Waterbury debuts on Facebook with a local government page

Sept. 28, 2023  |  By Lisa Scagliotti

Be sure to look for the Facebook page with the photo that matches the WaterburyVt.com town website image. Screenshot

The Town of Waterbury has debuted its new communication platform with the recent creation of a public Facebook page.

Managed so far by Municipal Manager Tom Leitz, the page is designed with the same aerial blue-sky photo currently on the homepage of the Town of Waterbury’s website, WaterburyVT.com. 

Leitz invites community members on Facebook to find and like/follow the page that has the title “Town of Waterbury, Vermont.” Note carefully the comma in the page name. There are several other unofficial pages on Facebook that may resemble a municipal account, but they are either auto-generated or were created by individuals not associated with town government, Leitz noted. 

The official page so far has a handful of posts announcing several meetings, a job opening, etc. The first post was July 12 when the page was created. 

Leitz, who took over as municipal manager in January, suggested to the Select Board this summer that the town create a social media account on Facebook. The matter came up after the July flooding as a means of public communication. The board agreed with the step and also discussed other methods of mass direct communication the town government might employ to get information to local residents. One such method could be an email list similar to what school districts use to send timely messages such as school weather delays and cancellations. Leitz said he would explore that possibility as well. 

In the meantime, local residents who use Facebook can find and start following the municipal account at facebook.com/TownofWaterburyVT.

Those who are not on Facebook can see messages from town officials posted on the municipal website’s home page under the Latest News heading.