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Getting involved with local decision-making


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#1 Casual Kev

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 08:42 PM

Figures we all have our own opinions as to how things should be done, but what about getting our hands dirty a bit? What are some good places to start in the CRD if we want to have an impact on local decision-making, like neighborhood associations?



#2 Rob Randall

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Posted 12 June 2018 - 09:24 PM

Join your local community association, that's an easy one. The Land Use Committee is where the action is at.

 

If you have a specialized field of interest apply for a position on a committee or board at City Hall, like the Board of Variance. You'll generally have to sacrifice on afternoon a month.

 

http://www.victoria....committees.html



#3 Coreyburger

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 05:47 AM

CALUC is a good place. You'll see the crazy for sure.

 

Another decent place is a local advocacy group for a cause you care about. If they are trying to change something at the local level, you'll get to see a lot of what is needed to actually get that change made.



#4 spanky123

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 06:22 AM

Join your local community association, that's an easy one. The Land Use Committee is where the action is at.

 

If you have a specialized field of interest apply for a position on a committee or board at City Hall, like the Board of Variance. You'll generally have to sacrifice on afternoon a month.

 

http://www.victoria....committees.html

 

My experience with committee or board membership as it relates to municipal politics is that those positions are given to supporters and like minded individuals who will rubber stamp whatever the Mayor and council want (not just talking about Victoria here). Nobody is looking for squeaky wheels.


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#5 Jackerbie

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 07:30 AM

Lisa Helps does a community drop-in every two weeks where people go to air their grievances (among other, more helpful things I am sure): http://www.victoria....ty-drop-in.html


Edited by Jackerbie, 13 June 2018 - 07:30 AM.


#6 spanky123

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 07:37 AM

Lisa Helps does a community drop-in every two weeks where people go to air their grievances (among other, more helpful things I am sure): http://www.victoria....ty-drop-in.html

 

I note that she stopped reporting on the drop ins April 10th. Don't know if that means that she stopped doing them or just following up afterwards.



#7 Casual Kev

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 04:36 PM

Thanks for the input! I'm pretty vocal about land use issues but my grasp of how things work at ground level is pretty poor, I'd love to learn more for sure. Guess I'll join my local neighborhood association and see where I can fit in.

#8 Mike K.

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 04:37 PM

Good on you! We’re always here to help if you have questions or want to bounce around ideas.

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#9 Nparker

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 05:58 PM

....Guess I'll join my local neighborhood association and see where I can fit in.

I hope you're sympatico with their group-think otherwise they'll eat you alive. I base this on the North Park Neighbourhood Association, where dissenting opinion is strongly discouraged. Perhaps other NA's are more open minded.



#10 Freedom57

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 06:11 PM

I note that she stopped reporting on the drop ins April 10th. Don't know if that means that she stopped doing them or just following up afterwards.

 

I received this update recently:

Hello,

 

Thanks for your interest in our Community Drop In! Here is a list of topics that members of the public who dropped in requested we discuss. Please also see actions to follow up on, information received back in response to your queries. The next Community Drop In is Tuesday June 26 from 12:30-2:00pm at the Cook Street Village Activity Centre. Note the location change.

 

Thanks for participating in your community,

 

Lisa

 

 

Agenda - Community Drop In May 29 2018

 

1. Gonzales Neighbourhood Plan

2. Fort Street Heritage Corridor

3. Victoria Harbour Strategy

4. Victoria Curling Club

5. Rezoning Process

6. City Hall

7. Unnecessary obnoxious noise

8. Fairfield Plaza

9. Local Currency

10. Pendergast CALUC

11. Safety for Sir James Douglas School

12. Rental Housing

Items Mayor will follow up on:

1. What is the plan for engagement on Gonzales plan and when is the plan coming back to Council?
2. Could there be a facilitated discussion with the residents of Gonzales like the one held in Fairfield?
3. What does the OCP envision for the Fort Street Heritage Corridor?
4. What are the differences in meaning between “façade” and “street wall”

5. Does the City use electric leaf blowers or noisy ones?

 

Agenda - Community Drop In June 4 2018

 

1. Election sign rules

2. Boulevards, BBQs and Fort Street

3. Gonzales Community Plan

4. Streets of my city

5. Dallas Bus Parking

6. Boating

7. Developing dog friendly parks.

 

Items Mayor will follow up on:

1. What is the fee for having a parklet in a parking spot? What is the cost e.g. for the one on Fort Street?

2. Can a business have a BBQ event on their property without a permit?

3. Can a business have a charitable event on their property (outdoors) without a permit?

4. There is a piano installation in front of the Imagine Café on Erie Street. Bylaw asked for it to be removed. What is the process for having a piano on a boulevard?

5. When is the Gonzales plan coming to Council and the public?

6. What is the traffic plan for Richardson in the amended Fairfield Plan?

7. There is a crosswalk needed at Dallas and Simcoe – this will make it easier for people in wheelchairs to cross the road.

8. During the many events in James Bay which result in road closures it is very difficult to get in and out of the neighbourhood. What can the city do to help with this?

9. Why are so many events held in James Bay?

10. Please send a list of the City’s off leash dog parks.

11. There are people in vehicles blocking cross walks for pedestrians and forcing them out into traffic; this is dangerous especially for people in wheelchairs.

12. On Oswego street, just south of Simcoe on the east side of the street there is a problem with the sidewalk that resulted in someone in a wheelchair being tossed out of his chair. Can we please fix this?

