As a non-oldtimer, I tend to feel like people get too fixated on Council. As I've said before, I like the idea of a central meeting with multiple activities we'd be excited to encourage newcomers and lapsed Carolingians to just show up to. Presumably the days when I used to go to council were far after the glory days, but I don't see why Council should be the central lightning rod even if the activity and energy of the Barony went up. Obviously, more stuff going on would be more business, but I'd be all for a social heart for the Barony that ended up being separate from council.