Appleton Mayor Jake Woodford calls his first city council meeting to order. April 21, 2020. (PHOTO: Courtesy of Fox 11 WLUK)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) – Appleton residents could soon have their own one-on-one meeting with the city’s mayor. Appleton Mayor Jake Woodford is holding office hours in Pierce Park later this month.
“This is an opportunity for Appleton residents to sit down and have a conversation with me, just to tell me what’s on their mind, ask questions or share ideas or concerns that they have,” Woodford tells WTAQ News, “It’s really important for me as mayor to spend time listening to people in our community, and we have lots of means of doing that already. This is just another way for me to hear from people in the community.”
The announcement earlier this week originally opened up ten spots from 8-10 a.m. on July 24th. But those hours will be expanded.
“Given the demand that we’ve seen already for these office hours, I’m actually looking at adding some time to add a few more appointment slots. So we encourage people to give us a call here in the mayor’s office to get signed up one way or another. We’ll also be keeping a waiting list,” Woodford says.
Social distancing and other health guidelines will be in place as well to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19. Each participant is encouraged to wear a mask.
“We’re doing office hours in the park so that we’re outside, not in a confined space. We’ll be maintaining social distancing, and use of masks when we can’t maintain social distancing will be required,” Woodford says.
As for the purpose behind the entire idea – the mayor thinks it’s much better to talk in person, as opposed to traditional and impersonal methods of communication that are usually tied to the office.
“I’m trying to create an opportunity for us to have a conversation in a one-on-one setting where we’re not constrained by the limitations of emails and letters and backs and forths in more formal settings,” Woodford says, “Those are fairly structured ways of communicating, and I think it’s important to have the opportunity to sit down face-to-face and have a real conversation in a real exchange. That’s what open office hours is all about.”
Anyone who wants to meet with the mayor should contact his office to schedule a time. To make an appointment, call (920) 832-6400 or contact Woodford by mail or email.
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