June 2021 Issue of Newtown News Update

Welcome to the June, 2021, issue of Newtown News Update. Back issues and subscribing information can be found here. The opinions expressed here are solely the those of John Mack and do not reflect the opinions of any other person or entity.

Over the past year or more, local governments and organizations were forced to transition in-person meetings to online, seemingly overnight, due to COVID-19 restrictions and stay-at-home orders. During that time, Newtown Township staff and volunteer committee members learned how to use new technologies such as Zoom in order to continue to work and allow residents to participate in public meetings virtually.

Now that COVID-19 restrictions are being eased or lifted entirely and as more people are fully vaccinated, townships are returning to live in-person meetings or, like Middletown, implementing "hybrid" in-person/online public meetings. Hybrid meetings typically allow officials and residents to meet in person as before COVID-19 but give the public the option to participate remotely via Zoom (or other technology).

This issue of Newtown News Update reviews preliminary results of a survey that asks: "Do you favor the implementation of hybrid in-person/online township public meetings where officials meet in person as before COVID-19 but the public has the option to participate remotely via Zoom (or other technology) or in person?" If you already have taken this survey, THANK YOU! If NOT, please take two minutes to respond to it now.

See the newsletter embedded below or download the PDF version here.