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Montgomery Township chair lays out 2026 priorities: communication, service quality and staff training
Summary
Chair Tanya Bamford said improving communication and maintaining high‑quality public services are top priorities for 2026, and she urged continued investment in staff training, livestreaming and community outreach such as a proposed Citizens Academy.
Tanya Bamford, chair of the Montgomery Township Board of Supervisors, told the township’s podcast that communication, stewardship of taxpayer dollars and staff development will guide the board’s work in 2026. "Communication is, I think, at the heart of what I want to see us do," Bamford said.
Bamford, a long‑time township resident and small‑business owner who was first elected in 2017, said transparent, proactive outreach and clearer explanation of decisions help residents feel represented. She cited the podcast and an upgraded AV system that allows livestreaming as tools to improve access. "When people feel like they were informed ... that's when you start to get people feeling a lot more comfortable about the decision making," she said.
The chair described specific engagement tactics she wants to expand, including more direct mail — which she said produced a "huge influx of traffic" to meetings when the township mailed a postcard about a proposed firefighter expansion — as well as town halls and presentations to homeowners associations. Bamford noted analytics (website traffic, social metrics and YouTube views) as ways to measure engagement and argued the township should meet residents where they are.
Bamford also emphasized investing in staff through continuing education and conference attendance. "By investing in you, it just makes you better at performing your job on behalf of all of our constituents," she said. She called for keeping the township in a "mindset of continual improvement" and asked the board to aim beyond "gold" to a "platinum standard" for communications and services.
Looking ahead to the next five to ten years, Bamford said she expects Montgomery Township to continue improving and to serve as a model for other municipalities in the county and state. The township manager, Carolyn McCreery, who hosts the podcast, said leaders are also discussing a Citizens Academy series to explain township operations, including public works, planning and zoning, finance and code enforcement.
The podcast concluded with a reminder to subscribe and follow Montgomery Township on social media for updates on meetings and initiatives.
