consistency and wording changes.
The entire document can be viewed here: Draft 2023 Public Participation Plan Update
The change allowing virtual meetings “under a wide range of circumstances” gives the TAC chair the authority to call an electronic or virtual meeting “when deemed appropriate” and “in accordance with the North Carolina Open Meetings Law.”
Since GUAMPO meetings are open to the public and include a public comment period, virtual meetings would also have to allow for the public to see and hear the meetings as well as comment. If public comments cannot be made during the meeting, then a means for people to comment by phone or email prior to the meetings must be made.
The comment period for the amendments to the public participation plan is open through Monday, Sept. 18 and may be submitted by mail, email or fax.
Emailed comments should be sent to: Craig.McKinney@greensboro-nc.gov
And the mailing address is: Public Participation Plan 2023 Update, Attn. Craig McKinney, PO Box 3136, Greensboro, NC 20402-3136
These are the bureaucrats who will soon be waging war on the private automobile.
So obviously the bureaucrats don’t want public in-person meetings, they want meetings where they can pretend to notify people, and when no one “shows up” virtually they can slip whatever “Minor consistency and wording changes” are concerned into the proposals without any discussion or objection. Cool move. Guess I’ll send a worthless email to the people who have already made up their minds to ignore us.
That’s how bureaucracies roll, Deborah !
We the citizens are just an obstacle to their agenda.
Check. It is in the works.
Guampo sounds like guano. Just a thought.