Commissioner Smith recaps 2003–2005 charter effort as commission begins work

Commissioner Smith opened substantive discussion with a detailed history of the town's previous charter effort, walking members through appointments, public hearings and the referendum that approved the document. "In 2003, following the appointment of a town appointed governance committee, an effort to poll the residents as to their preferences for governance of the town took place," he said, and reminded the commission that "the proposed charter for the town was approved at referendum vote."

Smith listed members of the earlier commission and the attorneys retained for that work, and handed the group a written summary he said came from the "final report." He urged members to read the handout and asked if there were any questions; members thanked him for the recap and said it brought back memories. The presentation established the baseline the commission said it will use to decide whether to perform a full rewrite or targeted chapter revisions going forward.