Mid-term report card
Because a councillor's workload can take on a life of its own, it's a good idea to check yourself every now and then against the goals set back during the election.
Here are some notes about areas I'm pleased with so far, and areas where I think I should try to work harder. These all relate to my campaign promises, which you can read at www.lataylor.com/campaign.htm Of course, no individual councillor can take credit for any program -- everything that is done by the town is a team effort of various councillors and staff -- but I believe that my efforts have helped to support some positive directions.
The environment:
I'm very pleased with our improvements in public transit, with the huge increase in convenience of recycling, and with the completion of the Urban Forest Management Plan and council's agreement to fund work on it, even in this difficult year. I had an opportunity to work on development regulation application for a year, as a member of the MPC, and I enjoyed making a contribution to that work.
I'm looking forward to an opportunity to support updated development regulations and dark skies initiatives as part of the Land Use Bylaw review that is starting this month.
We've had a tough time with the wastewater treatment plant over the past year, with a few different operators, and questions about whether we were meeting provincial standards for operator qualifications, numbers of staff, and so on. However, the effluent quality remained substantially better than provincial requirements throughout. We are now settled in with new Alberta-based operators, and I look forward to smooth sailing from here on in.
I was not successful in my attempt to establish a financial review committee of council, but we have made some changes that I think help to establish an environment of more transparent financial accountability to the public. These changes include quarterly financial forecasts at council, releasing to the media the town's list of cheques written, and a much more detailed public review of operating and capital budgets. There is always more work to do in this area.
I supported the borrowing bylaw for the recreation centre upgrades, based on the assurance that provincial MSI funding would cover the cost of paying back the loan. Now, with the new provincial budget, it appears that the MSI amounts will be less than expected. I will be looking at this (and I expect the rest of council will, too) to see what we can actually afford to do, and whether we need to rescind the bylaw.
Quality of life for residents:
I have tried to support programs that concentrate on the needs of residents, and also made an effort to let people know what's available to them. I've publicized the "Action Request" on the website (it lets people ask directly for the services they need) and have occasionally done action requests on behalf of citizens who don't have online access.
There is always more work to do in this area. I still feel that the town would benefit from more public advisory committees, but I know that it is hard to get members for these. During this past year, the town has held open houses on important issues (e.g. Cave Avenue housing, wayfinding plans), and I'm looking forward to a series of public input opportunities as part of the Land Use Bylaw review. I'm also pleased with the continuing great service on the website.
To try to help citizens feel engaged, I've personally undertaken two communication initiatives. First, I put out a council update before each meeting, both here on my website and as an email to those who've signed up on my email list. People often provide input to me on the issues raised in those updates. As well, I'm trying to door-knock the whole town again (half last fall, half in the fall of 2009) to give people a chance to tell me directly what they think about town services and priorities.
I've sent a personal answer to every email that's been sent to me, and I've followed up for people who have sent emails to town departments and not received an answer.
In retrospect, I feel that I should have done a better job of helping to shape the communications related to the proposed Banff Housing Corporation changes. I think the facilitated working group approach is helping to get this back on track.