The Township of 91原创 is launching a new Community Input Group Task Force, following a heated debate by council.
The task force 鈥� which residents can now apply for 鈥� will consist of 15 community members, one person from the 91原创 Environmental Partners Society, one chairperson and all nine members of council. All applications will be sent to council for review and selection.
The idea came from Coun. Charlie Fox, who presented the motion to council at their last meeting on March 19.
The intent, he said, is to provide another platform for residents in each of the Township鈥檚 communities to offer input and identify issues.
However, not all of council agreed. Fox鈥檚 motion passed in a 5-4 vote, with Councillors Petrina Arnason, Kim Richter, David Davis and Bob Long opposed.
Richter called it 鈥渄isruptive鈥� and 鈥渄espicable.鈥�
鈥淥n the one hand, we don鈥檛 want to talk about the tree bylaw because it鈥檚 so important and it鈥檚 going to take a lot of staff time. But, on the other hand, we鈥檙e going to throw together a community input task force that is going to be political and partisan because it will be populated by friends and insiders of a certain portion 鈥� a majority portion 鈥� of this council,鈥� Richter said.
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鈥淭hese community associations have started up because they鈥檙e not happy with this council. Do you think this is going to make them happy with council? I think this is just going to infuriate them. It鈥檚 a stupid motion and I鈥檓 not supporting it.鈥�
Mayor Jack Froese asked Richter to keep her words respectful.
鈥淚 guess I would question the degree to which we need another layer of information,鈥� Arnason added.
鈥淎nd what does that mean with respect to 鈥� which community group shall we listen to? So in this case, would we listen to the pre-vetted ones where we鈥檝e sort of cherry picked the individuals who are going to be on it, as opposed to maybe a different community view from members who I think could be equally legitimate in their opinion?
鈥淚鈥檓 perfectly content, myself, to listen to grassroots groups, whoever wants to come forward. I think that鈥檚 our job. I鈥檓 a conduit to what the community has to say and I don鈥檛 think, personally, this would be helpful.鈥�
Davis said he was confused by the intent of the task force.
鈥淚t鈥檚 our job to answer residents and their emails and phone calls, and I鈥檓 just wondering if this committee would minimize 鈥� delegations. This is the people鈥檚 hall. People want to come up there and they want to question,鈥� he said.
Fox explained that his motion mirrors what he heard at the Thriving or Surviving: What is a socially sustainable community? panel on March 15. The event featured industry panelists who talked about social issues like homelessness, substance abuse and inclusivity.
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鈥淟ocal government has to take the role in convening, that鈥檚 what has to happen 鈥� those are their words, not mine,鈥� Fox said.
鈥淚ntersectoral discussions need to happen, groups can鈥檛 operate in silos 鈥� their words, not mine. You need to initiate dialogues and listen 鈥� their words not mine. Dialogues happen around a table. To have a collective impact, you have to engage groups of different people to develop social sustainability. That鈥檚 what I heard Thursday night.
鈥淢y intent in this is to actually get people engaged, it鈥檚 actually to get people sitting down and talking.鈥�
Coun. Blair Whitmarsh agreed.
鈥淭his is, to me, a good approach to try to bring people together from all different facets of our community,鈥� Whitmarsh said.
鈥淲hen we are elected, we鈥檙e elected to represent all of the Township of 91原创 鈥� and not just a specific community or a special interest group 鈥� to represent everybody.
鈥淎nd yet it鈥檚 difficult to bring all members of every single association together, so this is a way to bring people from those associations to hear from the voice of those people there.鈥�
Coun. Angie Quaale thought the motion spoke to a recent delegation from resident Barbara Sharp, who asked council to provide financial support to community associations.
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鈥淚 think this motion, by adding the other community groups, adds a layer of input that Barb Sharp didn鈥檛 necessarily ask for, but it expands the boundaries,鈥� Quaale said.
鈥淲e have to be mindful that the people in residents鈥� associations aren鈥檛 the only people with opinions about our community. There鈥檚 lots of other people who would like to have input. So I think this is a really good start.鈥�
Coun. Michelle Sparrow said she attended the same session on social sustainability as Fox, and gathered many of the same conclusions.
鈥淚 really took a lot from it as well, [particularly] the comments that he brought up about working together and our role in facilitating the community to be engaged,鈥� Sparrow said.
鈥淚 think this is just another layer, and I say that as a positive. I think this is a positive thing, it is another opportunity, another layer for the public to engage.鈥�
Long, however, had a different view.
鈥淐ommunity associations want autonomy,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e put together by members of the community and they want to have an autonomous agenda. It鈥檚 not for us to try and get involved. It鈥檚 just not where we belong.鈥�
Mayor Froese said the motion shows that council respects community associations and the work they do.
