A Lake Country councillor is pushing back against new meeting rules that limit public input on some development proposals.
At its July 15 meeting, council passed a new procedure bylaw that updates how meetings and public hearings are run, most notably restricting public submissions for zoning bylaws that don’t require a hearing under provincial law.
Coun. Cara Reed voted against the .
"Everything else I kind of support, but I find ourselves--by removing things like public comment--we seem to be getting further and further away from engagement with the public," she said. "I will not be in favour of this bylaw for the fact that it limits the public's ability to write to council,” she said. “Doing this now, I think, is precipitous.”
Reed said council should have waited until after the OCP update is completed so the public fully understands how their input can shape future development.
“It's the one chance you get to comment on your neighbourhood,” she said. “We haven't had a strong view that this has been done in other municipalities.”
According to the bylaw, submissions on prohibited meetings will be retained on file but won’t be included in the public agenda or considered before a decision is made.
Mayor Blair Ireland pushed back on Reed’s concerns, saying the public can still email councillors directly.
“It actually does not limit the public’s ability to contact you," he said. "They can email you individually every time. If you choose to read that email or not, that's up to you.”
Ireland said the district received legal advice cautioning against forwarding correspondence from the public that is submitted through the general “mayor and council” email during prohibited hearings.
“If we do read that email and we take it into consideration, then we are technically breaking the law,” he said.
Chief administrative officer Paul Gipps backed up the mayor’s interpretation.
He explained that staff will no longer pass along emails that arrive through the district’s main channels during prohibited hearings.
“We are bypassing the intent of the law, and that was the advice that was given,” Gipps said.
He noted that individuals are still free to contact councillors directly by name, just as they might speak with a councillor in the community. It’s then up to each councillor to decide whether to accept that information.
Coun. Todd Mackenzie, , supported it this time, but admitted he had reservations.
“I do have concerns, like I said before. This goes against what I thought as well.”
One of the most noticeable changes to public hearings is a reduction in speaking time. Residents will now have five minutes to speak, down from ten. Those who wish to speak a second or third time may do so only after everyone has had a chance to speak once. The applicant will also have five minutes to present at the beginning and another five minutes to respond to comments at the end.
Council passed the bylaw with only Reed opposed.
At an April council meeting, she also expressed concern over .
