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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCompass Kitchener - 2004-06-02June 2,2004 COMPASS KITCHENER COMMITTEE MINUTES CITY OF KITCHENER The Compass Kitchener Committee met this date, commencing at 4:00 p.m. Present: Don Bourgeois, Pat Doherty, Trudy Beaulne John Hall, Glen Woolner Staff: Carla Ladd, Shelley Adams, Barb Wagner Regrets: Paul Royston, Trudi Bunting, Dan Williams 1. Approval of Minutes After discussion, the Committee Members requested all Action Items be listed at the end of the minutes, and the minutes be distributed as soon as possible following the meeting. Information Technology is currently looking into the problem with external electronic distribution of the minutes. th Bourgeois reviewed the action items from the May 12 meeting: Downtown Strategic Plans, Volumes 1 and II distributed at June meeting Copies of Paul Guild material regarding clusters to be distributed Copies of Woolwich Township's Healthy Communities Project distributed at June meeting. T. Beaulne indicated she had additional information on this project which she will provide. D. Bourgeois and C. Ladd met prior to the June meeting to discuss options regarding the community survey program and structure for the June agenda C. Ladd and S. Adams working on the schematic to depict the healthy communities plan, linkages and alignments It was noted that the proposed presentations for the Environmental Strategic Plan, Leisure Facilities Master Plan and Downtown Strategic Plan should be used to set the agenda, one presentation per meeting commencing in the fall 2004. S. Adams advised that the Leisure Facilities Master Plan will likely not go to Council until September. She outlined the process that the consultants used as a feedback loop and indicated that Compass Kitchener could possibly participate as a focus group. Many of the members of Compass Kitchener have been part of the initial communication on the plan, but the Committee could provide unified comments. C. Ladd entered the meeting. It was agreed that the Committee would like to see the Leisure Facilities Master Plan at a relatively early stage and to schedule the Leisure Facilities Master Plan, the Downtown Strategic Plan and Environmental Strategic Plan starting with the September and October meetings. On motion by D. Bourgeois: It was resolved: That the minutes of May 12, 2004, as received by the members, be accepted. COMPASS KITCHENER COMMITTEE MINUTES June 2, 2004 - 10 - CITY OF KITCHENER 2. Review and Discussion of Community Models and Approaches C. Ladd distributed copies of community models from York Region, the Town of Markham and Woolwich Township as examples of different approaches to community based initiatives. It is worthwhile looking at what other communities have done and what opportunities may be available prior to making decisions on our direction with community surveying. S. Adams led a discussion on the Woolwich Township's Healthy Community Project. The project initially developed following Grace Sutton's initiatives through a waterways review. The healthy communities approach fit with the large scale community visioning process. After indepth community consultation, 9 guiding principles were developed and taken to Council. Council approved the recommendation in principle, however asked that the 9 principles be reframed as questions to be applied to every major decision Council made. The scoring mechanism used was basically a checklist. This is an effective approach to support community values in decision-making, however, there needs to be an incredible amount of buy-in with elected officials, the administration and the public. The York Region model is based on a Character Community where the community leaders model character attributes such as Optimism, Integrity, Compassion and Fairness, which were identified through workshops with the community. The eleven character attributes are highlighted monthly from January through November. In December, the community has an opportunity to select their favourite attribute or choose a new attribute to focus on. It was noted that the effectiveness of this would be difficult to measure and for Council to translate to decision-making and budget priorities. The Town of Markham retained Environics to assist City Council to create a framework to reflect the make-up of the community. The research methods utilized included focus groups and other forms of personal interaction. The Markham model identified four major segments of the population including citizens who have a) the desire to maintain small town atmosphere, b) to promote big city feel, c) to support Iow tax over high quality services or d) to support market driven development over government controlled green development. By understanding how the community feels, Council can proactively manage the community issues and decisions in response to its citizens. The results of this research were used to develop seven personal best practices to help build the community. C. Ladd and D. Bourgeois will be meeting with Environics in Toronto to learn about various approaches and models Environics has been involved with. The meeting will be scheduled prior to the next Compass Kitchener meeting in July. Compass Kitchener members interested in attending this meeting should contact C. Ladd. The immediate objective of Compass Kitchener is to determine the best direction and tools to assist City Council in achieving the shared agenda. Our measurement of success will be the extent to which we, as a community have been successful in accomplishing the targets of the shared agenda. We will continue to seek out other models to determine the best approach for Compass Kitchener and the City of Kitchener. Once an approach is adopted, we can develop a program which will outline community engagement, process and reporting mechanisms. S. Adams noted that it is important to use the vehicles already in place which assist in identifying community priorities. The healthy communities approach is already well underway in the community and we need to reflect on the value of the work that has already being completed. The work Compass Kitchener has done in the past is very credible and can be built upon. COMPASS KITCHENER COMMITTEE MINUTES June 2, 2004 - 11 - CITY OF KITCHENER 3. Updates G. Woolner advised that the Your Kitchener Market opening was well executed and a lot of fun. He also noted there is a lot of activity going on in the downtown in the next few weeks. 4. New Business D. Bourgeois indicated he is willing to host a summer meeting. Due to vacation schedules, it was suggested that either a July or an August meeting be held, and committee members advise B. Wagner of their availability for either date. Discussions at the summer meeting could be focused on the survey. 5. Action Items Copies of Paul Guild material regarding clusters to be distributed. T. Beaulne to provide additional information on the Woolwich Township's Healthy Communities Project. C. Ladd and S. Adams working on the schematic to depict the healthy communities plan, linkages and alignments Presentations for the Environmental Strategic Plan, Leisure Facilities Master Plan and Downtown Strategic Plan to be scheduled commencing in the fall 2004. C. Ladd and D. Bourgeois to meet with Environics in Toronto prior to next meeting. Committee members interested in attending should contact C. Ladd. Committee members to advise B. Wagner of their availability for either a July or an August meeting. 6. Adjournment Meeting adjourned 5:15 p.m.