JANESVILLE The 69蹤獲 will host a community conversation later this month with a panel of guests thats aimed at helping Janesville voters make an informed decision on a major ballot item in the Nov. 3 election: the General Motors JATCO site development referendum.
The 69蹤獲 plans to host the public forum live at 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 30, giving voters a ringside seat to the ideas of six panelists wholl bring varying opinions and perspectives on whether voters should vote Yes or No on a referendum that would have implications on the future of the blighted, 240-acre former GM site for years.
The GM-JATCO referendums core question, and the one voters will decide in November, is whether or not to give the public power via a yes-no vote for individual proposals to decide whether major development prospects over $450 million should be allowed at the former GM site.
The 69蹤獲s intention is to allow panelists to answer, and to allow those watching the forum to learn a range of ideas, concerns, arguments and perspectives on the GM-JATCO referendum. The 69蹤獲s goal is provide information and understanding to the public before Janesville residents head to the polls to vote on the GM-JATCO referendum which is one of five local and statewide referendums that will appear on Janesville voters ballots in the Nov. 3 election.
The 69蹤獲s forum is hosted at Blain Supply, 3507 E. Racine St., Janesville. It will allow limited seating for an audience and run on a question-and-answer format, with panelists asked a set of questions the 69蹤獲s news department has researched, written and fact checked in advance.
The questions will not be provided to panelists in advance.
The panelists include:
- George Cullen and Maiken Westphal, top leaders of Janesville-based construction contracting firms JP Cullen and Westphal Electric. Both Cullen and Westpahl oppose the referendums passage. Theyre co-chairs of Grow Janesville Responsibly, a group thats running a Vote No campaign on the referendum.
- Cathy Erdman, a Janesville resident who lives on the citys south side. Erdman runs SNOW Janesville a neighborhood advocacy group that supports the referendums passage.
- Alyssa Capozziello, a Janesville resident who runs a grassroots group, No Janesville Data Center. Capozziello was among those who organized a public petition drive to bring the GM site referendum, bringing it to the city as a direct legislation initiative before the city ultimately placed in on the ballot.
- Dan Hartung, a longtime Janesville resident and community advocate for the citys south side and west sides. Hartung represents the public at large as a member of the forums panel.
- Mandy Witt, a local commercial property broker for Coldwell Banker. Witt represents the business community at large as a member of the forums panel.
The 69蹤獲s editorial leadership, Regional Editor Tim Sullivan, and Janesville 69蹤獲 City Editor Neil Johnson, will co-moderate the forum, including the panels discussion of questions, before opening the floor to an audience Q-and-A segment.
Supporters of the referendums passage, including a grassroots group of residents those who raised a petition that ultimately was placed on the ballot, say it would give residents a strong voice in deciding whether major development projects would be a good fit for the former GM site.
Opponents, many of whom include operators of some of the city and regions biggest and longest running construction and development firms, argue the referendums passage would create a new layer of conditions and oversight on big projects that could chase off large-scale development prospects.
69蹤獲 Regional Editor Tim Sullivan said The 69蹤獲 considers an informed public to be its core mission. He said the paper believes the public should have an enlightened view of the referendum, a lightning-rod issue thats left public sentiment polarized.
Advocates for a Yes vote, and advocates for a No vote have been campaigning for months, largely to their own bases, Sullivan said. Its important to the public to bring a range of perspectives together, and let them all pro-, anti- and undecided explain why they feel the way they do.
Sullivan said The 69蹤獲 has historically been the city of Janesvilles main town square a platform that has functioned as an independent source of community news and information for generations of readers. The forum is an effort to continue that mission.
The Janesville 69蹤獲 has been Rock Countys go-to source for the unvarnished truth for more than 180 years, Sullivan said. As part of that mission, were proud to bring individuals representing the entire spectrum of positions on the referendum together. Were proud to invite the public. And well be proud to present some of the most salient points on our pages in the days following the event.
The forum will be live-streamed, and it will remain available for view leading up to the election through The 69蹤獲s website and social media pages. The 69蹤獲 will provide an electronic registry for residents who want to attend the live forum on Sept. 30.
See registration information for the event by following the QR code on Page A29 in todays paper.