Council instructs Clerk to prepare a plan for returning the public to council meetings

News 100 blueBy Pepper Parr

July 8th, 2021

BURLINGTON, ON

 

You won’t be able to actually attend a council meeting in September but expect to hear of a report that sets out how council meetings will evolve out of their current virtual format into what has been described as a hybrid set up.

Getting the motion Councillor Stole had onto the table proved awkward for everyone – for once the motion got passed the procedural bylaw that sets out how “walk on” motions are handled everyone was for the idea.

Burlington Bayhawks Under 14 girls soccer team, pose for the camera after being recognized by city council for an outstanding season

There was a time when the Council Chamber would be packed with people who were being recognized. When will that day return?

We learned that just a few days before the ECG (Emergency Control Group) had been discussing this very matter and opining that it was perhaps a good idea to discuss this.

The Clerk too had been giving this deep thought and advised council earlier in the week that the City Manager had asked that he prepare a report.

We did learn today there are some significant technical challenges in getting people hooked up into one seamless session with some in the chamber and some elsewhere.

The Clerk asked rhetorically who would be able to attend the meetings and the matter of vaccination was brought up.

If you’ve not been completely inoculated entry into any public space should be prohibited.

For some reason the ‘anti-vaxers’ feel that they have the right to threaten the health of everyone else just because they either don’t understand the science or have chosen to see it as junk science.

You can’t go to school if you haven’t been vaccinated for measles. If there are those who are not or don’t want to be vaccinated – let them attend virtually.

Nisan July5

Councillor Nisan congratulated Councillor Stolte for bringing the matter of public attendance to the Standing Committee.

There might be some benefit to keeping a virtual component of the public meetings.

Everyone congratulated Councillor Stolte for bringing the matter up – no one apologized to her for making it so hard for her to get the motion on the table.  She stood her ground – something the Councillor from ward 1 might learn to do.

Councillor Nisan publicly congratulated Stole for her efforts.

Related news story:

Ward 3 Councillor gives ward 4 Councillor a tough time

Return to the Front page
Print Friendly, PDF & Email

3 comments to Council instructs Clerk to prepare a plan for returning the public to council meetings

  • I have family at Tansley and have been trying for about ten days to get our Halton elected officials to give a damn about the outbreak, the 52% LTC staff vaccination rate, etc. I have been vocal on twitter, calling them out and I and others have taken to alerting advocate citizens and journalists. Dr. Vivian Stamatopoulos has been a key person who has been advocating for LTC throughout the pandemic and she went on a media blitz. The story was covered by all major media including CHCH. It worked. Schlegel added two Vax clinics and the staff rate has gone up to over 71%. The second clinic is upcoming. We need to work to get all LTC and retirement homes as close to 100% as possible. Two residents died at Tansley in the past few days and another went to hospital today. All preventable. Lockdown again and families are not the cause. And our elected officials are saving golf courses and doing media tours and saying nothing about the need to vaccinate staff etc. It’s appalling.

  • “If you’ve not been completely inoculated entry into any public space should be prohibited.” Not sure if this is Gazette statement or council’s. Whoever has made it should correct it. Children who are not vaccinated against measles are only not allowed to attend school they are not prohibited from public spaces and can accompany their parents or attend themselves at Council any time it is open to the public. Council may well have had such children in their midst when making presentations to different groups of young people

    There are those who cannot have vaccinations for health reasons as the risk from the vaccination is equal to or greater than COVID. The media can and should address why our Halton Health Council (that includes our councillors) were not on top of Tansley Woods being lower than the provincial average for vaccination of staff and patients which is likely the reason for the current India variant outbreak and whether this has now been corrected for 100% of staff and residents who do not have medical reasons for not having the vaccination. An interview with the Mayor on CHCH yesterday (the closest we ever get to a media conference) never touched on how the MOH, Mayor and all Council members had taken their eye off the vaccination statistics ball for Halton/Burlington congregant settings nor did Bob Cowan ask Meed Ward how she planned to address this state of affairs that put highly vulnerable residents at significant risk. Instead CHCH spent air time allotted for the Mayor to see Bob making such statements that clearly put him in a number one fan postion of Meed Ward. CHCH needs to be addressing what is important in terms of protecting our vulnerable and not proclaiming how he loves Wednesdays because he gets a chance to talk to Meed Ward if CHCH wish to keep us properly posted on what puts our vulnerable at risk and is not being addressed as it should be.

  • Mr Bean

    About time! Good news.