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Ashland City Charter Public Forum
The Charter Review Committee is hosting a public forum on Thursday, January 20 at
7:00 p.m. in the Rogue River Room of Stevenson Union at SOU. Parking is available at
the parking lot on the corner of Mountain Avenue and Henry Street,
The committee has identified eight key issues within the existing charter that require
evaluation and deliberation. The committee is seeking public input on these issues prior
to making any decisions.
The issues are:
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The Mayor-City Manager structure, the roles and the relationship and the mayoral
veto power and ability to vote on council issues.
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The election of the city recorder and municipal judge and the matter of
compensation of elected officials.
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The election of a Parks Commission and issues related to the organization of the
Parks Department.
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The election of city council members by positions, the number of council
members and council term limits.
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The provisions for annexations by the city.
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The issues of separate police and fire departments.
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The necessity of including the City Band in the charter.
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The issue of the powers of the Planning Commission.
The format of the public forum will include eight tables each dedicated to one of the
issues plus one table for general questions. A charter review committee member will be
at each table to explain the pros and cons of the issue and then ask for feedback, input
and questions from the public. The attendees can circulate to a different table every ten
minutes in order to hear about the next issue and to give input. The input will be
recorded on flip charts and later synthesized into a document that the full committee can
review and discuss at a subsequent meeting.
Committee members include John Enders, Chair, Carole Wheeldon, Vice-chair, Laurie
MacGraw, Hal Cloer, Keith Massie, Michael Riedeman, Don Montgomery, Kate
Culbertson and Pam Aarsh
A summary and follow-up to the public forum will be posted on the city’s web site at
www.ashland.or.us (look on the left-hand column and click on Charter Review
Committee). Attendees that do not have access to the Internet are invited to provide their
mailing address in order to receive follow up information.
A review and update to the city charter has been a council goal for two years. The
primary purpose of the charter review committee is to review the existing city charter to
determine if it will adequately serve the community well into the future. If necessary, the
committee is to prepare a draft charter for the city of Ashland. The proposed charter will
be reviewed by the city council for placement on the ballot for the voters of Ashland.
The committee meets on the first and third Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in
council chambers at 1175 East Main Street. Meetings are broadcast live on RVTV
channel 9. Minutes, agendas, and meeting packet documents are available on-line at
www.ashland.or.us.
For more information, contact city staff liaison to the committee, Ann Seltzer at 552-
2106 or ann@ashland.or.us.