Voicing Your Opinion
About
Your Town Officials
Town council members and the town clerk are elected at large and represent
all of West Hartford. The town has operated under a Council-Manager form
of government since 1919. West Hartford was the first town in the state
and one of the first in the country to adopt this form of government where
the council acts as the elected policy board and the town manager serves
as the chief executive officer responsible for carrying out the policies
of the council. All town council members are volunteers and do not get
paid for this service to their community.
Informal Ways to Voice
Your Opinion include:
Formal
Ways to Voice Your Opinion:
To place an item on the town council meeting agenda, write to the town
clerk and ask to be placed on the town council agenda. Your letter must
be received by close of business Monday of the week prior to the council
meeting. It should include your name, home address, phone number and item
for town council agenda. You will be mailed an agenda by week-end prior
to the council meeting.
When your agenda item is called, you have 5 minutes to address the council. Under council rules, a portion of the agenda is called "public forum." A resident may speak on any subject already on the agenda that is not subject to public hearing for 3 minutes.
Public hearings are required for budget adoption, zoning and ordinance changes. They are publicized with legal notices in the newspaper (usually the "West Hartford News"). Three public hearings are usually scheduled for the budget during mid-late March and early April. Two are held in the evening and one in the afternoon.
