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Melbourne Beach, Florida · get involved

Take part in your government

Every way to be involved, from fifteen seconds to a records request. None of it requires an account, an app, or anyone's permission — these are rights you already have. This page just makes them navigable.

1 · Raise your voice — fifteen seconds

Say what Melbourne Beach should prioritize — or take a fresh look at — and why, on the priorities board. Back what your neighbors have posted; the strongest-felt priorities rise on their own, and when one reaches the threshold it's carried to the people who decide. Prefer a straight yes/no? Answer an open question. No account needed; you can change your mind until it closes.

2 · Know who speaks for you — one phone call

The people who vote your county's money sit on the Town Commission (Mayor, Vice Mayor + 3 Commissioners), led by the Town Manager. Here's who holds each office — names from the county's own record.

OfficeWho
MayorAlison Dennington
Vice MayorTerry Cronin
CommissionerAnna Butler
CommissionerTim Reed
CommissionerSherri Quarrie
Town ManagerA. Marie Smith
Finance ManagerJennifer Kerr

Not sure which district or precinct you're in? The county clerk's office can tell you in one call.

3 · Show up — the calendar is the strategy

Town Commission meets Regular meetings monthly (schedule posted on the town site) — Town Hall, 507 Ocean Avenue..

Public meetings are where the budget actually gets set, and residents can speak. Come with one point, sourced if you can — the money trail exists so you can cite the same documents the officials have. Full schedule and any community events: the calendar.

4 · Ask for records — rights, not favors

The Florida open-records law gives every citizen the right to public records — budgets, minutes, contracts, the check register. Most of what this site publishes came from records anyone could have requested. The docket lists exactly which records would fill the remaining gaps, and the money trail shows where they'd go.

5 · Check the checkers — including us

Every number here re-adds in public. The docket shows what we can't see yet and what we're doing about it. Our activity log is hash-chained and publicly anchored, so our own history can't be quietly rewritten. If you find an error anywhere on this site, that's a gift — corrections get published, not buried.

6 · Bring what you find — the record grows by neighbors

Some records only exist on paper at a counter. If you request one — or already have one in a drawer — it can join the public archive: hashed, cited, and navigable for everyone. The docket lists exactly which documents are still missing. One person with a stamp regularly beats a year of waiting.

7 · Widen the toolkit — beyond this county

Changing a law — local, state, or federal — has a how-to, and other groups teach it for free: how to track a bill, get a public record, run a citizens' panel, or put a measure on the ballot. We've gathered the nonpartisan ones, verified and linked by method, not by cause. See the kindred work.

Why we believe this works — the evidence

Participation is old, proven, and it grows the people who practice it — that's not a slogan, it's a research finding. Our full stance, with sources.