Home » Board of Aldermen »Environment » Currently Reading:

Board of Aldermen Continue Wasting Paper

September 21, 2007 Board of Aldermen, Environment 7 Comments

I’m blogging from the first Board of Aldermen meeting following their summer recess.  Like prior times, the agenda is printed out for the aldermen and public.  How many copies, I’m not certain.

What I do know is the typeface must be something like 18 point.  It is huge!  And they print the agenda front side only rather than double sided.  Today’s agenda weighs in at hefty 21 pages.   Just printing front & back would reduce the number of pages nearly in half.  Selecting a more compact font and at a reasonable 12 point size, plus front & back printing would demonstrate more concern about the environment and oru tax dollars.

Without a doubt one person does need a larger print — board clerk Donna Booker — she reads the full agenda as part of the proceeds.  Of couse, she can print a larger version for her own use while the rest should be less wasteful.

 

Currently there are "7 comments" on this Article:

  1. Sam says:

    Steve you are an idiot! The BOA used to print the agenda in smaller text and people complained and now for you to say it should be smaller is a cheep shot. For you to say its too big there is 100 people who think its just fine.

    All you do is whine. It is easy to Monday morning quarterback everything.

    [SLP — Lisa has already responded after you but I need to chime in here.  First, I’m not surprised by your response given that you posted it from within city government.  How long ago did they print the agenda in smaller print and who was it that complained?  I know it has been this way for a couple of years at least and President Reed’s staff did not make any change from Shrewsbury on this matter.  Mayor Slay has pledged to help protect the environment by signing on to the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement but it is more than a photo op — all areas of government need to evaluate their practices.  Collective incremental measures can have a significant impact on the environment as well as on bottom line costs.]

     
  2. LisaS says:

    Sam, a smaller font size might be debatable (for the visually impaired …) but why not at least use both sides of the paper? What might half of the BoA’s photocopy budget buy in the way of something useful to the citizens of the City …

     
  3. MattHurst says:

    i wonder if that 18 point agenda includes something about expanding/improving paper recycling services. At least they’re not posting their dead trees like signs on trees. lol

     
  4. Chris says:

    I can see value in printing single sided sheets. Understanding complex issues may be facilitated by being able to look at more than one page at a time.

    [SLP — In reviewing the actual bill, which may be 10,20 or even 30 pages I can understand.  However, this is the agenda — you can click on the above link to see what is looks like.  It is a summary of bills as well as setting out when announcements are made, and such.  It is really not complex — you just follow along and take notes to the side if you like.  Today I say there with my laptop and pulled up the PDF version rather than grabbing a paper version.  It is not like they are debating or anything —- they are simply reading the list into the record.  Occasionally an item is debated but I find that is usually grandstanding — the real work happens in committee where they are going through language in greater detail.]

     
  5. Nice post, Steve! This is just the type of journalism I’m after. Would you consider moving to Affton?

    Tha Mayor

     
  6. Mark says:

    Steve,

    Bravo! I would like to know what the city’s copying budget is. When I first saw a city agenda, I was shocked at the waste.

     
  7. equals42 says:

    If there is anyone who requires a larger font for reading, there can always be a couple printed and set aside for that reason. Do they also have copies in braille? While it is reasonable to request and expect accommodation for visual impairments the agenda should be printed for the reading of the vast majority if it provides real savings. Printing in a normal font (10-12 is normal) and on both sides would be a real savings for the city and reduce waste. This is not really a “you paid for it” moment, but it seems a reasonable suggestion that the mayor or Mr. Reeds office should respond to.
    [I can’t stand the “you paid for it” guy. Don’t hold the reference against me. 🙂 ]

     

Comment on this Article:

Advertisement



[custom-facebook-feed]

Archives

Categories

Advertisement


Subscribe