Sechelt council can no longer communicate directly with district staff – with the exception of the chief administrative officer (CAO) – following a new policy adopted at its May 1 regular meeting.
The temporary policy will instead have council send electronic or written communications to the CAO and acting mayor (or their designate) who will pass on the communication to staff and coordinate responses as well as arrange in-person meetings.
A staff report in the meeting agenda stated that there have been recent concerns over the “consistency and effectiveness” of communication between council and district staff.
The policy also states that all communication from staff must be sent to all council members and that the acting mayor will respond to a council member’s request no later than the end of the next business day.
The policy was introduced while the district waits on a governance audit of internal processes, aimed at improving efficiency, council heard.
“We recognize this as a different way of process but we were looking for some change while we wait for the governance audit report to be completed by our consultant and feel that this is the most appropriate way to do it moving forward,” said Lindsay Roberts director of corporate and community services, who introduced the policy.
Coun. Adam Shepherd asked what would happen to the policy when the governance audit comes forward.
Roberts answered that the policy is intended to run for a short time to see if communication efficiency can be increased and that the policy includes a review date on July 31, where council can choose to relook, amend or withdraw the policy.
Council unanimously adopted the new communication policy, with Coun. Brenda Rowe appointed as acting mayor.
Jordan Copp is the Coast Reporter’s civic and Indigenous affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
