Public Involvement Program:
How the City communicates with the public

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Index

Introduction

Phase I: Taking Stock
Phase II: Evaluation
Phase III: New approaches

Getting involved

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Introduction

There is an important Better City Government initiative underway - the Public Involvement Review. It examines the way we include the public in city decision-making and service delivery by looking at what we do well and what needs to be improved. For the City to be successful, we need to ensure that the public is included in our processes efficiently and effectively.

The Review is proceeding in three phases:

Phase I: Taking stock ( September 1996 - February 1997)

The first phase was to document all the ways in which the public is presently notified and consulted, and how they can participate and form partnerships with us to carry out City business. The results have been translated into a guide to show citizens how they can get involved in various City programs. It will also prove a useful reference for staff. It is available on the City's web site and will soon be in all City libraries.

Phase II: Evaluation ( February - September 1997)

We are now in the second phase which is to review and evaluate how well we are doing at involving the public. This step is being undertaken by an independent consultant (Context Research, Ltd.) who, with the help of staff and members of the public, will select some typical City processes and programs to evaluate. It is important that this Review be independent and objective. The Review process will be open to anyone, staff and the public. Some of you may have already received a copy of the survey requesting your input. If you did not receive one and would like to comment, you can find the survey on the City's Staff Homepage. The consultant's findings and some recommended directions for process improvements will be produced in a Discussion Paper. The Paper will be reported to Council and circulated for staff and public discussion in June. Depending on how much input we receive, public discussion may continue until the fall.

Phase III: New approaches (September 1997 - December 1998)

Once public input to the Discussion Paper is complete, a report to Council will be prepared with a recommended set of principles for changes to the City's public involvement processes. The focus will then be on making changes to individual processes where required. There may be some "quick fixes" but most changes will involve staff working with their managers and public participants (where appropriate) to improve the individual processes and procedures. This work could take up to a year and a half to complete.

Getting involved

However, we don't have to wait to make improvements. If you have ideas on ways we can improve how we reach and include the public, let us know. You can fax Brian Johnston at Context Research Ltd. at 596-4473, send a note (confidential if you would like) to Rob Jenkins in the Planning Department (who will then forward it to the consultant), or call the Project Co-ordinator, Jacquie Forbes-Roberts, at 873-7205. How we involve the public is one of the most significant aspects of our work. Your comments and ideas are appreciated and valued.

Last modified: February 21, 1997
(c) 1997 City of Vancouver