The Charlottesville City Council unanimously passed a plan last week to establish a University student liaison to the city council.
This liaison will act as a link between the University and the City, providing a way for both parties to easily communicate questions and concerns.
John Connolly, a second-year College student and co-chair of the Student Council Community Affairs Committee, spearheaded the effort to create this position.
“We wanted to create this position because we think that it is important to establish an official line of communication between the student body and city of Charlottesville,” Connolly said in an email.
City council member Bob Fenwick said he is excited and looking forward to the partnership, and added that many of the details concerning the position are still up in the air.
“We left it kind of open ended because it’s new, the goal is to get a better understanding of the neighborhoods where students live,” Fenwick said. “Instead of having people fussing with each other, it’ll be a whole lot easier because they will be working together.”
Connolly said the details of selecting a liaison had not yet been decided.
“Student Council has not yet determined how the position will be selected, but we hope to have the position established in the next few months,” Connolly said.
City Council is looking for a student who is interested in learning about city politics and the operation of a city government. Fenwick said the position would in some ways be like an internship, and selection will probably occur by a vote of both Student Council’s Executive Committee and the Charlottesville City Council.
“One of the first things would be walking the neighborhoods with a lot of students and becoming familiar with how students keep their homes,” he said.
While the exact role is still to be determined, the main purpose of the position is to aid communication, Connolly said. He anticipates the liaison will attend most City Council meetings.
“We don't foresee the student liaison coming in with a specific agenda,” Connolly said. “Instead, we anticipate that the liaison will represent student concerns as they come up. The liaison will also act as a conduit for the City to communicate its concerns to the student body.”
Connolly said the Student Council is confident that one student will be able to represent student concerns and added that students can attend the public comments portion of City Council meetings if need be.
“This is very similar to the setup of student representation on the [University’s Board of Visitors],” he said. “There is one student representative, but there is also a platform for public comment that students can attend.”
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