08/04/2026
Biddeford Friends! Will you share your ideas about our City’s Charter at City Hall at 6pm, next Mon 8/10? Link in Bio to read the current charter (its only 20 pages) & for the meeting agenda :)
The charter is basically the rule book for how city government functions; how many folks there are on the Council & School Board, the role of the mayor and City manager, how long terms are and when elections take place, etc.. Is it sexy? Not in my opinion, but I’m not here to yuck any yumms! Is it important? F-yeah; it sets the context within which decisions that dramatically affect us are made - How many first responders are on staff, and the quality of their equipment, how housing ‘affordability’ is calculated, and all the other ordinances which effect us locally like parking and building codes and burn permits etc.. The Charter regulates how the people who make those decisions are elected or appointed, how much power they have, and how the rest of the populous can respond to decisions they disagree with; via citizens referendum or recall of an elected representative.
Biddeford is currently revising its charter, and earlier this year I was elected to serve on the revision commission. Our Aug 10th meeting will be focused on receiving public feedback, sharing our individual thoughts with the rest of the Commission, and planning out our coming meetings to discuss the potential changes which are brought up. While most (if not all) our future meetings will be public, it would be especially helpful to hear from folks at this opening public hearing, to set our big-picture priorities with as much community input as possible! For example, I want to consider how the City Council (which I believe is currently made up mostly of homeowners) might include more renters (most Biddeford residents rent). What would be a fair and equitable government set-up in your opinion? Bonus points if you can read the current charter and bring specific feedback, but your opinion is valuable regardless!
Again, the meeting is next Mon, 8/10, at 6PM in the Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall. The entrance is up the steps on the BACK of the building. I would be de
