It goes without saying that public consultation is a good thing. This week in The Chief we have two excellent examples of the extreme lengths organizations can take on public input.
On the one end, District of Squamish council is being more proactive and open than ever in its budget planning for 2010 with its decision to hold a public town hall meeting this fall in addition to the regular meeting in the spring.
This is an excellent step. As Coun. Patricia Heintzman noted at Tuesday's Committee of the Whole meeting, despite all the wrangling that happens every spring, 95 per cent of the budget process is usually complete by the end of the calendar year, and the mandatory public consultation that happens in March is often too late to implement any major changes. A public meeting this fall will give the public the chance to tell the district what our priorities should be, with enough time to make those priorities happen in the budget council votes on.
Congratulations and thanks to council for thinking of the public and thinking ahead on this important topic.
Then, there's the other side. The Squamish Nation has cleared a major hurdle in its plans to blight the local landscape with 10-foot by 30-foot electronic billboards on Highway 99 near the Stawamus Chief.
Unlike Squamish council, the Squamish Nation is under no obligation to consult with the public on its decisions the only obstacle they faced was approval from the federal department of Indian and Northern Affairs, which this week put its stamp of approval on the plan, despite the opposition of local governments and citizens.
The sum total of their public consultation in Squamish was a courtesy drop-in to Squamish council in July not to ask for their feedback, mind you; just to tell them it was happening.
Once again, the Squamish Nation is making a mockery of its neighbours' planning decisions. Squamish council decided against having a casino, only to see the Squamish Nation accept it. Now, our decision not to mar the landscape with billboards is also rendered useless.
Consultation with the Squamish Nation appears to be a one-way street ending in frustration and cynicism. After all, what's the point of taking a moral stand against a casino or an esthetic stand against billboards if we're going to get them anyway?
However, they do seem to be somewhat responsive to public pressure; the initial proposal had 18 billboards across Greater Vancouver and Squamish, while the new proposal has only six for now, anyway. Now, new public opposition to the plan is brewing with the Citizens for Responsible Outdoor Advertising leading the charge on the North Shore.
Perhaps those who are concerned with what billboards will mean in Squamish will join their voices with this group and help change some minds at the Squamish Nation.
Something's got to work.
