Applications for the City of Newton’s Zoning Redesign Community Engagement Network have closed. Please see below for information about the network:
[a] All network meetings will be public and virtual. If you want to attend a future meeting, please visit the Zoning Redesign’s Village Centers website to find the finalized days/times of the meetings and their accompanying Zoom links at
https://newtonma.gov/zoningredesign/vc and sign up for the Zoning Redesign newsletter to stay updated on the dates, times and agendas of these meetings at
https://tinyurl.com/ZRNewsletter [b] In order to be a member of the network, one needs to agree with this set of commitments:
(((1) Curiosity: You are curious about people’s range of opinions and priorities.
(((2) Commitment to wide-reaching, inclusive & equitable engagement: You understand both the importance of trying to reach as wide a range of community members and as diverse a set of people as possible. You will consider ways to make your engagement more welcoming and accessible.
(((3) Conduit: You will act as a conduit for your respective group (be it informal or formal) by
-----> (3a) Holding at least one meeting with your group, or speak at one of your groups scheduled meetings.
-----> (3b) Aim to engage at least 5 individuals of your group to give feedback during the engagement phase.
-----> (3c) Share engagement material as often as you can through your group’s social media, newsletters, etc. (City staff will give you material to use!)
(((4) Attendance: You attend all 4 Network meetings *or* if you cannot attend a meeting, you send your thoughts & updates to the Network coordinator via an email or a quick call. See the first page of this application for the descriptions and months of these meetings.
(((5) Representation: Maximum of 2 reps per unique group. If a group has more than two applicants who are accepted, we will ask that group to determine which two individuals will be in the Network.
[c] The timeline and topics of the network meetings are:
Month*: Meeting #: Current Agenda (*Specific days and times of these meetings are TBD. That said, most meetings will take place in the first or second week of the month.)
Tuesday, May 17 & Wednesday, May 18*, 6-7:30pm: Network meeting #1: Kick-Off the Network (Meet + greet // Zoning Redesign overview // Community Engagement 101 Training // Workshop Members' engagement goals & commitments (Part 1) (*The same kick-off meeting will be held on two different dates - members will only attend one of these.)
Tuesday, June 21, 6-7pm: Network meeting #2: Test 'Feedback Tool' & Goals Contd. (Review & test engagement material // Workshop members' engagement goals & commitments (Part 2 of training)
Monday, August 1, 6-7pm: Network meeting #3: Kick-Off the Engagement (Check-in on members' engagement goals & commitments // Brainstorm & troubleshoot with each other: share what's working, what isn't, ideas)
September (TBD): Optional network meeting: Check-in (Same agenda as meeting #3)
Monday, November 7, 6-7pm: Network meeting #4: Celebration & Debrief (Note the Network's successes // Debrief: What worked well? What didn't? What do we have to learn from this?
[d] If you have any questions about the network, please contact it’s coordinator, Nevena Pilipovic-Wengler, at
npilipovicwengler@newtonma.gov, or for other questions about Zoning Redesign, please contact
zoningredesign@newtonma.gov