16 ways to improve
The recommendations from the Quick Starts report
1 Borrowing from Boston’s “City Hall To Go” truck. Vancouver will look to pilot a mobile program that would see basic city services — from picking up a new blue recycling bin to paying a parking ticket — delivered to diff erent neighbourhoods.
2 Assigning neighbourhood councillor liaisons. Though shying away from a return to the old ward system, the task force says there’s value in requiring each city councillor to represent specifi c neighbourhoods and their issues and concerns.
3 Declaring a city- wide Neighbourhood Block Party Day. A city- wide party is just the ticket to help stave off loneliness and isolation most keenly felt by residents in high- density housing.
4 Budget consultation. Allowing residents to determine how money is spent in their neighbourhood through a “participatory budgeting process.” Winning projects could be used for park enhancements, new playground equipment or street upgrades.
5 Opening the doors to city hall. Encouraging the public to tour city hall and other city venues, including theatres, and police and fire facilities, would go a long way to demystifying the work that gets done inside.
6 Ditching bureaucratic jargon. The city should provide information in an easy- toread, easily accessible format on its website to better interact with residents and explain its programs and policies.
7 Making it easy to register to vote. A permanent online voter registration and elections page should be available at all times on the city’s website, not just at election time.
8 Storytelling. Learn more about the behind- the scenes work by city staff and perhaps even a few personal stories to foster better awareness about how the city operates.
9 Changing timelines on major rezoning projects. Providing earlier opportunities for public input on major developments will strengthen public trust in the planning process and give proponents a better understanding of community concerns.
10 Improving notice of planning changes. With more time to absorb agenda reports coming forward, there is a better chance for dialogue, feedback and avoidance of misunderstandings.
11 Rethinking public signs. Too many communications, particularly those related to planning and development, are written in outdated, technical language that makes it diffi cult for people to understand.
12 Bringing 3- 1- 1 online. Younger citizens will be more willing to tweet their concerns or questions to the city’s information line, rather than pick up the phone.
13 Crowdsourcing a list of community venues. A central list of venues that is created and updated online by community members is a way to support community- driven activities by providing reliable and easy- to- access information about the places in the city where people can come together.
14 Creating an email list. Citizens who want to stay up to date on city events, such as open houses and information sessions, will receive the information regularly by email.
15 Launching an online engagement panel. The panel would allow for more in- depth feedback and the ability to ensure that responses are demographically representative.
16 Strategic tweeting. An Engaged City Twitter handle to encourage people to tweet ideas and feedback to be used in the task force’s final report.