For the past two years, the Town of Gibsons has been working on its Harbour area plan and is now eager to solicit public feedback. To do so, the Town is working with an interactive, on-line pilot project for the public to have their say.
PlaceSpeak is a new, location-based community consultation platform designed to authentically connect people with location-specific issues. Other projects have recently been launched with the City of Vancouver, with Gibsons going live just last week.
"We are delighted the Town of Gibsons was open to conducting a pilot consultation on PlaceSpeak," said founder Colleen Hardwick. "There's a local connection for me, so it means a lot to see this kind of innovation occurring close to home."
By signing up on the site using an existing web account such as Facebook or Google, the user is asked to validate their address. From there, the user is able to click on issues submitted for discussion by governments and other organizations, and to share thoughts and ideas with neighbours on the issues affecting their community.
Gibsons municipal planner Michael Epp said he is excited about the project.
"The fact that community involvement and contribution improves government decision making is beyond dispute," said Epp. "Add to this the changes in the way people are using technology, and using social media tools for on-line consultation in planning for the Town's future becomes a natural fit.
"We're the only small community to participate so far, and I hope this will be the first of many similar efforts to involve the public in unique and exciting ways."
The Harbour area plan has examined a wide variety of concepts since its launch in 2009, including enhancements to Molly's Lane, a pedestrian ferry service to downtown Vancouver, a hotel convention centre, new facilities for a working waterfront and improved parks and natural areas.
While the Town is encouraging members of the public to utilize the PlaceSpeak platform, other types of communication tactics will be used in the near future to collect feedback, with comments being used to guide the harbour plans forward.
"Comments shared on these and other matters regarding the plan will assist in preparing a chapter for the official community plan with goals, objectives and policies to guide the development of the Harbour area plan over the upcoming decades," Epp explained.
For more information on PlaceSpeak visit www.placespeak.com/gibsonsharbour/
