NORFOLK - Town meeting, which is often neglected by and confusing to many residents, is being put in the forefront.

Town Moderator Daniel Winslow pledged to promote town meeting through public outreach when he ran for the office last year, and now he is doing just that.

Winslow has formed a town meeting study group and spearheaded a recent survey of residents to gauge their views about town meetings and how voter participation could be improved. The survey results and suggestions are being reviewed for action.

The biggest reason for not attending town meeting cited by the 30 residents who took the survey is that town meeting takes too long.

And 79 percent of voters least like the fact too much time is wasted on minor issues, individuals speak multiple times on a single article (75 percent), voters attend for special interests and then leave (62 percent), and individual speakers take too long (58 percent). Seventy-two percent of residents support the open town meeting form of government, and value it as a "chance to shape town decisions."

"These data along with our review of other towns show that more people will attend and participate in town meeting when the pace of the meeting balances the importance of people's time and the importance of full and fair debate on important issues," Winslow said.

"Democracy benefits when people are engaged in the process. We need to improve participation and restore vitality to direct democracy in Norfolk."

Statistics from the last five years compiled by the town clerk indicate that town meeting attendance plummets after the first night. The 2007 fall town meeting dwindled to 37 voters on the third night, after an initial showing of 182 voters on the first night.

In the 1968 spring town meeting, 179 voters participated, compared to 162 voters in the 2006 spring meeting. But Norfolk's population doubled during that time period, so a much higher proportion of the population attended the meetings in the past, Winslow said.

"Towns that are similar to or smaller than Norfolk consistently have greater voter participation at town meeting," Winslow said.

The town moderator is holding a series of training sessions on the town's legislative body to orient voters to town meeting procedures; two were held earlier this month, while two more are planned in early May.

The first seminar was held last Thursday night at the Norfolk Community TV studio at the Freeman-Centennial School on Boardman Street. The event was broadcast on local cable TV, and will be rebroadcast until the May 13 town meeting.

The second seminar was a coffee with Winslow on Friday at the Norfolk Public Library.

Winslow bills the seminars as "Town Meeting 101." "If you've never been to town meeting, these seminars will be a great introduction to the process of participating in the direct democracy of our local legislative branch of government," Winslow said. "If you're a longtime attendee, the seminars will be a helpful refresher."

If a community group or neighborhood wishes for their own town meeting seminar, contact Winslow at winslow@virtualnorfolk.org.

STEPHEN PETERSON can be reached at 508-236-0377 or at speterson@thesunchronicle.com.