BOCC Hosts 2nd Health Care Charette Tuesday Night

BRADENTON – The Manatee County Commission will host its second of two community workshops to gather ideas on possible approaches to community-wide health care issues Tuesday night at the Bradenton Area Convention Center. All members of the public are invited to attend and participate.

The meetings will begin at 6 p.m. The Bradenton Area Convention Center is located at 1 Haben Blvd in Palmetto. Several tables will be set up posing local health care questions. A table moderator will facilitate each discussion for about 20 minutes while a note taker will transcribe ideas that arise during the talk. After 20 minutes people will be asked to visit another table to discuss a different aspect of the issue.

To get some estimate of how many will attend the workshops, people are invited to R.S.V.P. by calling (941) 745-3700.

Deputy County Administrator Karen Windon said the charrette format will give Manatee leaders a chance to hear residents’ thoughts and concerns as part of a facilitated discussion rather than during a formal county commission meeting when only one person can speak at a time.

“These are complex issues that deserve a thoughtful, constructive conversation that will help us solve these challenges with true collaborative public input,” Windon said. “We’re hoping people attend these discussions with unique insight on how to tackle these issues, and that that feedback will give county commissioners a sense of how the public wants to proceed.”

Last Wednesday’s meeting was attended by just under 100 citizens. For TBT's coverage of that meeting, click here. Note: TBT will not cover Wednesday evening's meeting due to a conflict in scheduling for other local government meetings.