Newspapers make citizens

The editorial board for the Missoulian has done a great job of encouraging public involvement in local planning. Just in the last week, they have run two prominent editorials alerting readers to planning events and ways in which we can help decide the future shape of the city. On Wednesday they announced the second Missoula downtown planning meeting, and this morning they gently chastised the Bonner Milltown Community Council for its obstructionist behavior and encouraged the residents of Bonner to be prepared for the changes on the horizon.

I jabber on about these issues pretty regularly, but it's great to see a respected and widely-read source from the community do the same. Of course, I'm far more biased and willing to share my biases about good urban design, yet everyone can agree that the process should involve as much of the public as possible.