The Blue Mountains council is going to set up more informal meetings to engage with local citizens.
At its committee of the whole meeting on July 8, council voted 5-1 in favour of a staff report that made several recommendations for how council can set up meetings with local residents that are held more informally than a meeting with a full agenda. Coun. Alex Maxwell voted against the move and Mayor Andrea Matrosovs was absent.
The report was in response to council unanimously passing a resolution in November 2023 to look into methods for council to speak with the community in different settings.
Tim Hendry, the town’s manager of communications and economic development, recommended three courses for council to pursue to meet with the public in less formal settings. They included:
- Council attending community events where the town or the The Blue Mountains Public Library has a tent set up to engage with local citizens.
- Setting up a series of coffee/breakfasts with members of council at various locations around the community.
- Organizing a community barbecue hosted by council in conjunction with the farmer’s market in Thornbury.
Hendry said the date for the community barbecue would have to be decided, as his initial suggestion conflicted with the Association of Municipalities conference in August.
Hendry suggested four dates and locations for breakfast/coffee meetings with council including: September 2024 – Town Hall or the Beaver Valley Community Centre, November 2024 – Ravenna Hall, January 2025 – Craigleith Heritage Depot and March 2025 – Fire Station 2 located on Grey Road 19.
Staff also requested a budget for the events with an upset limit of $2,000 to cover the costs of food and refreshments at the events.
“There can be no greater investment that council can make than its relationship with the community,” said Coun. Paula Hope.
Maxwell expressed concerns about using public money to finance the events.
“I don’t like the idea of elected officials promoting themselves with taxpayer’s money,” he said. “I’m struggling with having the taxpayers pay for this.”
