Citizens raise concerns about new schedule for council meetings

Some Regina residents are worried a recently approved change in the city council meeting schedule will result in less public engagement.

Council voted this week to change the monthly city council meeting from the last Monday of the month at 5:30 p.m. to the last Wednesday of the month at 1:30 p.m.

Delegations — members of the public who want to come and present in person — will also begin at 1:30 p.m.

“You will definitely have less people that are able to attend, just by the nature of Monday to Friday work,” said Casey Peart in an interview Thursday.

Peart is a nurse who appeared before city council on Dec. 9 to speak about budget proposals. Although she could have simply submitted a written statement that would have been incorporated into the meeting record, she came in person. It allowed discussion with council members who had questions after her five-minute presentation.

That dialogue is important, especially these days, she said.

“Civic engagement has been going up, especially as we’ve been dealing with some inflating problems within the city like crime and climate,” said Peart. “I think a lot of people have a lot to say.”

But she fears the early start time will make engagement and dialogue less publicly accessible.

When the schedule change was debated last month at a committee meeting, administration proposed four options: the status quo; meetings every two weeks to allow for “more, but shorter meetings”; 5:30 p.m. meetings on the last Tuesday of the month; or 5:30 p.m. meetings on the last Wednesday of the month.

Administration recommended no change, but the committee voted to move meetings to Wednesday, hearing delegations at 5:30 p.m. but starting the meeting at 1:30 p.m.

“Coun. Findura raised the issue, he supported that (and) I do, too. I think it’s better that we wait until the ... early evening so people can finish work,” Mayor Michael Fougere said this week.

But at Monday’s council meeting, the majority voted to have the meeting, and the delegations, start at 1:30 p.m.

“I’m not sure what that’s going to do to people (who want to) talk about issues that are a concern to them,” said Fougere. “If there’s a problem, we may revisit this again in about a year or so.”

President of Heritage Regina, Jackie Schmidt has presented to council numerous times over the years — most recently about the Cook Residence that was designated a heritage property.

Her schedule is flexible, so a 1:30 p.m. start won’t stop her from attending meetings. But she notes that’s not the case for a lot of the people who often come to show their support for her in council chambers.

“I think it’s important that council sees the involvement of the community and that they are supporting and behind some of these people who are presenting different issues,” said Schmidt Thursday.

Others, like local dog lover and dog park advocate Lynda Schofield said the new time also impacts how much residents have to pay for parking. With free parking after 6 p.m., a 1:30 p.m. start time will require a few more loonies and toonies.

“I think that the councillors should be trying to make it easier ... not harder,” said Schofield. “I think that people would just skip it if that change is in place.”

When asked if delegates could request a later presentation time to account for work schedules, Fougere said there is that potential.

And if residents have concerns about the new schedule, he encourages them to reach out to their city councillor.

“Tell us if it’s a problem,” he said. “We’ll look at it again and see if we can fix it.”