ryanwold.net

A civic-minded citizen seeking the singularity

An entry

from Apathy to Action

Date: 2010-04-01
Status: draft
Tags: civic county dialogue housing solano

Reading the Reporter article: Supervisors to continue seeking input on housing, I saw what I so often see in the public dialogue: apathy, name-calling, baiting, and a few constructive remarks sprinkled in - if you look hard enough and are patient to sort through the rest.

This specific article discussed Section 8 housing in Solano County, and how the County Board of Supervisors will be reviewing the program soon. Takeaway: there are 250 available vouchers, and 3,400 hundred on the waiting list for Section 8 housing.

The goal of MoreQuality is to filter the garbage and focus on the real issues here. There is a lack of clarity regarding the issues here, and it would be beneficial for the Board to clearly communicate what's at stake here. When that happens, citizens would be better informed and perhaps the Board could receive the feedback necessary to craft a better program for county.

There are several questions that beg for an answers, such as: where is the Section 8 data? Who oversees the program? What data is tracked? What does the data say? Is the application process as effective as it could be? Could additional families receive assistance if the program was managed better? Is the program already managed effectively? It is clear that additional transparency would help.