A push to make most town issues more transparent
Shannon LeClair
Times Reporter
One of the issues many of the candidates said they would address is transparency from the Town offices to the people. Residents feel that council has not kept them in the loop, and for the most part administration thinks they have.
“The town has been quite transparent, we’ve tried to keep everything public and open and so on,” said Dwight Stanford, Chief Administrative Officer for the town.
The Municipal Government Act, MGA, said there are only a few things which must be discussed in camera, such as land negotiations, dealing with lawyers on legal opinions, personnel items, and other items similar to that. On occasion, other items which don’t fall under the MGA as restricted are discussed in camera and don’t need to be. Stanford agrees there should be more things discussed in open council, with exception of course to the items listed in the MGA.
According to the MGA, “council and council committees may close all or part of their meetings to the public if the matter to be discussed is within one of the exceptions to disclosure in division two part one of the freedom of information and protection of privacy act. When a meeting is closed to the public, no resolution or bylaw may be passed at the meeting, except the resolution to revert back to a public meeting.”
Any resident of the town could walk into the town offices, if they are not able to go to the Town of Strathmore website, and pick up the information.
“I would like to see more of the in camera items discussed in open council,” said Stanford.
“I’m suggesting that council have more things from the in camera sessions in the open council meeting and then that will show complete transparency.”
On Oct. 27 the new council will be discussing who will be sitting on various committees, and on Oct. 28, a lawyer will be meeting with council to discuss what they can and can’t do, what kind of hours they have, and other legal information.
The meeting on the 28 will be closed because it is with a lawyer, but it is just to dissuade possible disillusions people may have about being a town official.