How much openness and transparency do the candidates for Gibsons mayor and council support? The Coast Clarion asked them.
Opportunity for public input at council meetings in Gibsons has been lacking and many people feel they have not been listened to at public hearings. The Coast Clarion sent a 10-question questionnaire to all 10 candidates for mayor and council to find out how they view openness, fairness and engagement with the public. These are Aleria Ladwig’s answers.
- Do you support several opportunities for public inquiries during council meetings?
No. I understand the policy changed in 2014 because council meetings were frequently extended by many public demands to be heard. Council meetings are a public process, but public processes need reasonable guidelines. Meetings are often two hours long or more already. Councillors will sit for some time at the end of meetings, fielding public and media questions. I do like Bill Beamish’s view on limited inquires on that meeting’s agenda prior to the meeting.
2) Do you support public inquiries about topics not on the agenda of council meetings?
Yes and no — sort of. I think it’s reasonable to have items added to the agenda in advance of the meeting so councillors can become informed on the issue prior to the meeting. I would like to see a section added to the agenda called ‘Other Items’ or something to that effect, where councillors or the public can add items to the discussion in advance.
3) Should public inquiries, and the answers provided, be included in the minutes of council meetings?
Yes. There should be a record of those inquiries, but in generalized form, the same way minutes of any meeting are tracked. It doesn’t need to be verbatim.
4) Do you think an opportunity for public input before every vote at council meetings is a good idea?
No. The things council votes on are known about well in advance and are discussed more than once in council before any voting happens. People have opportunities to make their views known before and after meetings, and by email. Council meetings, committee of the whole meetings, information sessions and public hearings are where councillors hear from the public. By the time we come to a vote, debating at length with the public should not be necessary.
5) Should the minutes of council meetings include entire discussions and matters raised, including the names of the speakers?
Yes. Assuming reasonable time limits are applied to those discussions and they are recorded in a meeting-minutes format, as answered in Question Three.
6) Do you think council members and the mayor should have a set time every week for members of the public to approach them on a personal basis?
Yes, that’s not a bad idea. Not weekly, but maybe after the bi-weekly meetings. It should happen within the municipal building, for a limited time and in a mutually respectful manner.
7) In your opinion, does council need to vote unanimously?
No, I support the rules and practice of majority decision-making.
8) What is your view on public hearings? If a majority of the speakers express a certain opinion, what should council do?
They should roll up those comments into a record of consultation along with all the other sources of input received on the project, including written submissions, comments at council, staff advice, etc. The council members must also use their own judgment in decision-making processes, where they consider the needs of the broader community, like the town’s budget, infrastructure maintenance requirements and tax base.
9) What is your view on providing town documents to the public when asked? Which categories should not be released, if any?
Transparency is always best where legally possible. Some things are confidential like personnel issues, legal matters, etc. And staff time in finding and producing documents is also a consideration.
10) In your view, what are the best methods for council to achieve meaningful consultation with the public?
It depends on the issue / topic. Some controversial issues require deep consultation where interest groups on all sides of an issue should collaborate and discuss their concerns prior to a decision by council, while other issues can be addressed through more traditional consultation methods like public information sessions, public hearings and council meetings.