HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-14-065 - Safe & Healthy Community Advisory Committee Terms of Reference Staff Report
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REPORT TO: Community & Infrastructure Services Committee
DATE OF MEETING: June 9, 2014
SUBMITTED BY: Mark Hildebrand, Director Community Programs and
Services, 519-741-2200; extension 7687
PREPARED BY: Mark Hildebrand, Director Community Programs and
Services, 519-741-2200; extension 7687
WARD(S) INVOLVED: All
DATE OF REPORT: April 22, 2014
REPORT NO.: CSD-14-065
SUBJECT: Safe & Healthy Community Advisory Committee Terms of
Reference
RECOMMENDATION:
That the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory Committee continue as an
advisory committee of Council.
That changes to Policy 1-125 "SAFE AND HEALTHY COMMUNITY ADVISORY
COMMITTEE — TERMS OF REFERENCE", as attached to report CSD-14-065, be
approved.
BACKGROUND:
On November 26, 2012, Council received and approved report CAO-12-047 "Safe and
Healthy Community Advisory Committee — Future Direction". Staff determined at the
time that a review of the advisory committee was wise, given that committee member
vacancies were high. It was thought that the declining membership could be a reflection
of interest in the community. A number of stakeholders, including committee members,
community partners, elected officials, and staff associated with the committee were
interviewed to investigate if this was the case and what, if any, issues were associated
with the declining interest.
Through those interviews, it was found that at the time, the committee was struggling to
provide tangible results during committee meetings. It was also acknowledged that,
although crime prevention was important in the community, the City was already well
connected to community safety and crime prevention without the need of a dedicated
advisory committee. It was suggested that rather than eliminating the advisory
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committee, a change in focus from community safety and crime prevention to healthy
community living could be warranted.
It was felt that an advisory committee with such focus would be an asset, and could
meet a need in the community as well as provide good input to city related plans and
strategies such as the Leisure Facilities Master Plan, Neighbourhood Strategy, etc.
At that time, it was determined that the existing structure of the Safe and Healthy
Community Advisory Committee would continue, and that the committee work-plan
would focus on matters related to healthy community living along with community safety
and crime prevention, as needed. Finally, it was recommended that the effectiveness of
the advisory committee be reviewed prior to the 2014 committee appointments.
REPORT:
The Safe & Healthy Community Advisory Committee 2013/14 work-plan is attached as
appendix A. Besides providing advice to Council and staff on various issues and plans
such as the draft Transportation Master Plan, Leisure Facilities Master Plan and the
possibility of Kitchener hosting a casino in the city, the top priority for the newly formed
committee was to develop a terms of reference that could lead the work of the
committee into the future.
To this end, the committee reviewed the work of the past (e.g. the Terms of Reference,
committee grant process etc.), and also engaged in considerable consultation
throughout the year. Neighbourhood Associations, diverse ethnic groups and
marginalized populations in our community, were asked to identify what they thought
the needs were that met a healthy community living mandate, and was not met through
the work of other advisory committees.
A number of themes began to emerge from those dialogues, including: i) engagement,
ii) neighbourhood spaces and facilities, iii) safety and health of individuals and
community, iv) having a voice in the community, and v) connecting our community.
These themes, including the information, concerns, recommendations and suggestions,
became the foundation for the Safe and Healthy Community advisory committee terms
of reference (see attached appendix B). The purpose and scope of the terms of
reference which stemmed from the analysis of this information reads as follows:
The Safe and Healthy Community Advisory Committee advises council and
staff on policies, programs and services offered directly by, or in conjunction
with, the City of Kitchener that relate to inclusion and belonging with a focus
on building healthy communities and bridges to engagement.
Furthermore, three key defining responsibilities of the committee, as outlined in the
terms of reference, were also determined from the consultation and include the
following-
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a) Advising Council and Staff on policies and strategies that enhance and maintain
a safe and healthy community. Specifically, providing advice on the
development and/or strengthening of municipal policies, programs and services
relating to:
• Neighbourhood facilities and spaces,
• Community programs and services
• Capacity building and empowerment, and
• Community well-being.
b) Developing partnerships and/or liaising with citizens, community groups other
municipalities, governments or agencies, as appropriate, with regards to
policies, programs, services, and/or legislation related to Safe and Healthy
communities.
c) Overseeing the stewardship of any funds associated with the committee, grants
or otherwise.
Given this additional work in 2014, the advisory committee and staff believe there is
now a meaningful role for the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory Committee to play
in advising City Council, as reflected in the committee's revised terms of reference. As
such, staff is recommending the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory committee
continue as an advisory committee of Council, and that the revised terms of reference
guide the work into the future.
All the milestones have been met in the 2013/14 work-plan, with only the ongoing items
including; i) Janes Walk and ii) Networking/Sharing information with other Safe and
Healthy committees being brought forward to the 2014/15 work-plan. The committee
has now turned attention to future work-plan items that relate to the terms of reference.
