COLUMBUS, Ohio – The 2012 Bicentennial Citizen Summit is the largest community-wide event of its kind in the city's history. Only 500 participants were originally expected to attend Tuesday night's meeting, but the venue was changed when more than 1,700 people RSVP'd.
The summit is a meeting of minds to map out the future of Columbus and identify what improvements the city needs to be considered a major city in the United States, NBC 4's Erin Tate reported.
The people of Columbus have no shortage of ideas when it comes to improving the city.
Throughout 2007, officials with the city attended dozens of community and neighborhood events, gathering more than 1,000 ideas for its "think tank". Ideas came from students, Somalis and Latinos.
Some of those ideas were even posted on a city Web site in blogs and videos.
INTERACT: Tell Us Your Thoughts, Suggestions & Comments.
The initiative's goal is to make Columbus the best place to live, work and play by the city's 200th birthday in 2012.
The Columbus Bicentennial Commission, made up of 250 people, has been split into 13 different focus groups. Each group is responsible for generating ideas on topics like diversity, jobs, technology, health, downtown revitalization, the environment, streetcars, safety, recreation and the arts.
At Tuesday night's summit, attendees will use wireless keypads to vote and get instant feedback on the issues they care about most.
For those that couldn't make it to Tuesday's meeting, the city has planned neighborhood meetings in February.
Meetings will be held on the north and east sides of the city on February 19, and on the south and west sides of the city February 21.
Stay with NBC 4 and refresh nbc4i.com for additional information.
To send a news tip or submit a story idea, please e-mail us at stories@nbc4i.com.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement