Council Names Committees, Liaisons

The City Council’s committee system appears to be gaining momentum after a somewhat spotty past effort. The committee system had its genesis in a “Rules of Order” document developed in March 2006 by Ray Blanco, who was the council president at the time. After Blanco’s untimely death in July 2006, the system fell away until Rashid Burney brought it back when he became council president in 2009. Council President Annie McWilliams in 2010 ramped it up by asking for written reports from each committee chair and now that she is council president again, she is asking the same.

While Blanco set up six committees, there are now four. For 2011, they are:

Administration and Finance
Chair, Adrian Mapp
Members, Annie McWilliams, Cory Storch

Economic and Community Development
Chair, Cory Storch
Members, Rebecca Williams, Annie McWilliams

City and Neighborhood Services
Chair, Vera Greaves
Members, William Reid, Bridget Rivers

Public Safety
Chair, Bridget Rivers
Members, Rebecca Williams, Vera Greaves

These committees will report to the full council and public monthly.

Last year, assignments for committees and council liaisons to various boards and commissions were done individually by resolution, but this year they were part of the 30-page Rules of Order, so the public may have missed them. It may be of interest to residents to see who among their elected officials is focusing on these topics.

For 2011, liaisons are as follows:

Mayor’s Citizen Advisory Committee (reviews and ranks Community Development Block Grant applications): Annie McWilliams, Bridget Rivers (alternate)

Planning Board: Cory Storch

Board of Education: Bridget Rivers, Annie McWilliams (alternate)

Green Brook Flood Control Commission: Adrian Mapp, Rebecca Williams (alternate)

Union County Community Development Revenue Sharing: Vera Greaves, Adrian Mapp (alternate)

Plainfield Cable Television Advisory Board: Annie McWilliams, Rebecca Wiiliams, Vera Greaves

Housing Authority of Plainfield: Bridget Rivers, William Reid (alternate)

Plainfield Municipal Utilities Authority: Bridget Rivers, Rebecca Williams (alternate)

Special Improvement District: Annie McWilliams, Cory Storch, Vera Greaves

Shade Tree Commission: Rebecca Williams, Cory Storch (alternate)

Muhlenberg Community Advisory Group: Annie McWilliams, William Reid, Rebecca Williams

Plainfield Advisory Commission on Hispanic Affairs: Rebecca Williams, Vera Greaves

These liaisons will report quarterly or bi-annually.

Plaintalker has found many of the committee and liaison reports very helpful in understanding what is going on in the city, although there may sometimes be more information than the average citizen can digest in a few minutes. Over time, however, they offer a cumulative knowledge base that helps both the governing body and residents make up their minds about needs and priorities.

--Bernice