Council is made up of seven individuals and each individual runs for Council and votes on resolutions independently.  We are not a party with a common platform position on all of the different issues but rather seven individuals with opinions and positions that sometimes differ.  This is why we sometimes have to call for the vote in order to pass decisions.

In the municipal world there is a saying:  Council speaks by resolution.  This means that it is only when a council comes together, discusses an issue and then votes on a specific resolution (ie. an action), that the council has « spoken » .

The public often feels left out of the process mainly because they are not present at the closed door meetings when Council discusses the issues at hand.  This is a complaint that is common throughout municipalities.  As members of Council we are neither entitled to disclose what has been discussed at these meetings nor what another member of Council has said at these meetings.  HOWEVER, we are most definitely entitled to give the public our own opinion and our position on the issues and it is up to each member of Council to decide whether or not he or she wishes to disclose their opinion or position at any given time.  In some cases, a member of Council may have a definite position to disclose and at other times, he or she has simply not yet made up their mind so they would rather not disclose their position.  We are human beings, after all.

This is why Council cannot give « one position » on the petition.  You may get seven different positions on the petition, depending on how many members on Council choose to disclose their opinion (if they have one .. they may be undecided).  Or you may get a certain number who choose to give their opinion and others who prefer to wait … or you may get two councillors who agree on some things but not on others … you get the picture ?

I hope this helps to clear things up a bit.

You need to also keep in mind that public input in the process is often as simple as going to speak to a member of Council or addressing the entire council all at once (so you don’t have to go running around to speak to each one separately).  The latter method was used in the presentation of the petition.  I personally went through and read ALL of the comments that were on that petition and I am sure that other members of Council did as well.  I am most definitely taking seriously what North Hatley residents are telling me and weighing this against other things that have to be considered.  I am NOT unaffected by what people have to say.

Remember, however, that other people are also free to do the same and some prefer not to do it in public.  Members of Council have to therefore consider many different public opinions, in addition to their own views on the matter and a heck of a lot of information.

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