Detroit Citizens Invited to Community Roundtables to Learn and Provide Input for Historic Detroit Charter Revision

DETROIT, MI, May 08, 2011 (Press-News.org) Citizen Group DetCharter.com Drives Public Participation and Provides Online Information about Detroit Government Structure

Detroit, Mich., May 2, 2011 - DetCharter.com, an independent Detroit citizen organization for policy review and government accountability, invites the public to three Detroit Charter Community Roundtables on May 10-11, 2011. During these forums, citizens will learn about the Detroit Charter revision process and provide input for the Charter Commissioners who are finalizing the draft charter document.

After finalizing the final Detroit Charter with public input, the Detroit Charter Revision Commission will send the document to the State of Michigan for review before placing it on the city's ballot for a citizen vote in November 8, 2011.

DetCharter.com is sponsoring three Community Roundtables to obtain critical public input for this important document. The first roundtable is scheduled for Tuesday, May 10 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at St. John Riverview Center, Medical Pavilion II, 7633 East Jefferson in Detroit.

The second forum is schedule for Wednesday, May 11 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at The Samaritan Center, Kilpatrick Conference Center, 5555 Conner in Detroit. The third forum will be on the same day and same location from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

"This is a rare time in history for Detroit citizens to participate in shaping our city's constitution," said Jackie Bejma, co-founder of DetCharter.com. "The city has only amended its charter three other times in its entire history."

Bejma and Alexander Derdelakos cofounded DetCharter.com to educate the community on the actions taken by the charter revision commission while providing forums for citizen participation. The Detroit City Charter is equivalent to the city's constitution for defining city departments, city commissions, and city services.

"The charter revision commission has been very responsive to our input. They want to hear from more people and we welcome them to participate in the process," said Derdelakos.

The Charter establishes the ground rules from which the city government operates, details the roles of the executive and legislative branches of local government, defines the election process and mandates the departments, programs and services that we all rely on in our daily lives.

Examples of the charter amendments include a requirement for elected officials to live in a respective district for one year before becoming eligible to run for office. The charter will allow districts to be redrawn. Key city departments will change to have district representation, and the goal is to get the government closer to citizens.

DetCharter.com is run with a passion for the City of Detroit and its revitalization. The organization is a community resource to educate citizens about city government and provide independent forums for those who cannot attend every meeting of the charter commission.

As the process continues, the website (www.detcharter.com) will become an archive of information for voters, who will ultimately decide on the fate of the draft charter in November 2011 when it will be placed on the ballot for a vote.