Neighborhood Forums

Gathering feedback in the neighborhoods

Several times a year, Great Expectations hits the road, taking the discussion into the city's neighborhoods, each of which has its own cares and concerns. The forums aim to reach people within of all of the Philadelphia City Council districts. In addition, the project recognizes that people from throughout the region, not just city residents, have a stake in Philadelphia's future.

A City That Works:
Philadelphia City Hall and good customer service? In the same sentence? That is the goal of the Nutter adminstration, which worked with Great Expectations to get citizen input on how customer service relates to education, ethics, jobs and economic development, health and sustainable communities, and public safety.

Presenting the Agenda:
After months of working to craft The Citizens Agenda, Great Expectations visited each of the Philadelphia City Council districts to present the final version fo the agenda. Check out what our citizen bloggers had to say about these community forums.

Yo, Mike! Yo, Al! potlucks:
Leading up to the 2007 mayoral election, Great Expectations featured "Yo, Mike! Yo, Al!" in which we asked people what they would say if the next mayor were sitting at their kitchen table. More than 600 responses were posted on the Great Expectations blog, and Democrat Michael Nutter and Republican Al Taubenberger met with small groups during two potluck events.

Deliberation Days:
Deliberation Days, held in the spring of 2007, offered people an opportunity to come together to talk not only about the who would be the next mayor of Philadelphia, but also who would represent each City Council district.

Getting going:
The first of the Great Expectations neighborhood forums were held in the winter of 2007, both within the city and its suburbs. Participants identified one hope and one fear they had for the region, and then went on to discuss what advice they would have for someone thinking about moving to the area.