Where We Sit

From PCJ Editor Wayne Senville:

Planning commissioners, as well as elected officials, probably don't think much about their meeting room and the impact it can have on citizens. But meeting rooms -- especially the raised dais that commissioners and elected officials are typically seated on -- can have an intimidating effect on citizens, especially those who rarely (if ever) attend government meetings.

Des Moines Register columnist Rekha Basu touched on this recently: "The defining moment for Josh Daines came while standing before the Des Moines City Council last summer, beseeching members to remove one of their own who had ties to the CIETEC scandal. The diminutive Daines recalls looking up at the members and feeling intimidated, even with two master's degrees and his own marketing business. ... 'There is a reason why those City Council seats are so high,' quips the 37-year-old Daines. 'You look up at them while they're speaking and they're looking down at you. There is a perception that they are very powerful and you are just a citizen.' " (Nov. 2, 2007).

Quip or not, I know from my own experience speaking before our City Council here in Burlington, Vermont, I still feel pretty tense going up to the podium and seeing the fourteen City Councilors arrayed on an elevated platform -- and that's despite the fact I know most of the Councilors!

In Mesa County, Colorado, I sat in on a meeting of the Planning Commission held in an ornate, but quite large and formal room. Besides being well elevated, the Commissioners were set far back from the public and at a sharp angle. See the photos below.

This made for a challenging setting. And you could see some of those citizens going up to the lectern look more than a little nervous.

Long-time Planning Commissioners Journal columnist Elaine Cogan has also commented on this. "Most planning commissions hold their meetings in rooms that are designed -- purposefully or not -- to intimidate the public. Commissioners sit on a raised dais, often built of fine, imported wood, high above and yards away from anyone who might want to approach them."

If at all possible -- especially when designing a new meeting space -- try to hold your meetings in a more relaxed setting. This will make those attending feel more comfortable in what for them may already be a tense situation.

Of course, many planning commissions are stuck using existing meeting rooms that are far from ideal. But there are other things you can do to create a more welcoming environment. Take Mesa County. While the setting, as I noted, was imposing, Chairman Mark Bonella did a great job in creating a less formal atmosphere by welcoming citizens when they came to the lectern, and reassuring those who seemed nervous. The effective use of video monitors in the Mesa County chamber also made it easy for everyone attending to see the same documents the commissioners were viewing on their laptops.

I'll lay out some more ideas for creating a welcoming atmosphere in my next post.