Changes offer more time to have a say

Two major changes city council just made to the way it conducts business are supposed to give people more opportunity to shape council decisions.

One is intended to answer concerns that

(a) staff reports on items coming to council be available sooner and (b) anyone with an interest in an issue has more time to respond before final decisions are made.

The second change was ordered by the provincial government. All cities are required to set up planning advisory committees made up primarily of citizen appointees.

Whether those changes actually give the public a stronger voice in decision-making remains to be seen, but up front it looks like one will have more impact than the other.

And the forecast winner is ... the homegrown adjustments to how people get information and how council hears from them.

They are a response primarily to complaints over the handling of two recent controversial issues that are still playing out: approval of a casino and the sale of part of the city-owned electric utility company.

Several objectors to those two projects condemned the process for not providing timely information or enough time to react to it.

As a result, staff reports that provide background information and often recommend a decision will go on the city website on Thursday, not Friday.

The extra day to digest and respond to reports and lobby councillors before they consider them in committee the following Monday is a step forward.

It’s not ideal, however. Council would show more commitment to public involvement by requiring reports are posted even earlier.

At the same time, council’s meeting cycle will be cut back. Planning and general items will both be handled in a single committee meeting. The formal council meeting to vote on the committee recommendations will be held two weeks later.

That extra week between recommendation and decision provides more time for people to make arguments to councillors and/or appeal to the public. Again, a step forward in public engagement.

The second major change, the one mandated by Queen’s Park, won’t have as much impact.

That is Peterborough council’s doing. The province told municipalities to establish planning advisory committees but left the format entirely open.

The local committee will consist of four citizen appointees and one council member. It will not be allowed to hear public delegations or ask people for their opinions.

In effect council will get the advice of only four people: better than none, particularly if the four are capable and plugged into the community, but far from broad public consultation.

The potential upside is that the advisory committee format will be reviewed in two years. There will be plenty of room for improvement.