Email from Don Macaulay, Re: View Royal Council Size
Resident correspondence questioning the necessity of a council size review and suggesting a ballot question.
From: Don Macaulay Sent: January 24, 2022 12:25 PM To: Mayor And Council Email mayorandcouncil@viewroyal.ca Subject: View Royal Council Size
Dear Mayor and Council,
Need for Council-size Review?
I have read all the background materials on the Town website and watched the two public feedback videos which were part of the public participation periods at the November 16th and January 18th council meetings. I am still unclear as to the need for this review of council size. It does not appear to be the result of a petition from concerned residents or an issue flagged in phone or web surveys of residents. Did the council-size issue come directly from council?
Public Involvement Processes
The formal public involvement processes undertaken for this issue resulted in 16-17 participants at the January 17th Open House and seven residents at the November 15th Open House. The public participation by phone at the November 16th council meeting saw three residents phone in. There was the same number of phone responses for the January 18th council meeting, plus one person at the meeting. That means, that out of a town population of 11,000, 31 residents engaged in the formal public involvement processes or just over one-quarter of one percent. Weather and COVID-19 probably affected open house attendance, but was it a lack of interest in the topic that was reflected in the small number of phone-in responses? Can a decision by council on such an important topic as council size be based on so few comments from residents?
More Pressing Town Priorities
Personally, I am happy with the current mayor and council. I find I have no problem contacting council members or town staff on issues of concern to me. What I worry about more than the size of council is whether my taxes will increase because of sky-rocketing property assessments. Also there are a number of upcoming outside economic pressures on the town budget. These budget impacts may include downloading costs by more senior levels of government or potential cost increases from agencies such as the RCMP. View Royal can’t control these potential new costs, but the Town can decide not to spend money on two new council members.
I would ask that, if increasing council size is truly an issue of concern to a large number of View Royal residents, that a non-binding opinion question be included on the ballet for the October 2022 general local election.
Yours truly, Donald Macaulay Barbara Macaulay 296 Bessborough Avenue