Why would they do this?
Council normally releases all agendas prior to the weekend of the Monday night meeting. In that agenda are the details of the items to be discussed, complete with background reports. The intent of early releases is to give the Councillors time to study the items over the weekend and then make informed decsions on the Monday night.
So why do we have an item that will need background information in a report that is not in the package but will be released at the meeting. Are the contents of that item confidential, does the information need to be worked on over the weekend or are the contents of the report explosive if released two days before the meeting? Oh you ask what is the subject of this speculation? Why a report on "Victoria Park and Beach operations". Why hasn't this report been released to the public before the meeting and that would allow members of the public input into the meeting if they wanted it. Does the CAO think that by scheduling a public meeting, in the resolution, that that action obviates the need for public scrutiny prior to the meeting? What is in the report that neccessitates such a late release, and does this late release contravene the spirit and intent of the rules and procedures of Council concerning public information?
In another related matter, if you intend to go to Council on Monday don't go anywhere near the Old Bailey courtroom, the great experiment in "new democracy has fizzled out. The Mayor has decided despite spending $42,000 on the move that it doesn't work. Perhaps a public accounting of all the staff time and the cost of the facilities left behind as well as the cost of the transfer back to the old chambers might be in order! BTW thanks to a sharp citizen who put me on to this.
So why do we have an item that will need background information in a report that is not in the package but will be released at the meeting. Are the contents of that item confidential, does the information need to be worked on over the weekend or are the contents of the report explosive if released two days before the meeting? Oh you ask what is the subject of this speculation? Why a report on "Victoria Park and Beach operations". Why hasn't this report been released to the public before the meeting and that would allow members of the public input into the meeting if they wanted it. Does the CAO think that by scheduling a public meeting, in the resolution, that that action obviates the need for public scrutiny prior to the meeting? What is in the report that neccessitates such a late release, and does this late release contravene the spirit and intent of the rules and procedures of Council concerning public information?
In another related matter, if you intend to go to Council on Monday don't go anywhere near the Old Bailey courtroom, the great experiment in "new democracy has fizzled out. The Mayor has decided despite spending $42,000 on the move that it doesn't work. Perhaps a public accounting of all the staff time and the cost of the facilities left behind as well as the cost of the transfer back to the old chambers might be in order! BTW thanks to a sharp citizen who put me on to this.
5 comments:
Another fine example of why we get so discouraged. Even if they have broken the rules, there's nothing we can do about it. Truth is, only a handful of us even care, not enough to turf them all out come election time.
Maybe tossing rotten tomatoes at them would make an impression. Probably not though.
What ever happened to that "pie-in-the-face" fella(s)? His antics were a real hoot.
Question is, Were they more than antics? They didn't need to fight for news coverage, did they? Is that enough?
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Sorry for offtopic
According to our esteemed mayor and lap dog Spooner, all we have to do now is pencil in that reminder about a public meeting in January, when I'm sure thinking about summer and the beach will be top of mind.
So far they have only heard concerns from the NIMBY neighbours, not from the rest of us, so we'd better be primed and ready! They might be "too late" to post the agenda and their report for that one too!
So what becomes of the Old Bailey Courtroom? Does it become a relic? Does it become an occasional movie set, or theatrical performance area?
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