In mid-April Vallejo's Participatory Budgeting initiative kicks into the next gear. Throughout the winter months, the steering committee and budget delegates had their work cut out from themselves, reading and rating every one of the initial 800 proposals. Now during the PB Expos phase you''ll have three different opportunities to learn about the 40+ projects that survived the winnowing-down/city-vetting process. In May, voting takes place, and one or more of these resident-chosen projects will become the beneficiaries of Measure B funds, totaling $3 million.
Welcome to Civics 3.0
Much ado was made (and rightfully so) of the impressive numbers of Vallejoans who flocked to the Assemblies to have their say. And the Steering Committee did a good job of documenting their proposals in an appealing display of interactive graphics at their website. When we read the testimony of some of the high-school budget delegates in the PB blog, it occurred to us that there is additional value happening in this process, beyond the dollar value of citizen-chosen priorities. These youth delegates talk enthusiastically about collaborating, learning how the city operates and even the makings of politics. They even talk about the thrill of seeing their peers excited about this learning process.
If this testimony isn't proof that the PB process is not just a dog and pony show, we don't know what more evidence is needed to bring home this point: That Vallejo's PB initiative is a groundbreaking, paradigm-shifting process that has touched Vallejo's residents to the core where their best aspirations live.
If you agree that the PB process should become an annual event as it has become in such cities as Chicago (now in its third year), consider attending the Vallejo City Council meeting on April 23. The PB Steering Committee will be giving a PB Presentation and we are sure they will appreciate your support. The Council weighs in on PB's future later this year.
Save these Project Expo dates:
04/17/13 - 6:30pm - 8:30pm - Dan Foley Cultural Center, 1461 N. Camino Alto
04/20/13 - 1:00pm - 4:00pm - Vallejo Community Center, 225 Amador St. (Spanish interpreters on site)
04/22/13 - 6:30pm - 8:30pm - North Vallejo Community Center, 1121 Whitney Avenue
(There will be free refreshments and childcare)
Public voting by Vallejo residents takes place May 11-18 at locations that will be publicized in the near future.
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