Amesbury Town Notebook
Lynne Hendricks
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With the results of two recently completed focus group forums, the mayor's office reported last week it's using feedback from the two community forums to make some changes to the town's annual report due out in early September.
"We are learning more about what folks see and understand about government services and how they measure our success," the mayor wrote. "This is a component of my AmesStat effort and part of my mission to deliver excellent municipal services at a cost our residents can afford."
The town's focus groups, held in March and in May, focused on gathering input from a selected group of residents on what they feel are valid measurements for how municipal services are being delivered. A total of 21 people participated in the forums, discussing the various services offered by the town, their satisfaction with those services and the cost of providing them. Among their findings was a desire by residents to know more about how much time each department spends performing their duties, where the funding for services comes from and were cost containment efforts are being implemented in association with delivering those essential town services.
The report states, "The focus group participants expressed again and again the desire for 'more information' about city services and costs. A good deal of this information likely is already shared in the 2008-2009 report, so the issue is probably not one of information availability, but rather providing information in a way that citizens are more likely to access and digest."
Using this feedback, the mayor plans to redesign the town's Annual Report, significantly reducing the format in size, incorporating short features of information and various graphs and charts and providing an overall easier read. Before doing that, Kezer plans to gather additional information from residents about what specific measures should be found in the report by launching an informal survey. Questions on the survey will include what residents like and dislike about the current annual report, what residents see as the most important measures of success for Police, Fire and Rescue, Department of Public Works, Economic Development, Inspectional Services and Finance, and whether residents are likely to read a report with these measures incorporated into the document. The survey is online now and is also available in print at several public buildings across town including the library, Senior Center and Town Hall.
For more information, contact Kendra Amaral, mayoral chief of staff, at 978-388-8121 or amaralk@amesburyma.gov.
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Do you feel strong enough to be a Spartan? The Amesbury Sports Park is holding a contest to find two Warriors to represent the park in the upcoming Spartan Race, a 5K trail race loaded with extreme obstacles including barbed wire, mud pits and a Gladiator spear throw. The race will take place at the park's facility at 12 South Hunt Road on Saturday, Aug. 28 with registration beginning at 8 a.m. that day.
Entrants can sign up at www.amesburysportspark.net; the winner will receive a full share of honor, glory, bragging rights and a $500 cash prize. The top three winners will get free entry to the Spartan Race World Championship, "The Death Race" (www.youmaydie.com) located in Pittsfield, Vt.
Contestants don't necessarily need to be incredibly fit or athletic to win the Amesbury Sports Park's contest.
"We're willing to consider contestants who may be a little more of a couch potato than, say, Hercules," said MaryCarol Fowler, executive vice president of the park, "but our Warrior will definitely need to be feisty and tenacious. A good costume and an entertaining personality can certainly win over our judges in lieu of rock-hard abs." The park plans to photograph the champion at the event and may use his or her likeness on their website and other media outlets.
The judging panel will be comprised of the Amesbury Sports Park's senior management team, who admittedly know little about judging athletes. "We'll be looking at the whole package, not just the physical ability of the racer to obliterate the competition," said Fowler. "We want someone who can be a good sport, look good in a cape and plastic shield and have a good time. Of course, it would be great if we could have bragging rights and a competitor in the Death Race." The park would ideally like to sponsor two radically different racers to compete — one shoo-in and one long shot — but they are waiting to see what the pool of contestants looks like before making a final decision.
Those not brave enough to race are welcome to participate as Spartan Spectators and cheer on their favorite warrior or the masses. The event includes live entertainment, BBQ, beer tent, Spartan face painting, spray-on abs and tattoos, OGO rides, summer tubing and more. For more information, visit www.amesburysportspark.net or call 978-388-5788 ext. 102.
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The town is launching a "What I Love About Amesbury" Photo Contest, seeking photographs from residents that exemplify all that's great about the town they call home. Along with their photo, which could cover just about any place, person or historic landmark in town, entrants should complete the question, "What I love about Amesbury is ... " and submit the photo via digital format to Town Hall. The winning photo will be printed in color on the front cover of the annual report and incorporated into the online version. Additional photo entries may be incorporated into the body of the report. The winner will be announced Aug. 16. To submit a digital photo, visit the town's website, www.amesburyma.gov and follow the link or call 978-388-8121.
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The following meetings are scheduled this week and are open to the public:
Monday
Planning Board, 7 p.m., Town Hall
Tuesday
Finance Committee, 7 p.m., Town Hall
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Lynne Hendricks covers Amesbury for The Daily News. She can be reached at 978-462-6666, ext. 3254, or at lhendricks@newburyportnews.com.
