Madison Township government will be striving to improve and increase its efforts to communicate with residents. Related Articles Mentor seeking entries for patriotic community video project Mentor Public Library now loaning Shelf to Chef kits Lake Humane Society launches series for outreach efforts Willowick enters agreement to construct Gold Star Families Memorial Fairport Harbor mayor recaps 2025 fire, police department achievements Township Administrator Paul Cook recently talked about steps that can be taken to achieve that goal. He shared those ideas at the recent township Board of Trustees meeting. Cook said he wants to start a new program that will give residents an opportunity to talk with the township administrator in a relaxed setting. This initiative, which is tentatively called Township Talk, will be held for the first time at 9 a.m. March 11 at the township Administration Building, 2065 Hubbard Road. “It will be an open forum for the public, if anyone wants to come in and ask questions,” Cook said. “It’ll maybe run for an hour and we’ll see how it goes.” Residents can talk with Cook while they enjoy coffee and doughnuts. The inaugural Township Talk session will take place the morning after trustees hold their first regular meeting for the month of March. Trustees generally are scheduled to meet on the second Tuesday of each month. They begin with a 6:30 workshop and then start their regular meeting at 7. Cook said he was inspired to start the Township Talk endeavor after attending Concord Township’s Coffee with the Administrator event. Concord Township Administrator Andy Rose hosts the program from 9 to 10:30 a.m. on the third Thursday of each month, according to the township’s website. Residents are invited to chat with Rose about “current Concord Township news and updates,” a website announcement stated. Pastries and coffee are offered to Concord residents who attend the event. Cook, who began working as Madison Township administrator late last year, said he’s trying to make the community’s Administration Building “a little more open to the public” for residents who have questions or concerns. Madison Township also wants to increase its use of social media to provide important information to residents. “We’re trying to get the public more involved with what we’re doing,” Cook said, noting that social media is the fastest and easiest way to communicate with a large number of township residents. In addition, he said township Administrative Assistant Kathryn Garden has been working on the creation of a social media policy that eventually will be reviewed by trustees and township Solicitor Gary Pasqualone. Cook said that Garden has done a good job of updating the township website. Madison Township government doesn’t have an official Facebook page. But there are several Madison community Facebook groups where news and announcements involving Madison Village and Township, and the Madison School District, are often posted by either residents or individual elected officials. Another way that the township is looking at conveying more information to residents is by updating the Administration Building’s sign that is situated adjacent to Hubbard Road. That sign is visible to motorists as they travel in both directions on the street. The township recently was awarded a NOPEC Energized Community Grant that totals about $28,000. Cook said one possible use for some of that grant could be upgrading the roadside sign to one that serves as more of an LED illuminated electronic message center. For example, Fairport Harbor government in 2024, used NOPEC Energized Community Grant funds to replace its old-fashioned sign in front of Village Hall with an LED message sign. Fairport Harbor now has a modern sign that can be programmed remotely to display interchangeable information and messages. These announcements can be read day and night by passing motorists and pedestrians. ...read more read less