Salisbury council sets quarterly town halls, plans public survey on elections and housing
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Summary
Council approved a quarterly town-hall cadence for 2026, directed staff to send a short public survey immediately to shape topics, and advanced tentative dates for the first sessions while assigning staff to secure venues and recording support.
Salisbury council members on Monday framed a yearlong public engagement plan that will include quarterly town halls and a short online survey to collect residents' priorities on topics such as election reform and homelessness.
Members agreed the city should solicit simple, focused survey questions from council by the appointed deadline and post the survey immediately, with a closure roughly two weeks before the first town hall to give the council time to review public feedback. Staff were asked to compile members' suggestions and prepare a finalized questionnaire.
The council discussed who should be invited and how to structure sessions. For the election-reform listening session the mayor's office and outside partners were proposed to provide baseline research; grad students from Johns Hopkins were mentioned as potential presenters for comparative municipal models. Council members emphasized keeping the survey short (three to five core questions) with an optional comment box for written feedback.
On timing, members proposed quarterly town halls to avoid public overload and to coordinate follow-up work sessions. The group discussed weekday evenings versus weekend slots and parking/accessibility concerns; staff will contact potential venues (Chipman Culture Center, Inspire1 and Truett Street gym were discussed) and public-access television (PAC-14) about recording availability. A set of tentative 2026 dates was discussed for March, June, September and December, and staff were directed to confirm final dates and locations and post the schedule online.
Next steps: council members will email survey questions to staff by the stated Wednesday deadline; staff will post the survey and return a compiled draft for council review. Hannah will update the public meeting calendar and circulate the posted schedule once dates and locations are secured.