Although not yet formally approved, the following items have been discussed as
possible future work-plan items:
• Jane's Walk (ongoing)
• Networking/Sharing information with other Safe and Healthy committees
(ongoing)
• Administer the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory Committee Inclusion and
Belonging grant (ongoing)
• Investigation of the development of a New Canadians leadership committee
• Research issues related to homelessness in the downtown, and/or
• Participation in the City of Kitchener's Neighbourhood Strategy
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN:
Community Priority: Quality of Life
Strategic Directions-All voices matter; A city where everyone has a place; Nurture a
sense of pride and community; Community programs and facilities.
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Community Priority: Diversity
Strategic Directions-Take a stand; Offer ample opportunities for inclusion; Be a leader;
Keep it personal.
Foundation: Efficient and Effective Government
Strategic Direction: Access to information is the first step to transparency,
accountability, engagement and customer service.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
Ten thousand dollars was budgeted for the work of the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory
Committee for 2013/14. This budget will continue to be used into the future to fund the work of
the committee including: i) applications received for the Safe and Healthy Community Advisory
Committee Inclusion and Belonging Grant; and ii) other work of the committee that may require
resourcing for in the future.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
The committee engaged multiple groups in consultation during the development of the terms of
reference, meeting with diverse community members at their board meetings, in focus groups
and individually. The information gathered from these meetings directly influenced the
development of the committee terms of reference, which is to guide the work of the committee
into the future.
ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Michael May, Deputy CAO, Community Services
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COUNCIL POLICY RESOLUTION
APPENDIX B
POLICY NUMBER: 1-125 DATE: MAY 27, 2002
AMENDED: AUGUST 24, 2009
AMENDED: JUNE 27, 2011
AMENDED: JANUARY 2014
POLICY TYPE: BOARD & COMMITTEE
SUBJECT: SAFE AND HEALTHY COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE -
TERMS OF REFERENCE
POLICY CONTENT-
1. Purpose and Scope
The Safe and Healthy Advisory Committee advises council and staff on policies,
programs and services offered directly by, or in conjunction with, the City of
Kitchener that relate to inclusion and belonging with a focus on building healthy
communities and bridges to engagement.
2. Committee Composition and Reporting
a) The composition of the committee will be no less than 10 members and no more
than 15 members, and shall seek to have representation reflective of the broad
diversity of the community.
i. A minimum of 1 member of Council;
ii. 2-7 Members from the community-at-large representing as many of the
following sectors as possible: social services, sports / recreation, law
enforcement, education, social planning, land use planning, or business;
iii. 1 resident living in the downtown wards (Ward 9 or Ward10);
iv. 1 resident living in any of the other suburban wards, other than the ones
listed above;
V. 1 Representative from the Waterloo Regional Police Service;
vi. 1 Representative from the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council.
b) All members will be appointed for a term of two years ending November 30.
The Committee shall annually choose a Chair and Vice-Chair.
c) Meetings will be held monthly or at the call of the Chair and minutes will be
kept by the committee administrator who will distribute to all of Council and
Corporate Leadership Team Members. All meetings shall be conducted in
accordance with Council's Procedural By-law.
d) The Committee shall report to the Community and Infrastructure Services
Committee unless it is deemed necessary that a report be made directly to
Council.
KITCHENER Page 1 of 2 JANUARY 2014
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POLICY NUMBER: 1-125
POLICY TYPE: BOARD & COMMITTEE
SUBJECT: SAFE AND HEALTHY COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE -
TERMS OF REFERENCE
e) Any sub-committee shall be ad hoc in nature with a specific, clearly articulated
mandate. All sub-committees shall be reviewed annually to determine whether
they need to continue. Membership on sub-committees may be expanded to
include people who are not advisory committee members, to take advantage of
individual expertise.
f) In the event of two consecutive, unexplained absences, the Chair and/or Vice-
chair will contact a member to confirm interest in participation at the advisory
committee level.
3. Quorum
A quorum of this Committee is 5 members.
4. Responsibilities
a) Advise Council and Staff on policies and strategies that enhance and maintain a
safe and healthy community. Specifically, provide advice on the development
and/or strengthening of municipal policies, programs and services relating to:
• Neighbourhood facilities and spaces,
• Community programs and services
• Capacity building and empowerment, and
• Community well-being.
b) Develop partnerships and/or liaise with citizens, community groups other
municipalities, governments or agencies, as appropriate, with regards to
policies, programs, services (as above), and/or legislation related to Safe and
Healthy communities.
c) Oversee the stewardship of any funds associated with the Advisory group,
grants or otherwise.
d) Develop a 2 year work plan based upon the identified priorities of the Committee
and submit to Council prior to implementation.
e) Serve as a forum for community members and/or other agencies and groups to
raise issues of concern related to the committee's mandate.
f) Prepare and present, in co-operation with staff, annual progress updates to the
Community Services Committee and Council, including recommendations on
priority issues identified by the Committee and/or community concerns brought
to the Committee by Council, community members or groups.
KITCHENER Page 2 of 2 JANUARY 2014
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