Going on Tour: First Stop, Blue Ash

From Washington, to Columbus, even to local government, it's far too easy for elected leaders--particularly at busy times--to get insulated and isolated from the communities and citizens they represent. And out-of-touch elected leadership ultimately means poor leadership.

That's why last month, I announced a new initiative to structure our meetings in a way that gets County Commissioners and Administration out in the community regularly, so we 're far more in tune with that's happening in our neighborhoods.

Once a month, under our Community Tour approach, we will replace a Monday morning staff meeting with an evening session out in one of our many great communities. And then we ask the hosting community to set the basic agenda of the meeting. The purpose is to hear directly from community leaders about what is happening in their neck of the woods--the overall vision for their community, the challenges, the opportunities, and how the County can help--and also to hear directly from citizens (since an evening meeting is so much more convenient for many people).

Well, tonight we had our first such meeting in Blue Ash, and it worked out just as we had hoped. We were welcomed by the Mayor and Councilmembers, received an overview of Blue Ash issues and opportunities by the City Manager, and heard directly from citizens from nearby. Even though not all of them spoke, far more people attended than we usually see at our regular meetings downtown.

And during our regular agenda, we approved Business District Revitalization grants that will help, among a number of communities, Blue Ash revitalize a key commercial district.

It was a great start to an important new approach. Thanks to Blue Ash and its leaders for getting us off on the right foot.

Next stop, Forest Park!