the only change that should be considered to the recycling program is to expand it. bangor residents need to buck up and start recycling more. stop acting like there's unlimited landfill space.

OK Councilor Weston - Time to take a hard position on an issue, You've been honest and up front, but this is where the rubber meets the road. The City Council is a mess, and we elected you to represent those of us who are not stuck in Old Bangor and want to see this town actually become something. . Please don't become a pawn of the status quo. I'd like to see you stand up and demand that each council member explain their 'vision' for Bangor's future. We need a leader to emerge here, and if nothing else, we've learned in recent days that Stone, Blanchette & Palmer are not up to the task. You should give it a shot, otherwise we're going to wind up with whatever Richard Stone pushes, That's nothing I want to put up with.....And where are you with this unreal Folk Festival controversy. I want to cite Peter Ramsey who points out that we waste three times the cost of the folk festival on the auditorium and nobody cries about that.

Maybe they will tell you via email what type round's to buy for the gun's you'll be packing when the gang's build up. Oh excuse me this is about more important issues...where to take your returnables.

Maybe they should ask Bangor residents if they want to spend $60+ million on a new arena with a SMALLER SEATING CAPACITY than the Bangor Auditorium.............

Just don't get caught on tape

As outlined in the article above, I think expanding our communication efforts is vital in moving the city forward through not only this time of change but continuing to do so into the future. There will be more issues and more questions and the only way to have meaningful discussions is to share information for each citizen to digest on their own.

Bangorian - You have some deep passion and appreciation for the city of Bangor and that's to be admired.

I would be happy to discuss with you - or anyone - any topic or answer any question you have about the council and the city at large.

I am obviously a reader of the Bangor Daily News and happy to engage those that pose questions here. I also have a public phone number, email, facebook and twitter information posted on the city website: http://bangormaine.gov/cg_cc_councilors.php

The one condition I have is that we do it without an alias. I am not a fan of using aliases for conversation. I have engaged with anonymous posters in the past and I do not wish to do so moving forward.

I think it's important that the discussions take place, however, I also feel that those engaged should identify themselves so we're on a level playing field.

Fair enough?

Respectfully,

Cary Weston

you know these text message programs cost like $250 a month.

I love the concept of interaction, but if there is a cost to this venture - I'm out. The city cannot afford to spend any more money until we can determine how much the state will not be sharing with us this year.

Since the city already has a twitter account (which is free), these alerts can be forwarded to the public twitter.

If funds need to be spent, I would suggest live streaming the council meetings on the web. I know there is a cost involved, but many people do not have cable. Additionally, tweeting questions to the council during meetings would be a good way to get the public involved as well.

And twitter can be set up for texting as well.

Bangorian. I thought you said you don't live in Bangor? and haven't for years?

I think this system is needed. I think its important that statements are not anonymous, so that there is accountability. thats a must

anyone who writes needs to state their name and where they live in bangor as is required at city meetings.

Peter - thank you for your financial concerns.

The point of this initiative is to connect with all citizens - not just those that have accounts with social media platforms. I started looking into this because my mother in law received a parking ticket for overnight parking in front of my house during 60 degree weather in November - the ticket was for violating the winter parking ban. I was asked how the average citizen is made aware that the ban is in effect and I couldn't answer the question.

As with most things in life - if you know what to look for and want to put time into the exercise, almost any information is available - but it shouldn't be that hard. Most people have too much on their plate during their day to day lives to have to go looking for the most basic of announcements. I think we can do better.

And you'll be happy to learn that the platform is being installed at no charge to the city. We are able to use existing resources and relationships to launch this initiative with no added cost except paper.

The email/text program has $0 added cost and the brochure being crafted will be printed on the city's printing press at city hall and mailed along with the tax bill so there are no added postage cost.

I like the idea of streaming the council meetings as well, but we're looking at costs approaching $10,000/year with the current model to get that done. There are better alternatives and we're continuing to look for them.

This current text/email model initially had a budget proposed as well but with more energy and creativity, we were able to find ways to do it at no cost.

As for the tv channel, look for phase two this summer - more videos on recycling, our parks and trails, fire and police safety, guide to arts and culture...etc. And it can all be done with minimal, if any, cost to the city.

And these videos will be available online as well.

-Cary

Mr. Weston - Twitter would be in addition to not in lieu of.

I hear you Cary Weston. As you well know, many of those posted here are under different aliases, and are willing to take cheap shots. You certainly have given readers a great opportunity to get in touch with you. That, in itself is admirable. I too, have been putting myself out there, and as you know, I have taken a few cheap shots, however, I guess it goes with the territory. I sure would be interested in learning just how many 'aliases' take advantage of your position here on openness. Best, Larry T. Doughty, South Brewer, larrytdoughty@yahoo.com, www.ourstory.com/larrytdoughty/

Wow imagine a city looking to take the initiative to expand IT and its services to citizens, wish Orrington would do that.

Oh, yea. Maybe it'll be like when you email one of our federal, elected officials - you send an email, they send you a form reply that doesn't address your concern at all, and then they start "spamming" you with meaningless updates, bragging about how great they are.

In response to ronaldo82k...you know there is good free text message server software out there... I would look for it from Novell, Sun, or maybe even Google.

:) This makes me super happy!!!!!!!!

Councilor Weston: streaming council and committee meetings strikes me as the way to go. if i understand your message, the 10K/yr. price tag would be well worth it, me thinks. Jim Elmore

While I believe in expressing concern for Bangor, I respectfully disagree with putting so much pressure on Councilor Weston. There are other council members to reach out to, and many of them need to be held accountable for some of the recent negativity surrounding their group. I am happy to see that Cary has made himself available so publicly, but I don't think it's fair to expect more from him than the other council members simply because he was elected with an 'out with the old, in with the new' sentiment. To those who like to criticize regarding a lack of change thus far, I would like to point out that no other member of the Bangor City Council has ever before made him/herself so accessible. This is a critical first step in changing things in Bangor, and Cary is doing a fine job representing a fed-up younger generation. Keep up the great work, Cary - we are sure to have plenty to talk about soon enough, and you'll be hearing from me!

Jim Elmore - Thanks for your feedback on the perceived value of streaming the council meetings. We'll continue to look into this and hopefully come up with a solution in the near future. At the moment, the price tag is a bit high for me personally to advocate for...all things considered.

Rick Haney - I appreciate the kind words. I truly believe in engagement and opening the doors to more public communication. Each and every time I've fielded a phone call or email regarding issues that have residents concerned, the communication of the details helps to round out the conversation.

I'll be posting some commentary on a number issues that the council is dealing with (arena, collaboration, waterfront vendors, budget, folk festival, etc) on my website: www.caryweston.com

My goal is to provide some additional information to help folks shape their own opinion of the issues we're currently facing as a council.

-Cary