Not everyone who attends the Public Square goes to the microphone to speak. That’s why we ask for comments on the back of the yellow cards that every spectator is asked to fill out.

Here are some of the suggestions, ideas and observations that last week’s Public Square participants left behind:

*I think the lack of attendance by county residents stems from reluctance of those residents to embrace regionalism. On the whole, regionalism is pined for by central cities and despised by fringe communities. Counties do not want city’s taxes, school systems, crime problems, etc., and do not feel obligated to help fix them—even though they helped to create them. I think the first step to solving this is education. All citizens, cities and counties, need to be educated on the issues. Most are ignorant to them and that is the root of the problem.—Doug Allen, Richmond.

*1. Richmond’s charette process was a positive step forward for city citizens—maybe we could turn to our planning district commission to hose some opportunity for citizens in the entire region. 2. Instead, we seem to be stuck in a competitive posture—one locality’s gain, is another’s loss. Comprehensive plans are developed in isolation. 3. We have at state in our region and we can’t do it without a strong city core. We’ve got transportation, economic, drinking water, and joint concerns. 4. Short of overhauling our entire governmental structure, we need meaningful joint community planning.—Lisa Guthrie, Virginia League of Conservation Voters, Richmond.

*While a regional plan sounds like a popular idea, I’ll take the opposite position as a matter of argument:
---People like to have the freedom of choice. A regional model scares many people, as has already been stated, where one locality doesn’t want to take on the responsibility of another, or doesn’t want another locality to make decisions for them.
---Look at the differences even within counties, such as Western Henrico vs. Eastern Henrico.
---I suggest a franchise model, where guidelines are agreed to which allow localities to have a range of decisions that still fit within the framework of the regional plan. Ukrop’s has a different mix from store to store, depending on the neighborhood. And that is a good model for the regional plan. --Mike App, Mechanicsville.

*Equity is at the heart of this matter. Our business community is a very powerful tool to drive regional approaches. Revenue sharing: trade-off for no annexation.—Lynn McAteer

*Broaden the dialog. Land-use planning.—Martha Wingfield, Ashland

Our 16th Public Square has this topic: Is the Richmond REGION a work-in-progress or a meaningless dream?

Come to the Richmond Times-Dispatch’s downtown offices on Oct. 2 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. for another in the series of civil, public conversations on issues important to our community.

We were reminded of the vital role of regional solutions at Tuesday’s symposium on housing and growth, where a packed house at the Virginia Historical Society learned the facts and forecasts of complex problems that need to be addresses. You could hear the audience gasp and moan at the mention of growth-related crises that will occur if we don’t put solutions in place now.

The presentations kept coming back to regional issues in search of regional approaches in search of regional success.

So: What if we had regional solutions for each of this huge issues:

Affordable Housing.

Transportation.

Land Use.

Crime and Safety.

Education.

Workforce development.

Health Care.

Mental Health.

Immigration.

Come Oct. 2 and help us explore whether there is a regional purpose to the Richmond REGION. Be heard.

Solutions abounded at Monday’s Public Square where participants in the community discussion on underage drinking offered dozens of potential solutions.

As part of the 100-minute program, we set aside time to list recommendations on how Greater Richmond can confront the problem.

Here is the audience-generated list: 

Selecting a topic for the Public Square conversation usually takes two routes.

First, we identify important issues that reach throughout our communities and require more analysis or commentary.

Second, we look to significant news that calls for a community gathering to uncover resident reactions, ideas, concerns or solutions.

As we headed into 2007, we penciled in growth and its impact of our quality of life as the first topic for The Times-Dispatch’s Public Square series. But then, a fatal car accident at 12:42 a.m. occurred in the Short Pump area of western Henrico County.

Imagine if the Richmond Region was known as the capital of customer service.

That’s a challenge Jim Ukrop of Ukrop’s Super Markets and First Market Bank put out at our Public Square on customer service.

Think about it.

Civility. Good service. Friendly AND effective businesses.

A great vision, indeed.

After the Public Square, Tom Gallagher of the Better Business Bureau sent Jim a letter saying the regional goal hit home.

“I am most interested in your goal to have our region become known as a region of great customer service,” Tom wrote Jim. “That’s almost verbatim what we’ve adopted as our Vision Statement.”

Richmond as the capital of great customer service.

Not a pipe dream after all.

Stay tuned.