鈥淚 think asking community associations to provide a representation to something like this for council is not a bad thing,鈥� Froese said.
鈥淲e still want to encourage community associations to continue working. They鈥檙e providing a valuable service鈥� This isn鈥檛 replacing them, this is just an ability to reach out.鈥�
Richter still disagreed.
鈥淟et鈥檚 not dress this up as a silk purse,鈥� Richter said.
鈥淲hat this is is a sanitized way to engage the public. We鈥檙e going to talk to them, but we will talk to them on our terms. And the other thing that maybe the public doesn鈥檛 understand is when people get put on these committees, we all get a vote. And the majority vote decides who goes on the committee. Well, let鈥檚 just take a look at the voting record of this council and I think you鈥檙e going to see whose friends get on this committee.鈥�
鈥淧oint of order,鈥� Quaale intervened.
Froese added that when council does vote on the committee members, it is done in a closed meeting by secret ballot.
鈥淎nd there鈥檚 no pre-discussion that ever goes on,鈥� Richter interjected.
鈥淓xcuse me, I have the floor Coun. Richter, and I would ask you not to interrupt,鈥� Froese said.
鈥淚鈥檓 trying to explain to the public that it鈥檚 secret ballot and that council has an opportunity to vote. And I鈥檝e seen 鈥� in all my time when we鈥檝e selected all of our committee members 鈥� a variety of people come on, and I really take offence that you say this is fixed or rigged in some way. This whole council votes, we鈥檙e all independent, there are no political parties here. We鈥檙e independent, we all run on independence and I take offence to that. And I believe that we are doing the best job we possible can to include the community.
鈥淎nd furthermore, I find it extremely difficult to understand why members of council fight public engagement 鈥� This is an attempt to include the community, and I would encourage that the residential associations submit names because we want to include the community. We can鈥檛 include everybody, but if it鈥檚 properly facilitated, we can get some great information to help this council move the municipality forward.鈥�
鈥淲ell, I guess I鈥檝e really struck a nerve today,鈥� Fox said.
鈥淚鈥檓 sitting in a wonderful spot at this table. I鈥檝e never sensed such negativity. My name鈥檚 Charlie Fox and I鈥檓 a council member, obviously some of my council member [colleagues] significantly dislike me and any motion I put forward. This was a motion that I derived over a 10-day period. I submitted it actually on Monday or Tuesday. I went to a session on Thursday, it validated absolutely everything I tried to embody in this motion. I鈥檝e brought that up in my comments. It鈥檚 unfortunate that Councillor Richter, you weren鈥檛 there to hear the learned scholars put forward the information that was there.鈥�
鈥淧oint of order Mr. Mayor, come on. You allow personal attacks on me all the time from members of this council,鈥� Richter said, while Froese tried to speak over her.
鈥淵ou need to stop that. You need to stop it. You need to apply the same rules to everybody.鈥�
鈥淐ouncillor Richter would you please calm down?鈥� Froese retorted.
鈥淵ou asked for a point of order, and I need to rule. If you keep talking over me I cannot rule. Councillor Fox keep your comments to the motion please. Thank you very much.鈥�
鈥淲ell, I think it鈥檚 tough to keep your comments to the motion when you have been derogatorily analyzed,鈥� Fox said.
鈥淎nyway, you know what folks? Bottom line is, do we want to engage the public and get them involved in this intersectoral discussion, or do we not? I don鈥檛 care, I put this forward because I thought it was a good thing. I thought it was an engaging thing. I mean, if you don鈥檛 want it, if you don鈥檛 want public engagement, fine. Move on.
鈥淧eople are reading into my motion that there鈥檚 a negative intent and all this. It鈥檚 not. It鈥檚 coming from a constructive context. It鈥檚 coming from an engagement context. Vote the way you want. Call it what you want, I鈥檓 only trying to be positive and move the agenda forward based upon what we鈥檝e seen come forward from the community associations and so on. I think it could have an absolutely positive outcome.鈥�
To watch the full discussion, click .
鈥⑩赌⑩赌�
On March 29, the Township issued a press release asking people to apply for the Community Input Group Task Force.
One representative is being sought from each of 91原创鈥檚 communities: Aldergrove, Brookswood-Fernridge, Fort 91原创, Murrayville, the rural area, Walnut Grove, and Willoughby-Willowbrook.
One representative from the business community, business association, or business improvement association from each of the communities is also needed, along with one representative from the agricultural community and one from the recreation and culture community.
To apply, visit . Application deadline is 4:30 p.m. on Monday, April 16.
Members will be required to attend three monthly meetings on weekday evenings from approximately from April to July. Meeting dates are to be determined.
miranda@langleytimes.com
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