Newton Citizen

COVINGTON - The city of Covington is set to host its second town hall meeting of the year at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Turner Lake Complex located at 6185 Turner Lake Road.

The public is invited to attend and ask questions of the mayor and council members.

Invitations have been sent to residents of both the city and county. The invitations included postcards on which residents were asked to write questions and return to the city anonymously. Postcards will also be available at the meeting, or residents can simply raise their hands to be called on, Mayor Kim Carter said.

In addition to the question and answer session, each council member will give a summary of important issues the council has been working on this year.

Holding town hall meetings is one way Carter said she is fulfilling her campaign promise of inclusion and access to city government for residents.

The last meeting was held in late August and saw a turnout of about 150 residents from both the city and county.

"It was extremely successful. It gave us areas to follow up on and we have done that," she said.

Carter said she hopes to hold the meetings quarterly and also wants to get the city's Web site updated so residents can e-mail questions and concerns there as well.

The town hall meetings, however, give residents a chance to have face-to-face contact with their elected officials in an informal atmosphere that Carter said she hopes will result in a "relaxed and productive chat."

"Come on out and let your voices be heard," she said.

Crystal Tatum can be reached at crystal.tatum@newtoncitizen.com.