13. On Yates Street west of Government the sidewalk is slanted down to the middle which make it dangerous and difficult to navigate in a wheelchair. Can we please fix this?

 

Links requested at drop in:

Mayor’s piece on Affordable Housing from Times Colonist: http://www.timescolo...lity-1.23322188

Mayor’s piece on Neighbourhoods in Vic News: https://www.vicnews....e-for-everyone/

Canadian Safe Boating Council: https://csbc.ca/en/

Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons: http://www.cps-ecp.ca/

City’s Off Leash Dog Parks: http://blog.gofetch....oria-dog-parks/

 

 

Items Mayor has followed up on:

 

Q: When is the Gonzales plan coming back and what are the next steps?

A: Currently staff are working on getting a revised draft together based on the previous feedback (open houses, Town Hall, and the smaller group meetings with sub area residents that Council directed). We’re also working on the mid-level summary that’ll lay out 1) key aspects of the plan, process to date, what has been changed, what a plan does and does not do etc. which will be a mail out that should land in mailboxes in early July (which will coincide with the release of the revised draft). A survey will also open with the summary document and be open over the month of July and early August.

 

We’ll then do additional walk shops and small group meetings in key areas (Queen Anne Heights, Fairfield Road, northern and southern areas of the neighbourhood etc.) as well as any additional that are requested.

 

August will be spent finalizing any final changes derived from the last round of feedback with an aim to have the plan back in front of Council in early September.

 

 

Q: Request that staff extend the school zone along Douglas at South Park School to the end of the school playground (all the way to Toronto Street) The beginning of the school zone is clearly marked; the end does not seem to be. And there is a 40km/h sign that is right in the middle of the 30 km/h school zone that needs to be moved.
A: City transportation staff partnered with the CRD, HASTE BC and South Park Elementary to develop an Active and Safe Routes to School Plan for the elementary school. The plan developed identified lengthening the school zone to Toronto Street an City staff are in the process of making that change. The Transportation Section refers to the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices for BC (MUTCD). The MUTCD does not recommend a sign indicating the “end of” school zone, rather relies on motorists seeing the back of the sign facing the other direction. This method of signing school zones is enforceable by police.

 

Currently there are no 40km/h signs posted within the school zone. When we lengthen the school zone we’ll have to pay attention to the best location to post the 40km sign so that the reduced speed limit is enforceable outside of school zone hours.

 

Q: Ask staff whether the Indigenous remains which were recently reburied along Dallas Rd at Ogden Point will be moved to the reburial site at Beacon Hill Park. If they are not going to be moved, a member of the public would like to make a financial contribution to a small fence going around the graves (subject to the consent of the First Nations) so it feels more like a special place.

A: We are not to be impacting the existing burial sites. This is based on input from our Lekwungen liaisons.

 

Q: Consider including a project in the 2019 budget to fix the alignment at the Dallas and Douglas starting with asking for a report on the implications of doing the work as part of the 2019 budget process.

A: This item was discussed as part of the April 12/18 staff report on the CRD Wastewater Treatment project.

 

The project development surrounding the Mile 0 location generated feedback from community, as there is an interest within community to realign Douglas Street/ Dallas Road and Beacon Hill Park boundaries, to consolidate green space into the main portion of Beacon Hill Park.

 

In the context of the Wastewater Treatment project, the main consideration from staff was whether this is the appropriate time to consider redesigning this particular site. Staff assessed that any redesign of this roadway would not be within scope of the CRD project due to proximity issues and would require significant planning, engagement and park/roadway design which are not achievable within current project timelines.

 

Re-design would require realignment of the entire section of Douglas Street between Niagara Street and Dallas Road, to provide safe motor vehicle approaches/sight lines - utilizing the existing westerly leg of Douglas Street at Dallas Road is not recommended, as sightlines for southbound left turn vehicles would be insufficient (see figure below, showing areas of concern). Staff also note that no priority capital work (EPW utilities upgrades, road reconstruction, or Parks Master Plan-related improvements) at this intersection is currently identified in the Financial Plan.

 

Any future optimisation of Mile 0 green-space and the adjacent roadway would require extensive planning and would ideally be undertaken following further public consultation, across City departments and the public. This work is not currently part of the upcoming, defined financial planning process.


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#11 Nparker

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Posted 13 June 2018 - 07:54 PM

Is there such a thing as "necessary obnoxious noise"?



#12 tedward

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Posted 14 June 2018 - 09:57 AM

Is there such a thing as "necessary obnoxious noise"?

 

Those grinders they use to make the sidewalks more level?


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#13 Mattjvd

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Posted 14 June 2018 - 07:35 PM

Is there such a thing as "necessary obnoxious noise"?


Sirens on emergency vehicles?

#14 Nparker

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Posted 14 June 2018 - 07:38 PM

Sirens on emergency vehicles?

Perhaps. I suppose I'd just call that "necessary noise" as it's relatively short lived and hopefully leads to a positive outcome (for someone).


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#15 Jackerbie

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Posted 15 June 2018 - 03:55 PM

Victoria is recruiting a volunteer for the Heritage Advisory Panel (I'm looking at you nparker)

 

http://www.victoria....sory-panel.html


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#16 Nparker

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Posted 15 June 2018 - 05:02 PM

Victoria is recruiting a volunteer for the Heritage Advisory Panel (I'm looking at you nparker)

I am flattered, but while I am working full time I am not sure how available I'd be.

 

Edit: aastra would probably be a better heritage advocate than me anyway.


Edited by Nparker, 15 June 2018 - 05:06 PM.


 



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