Getting up close and personal with your city. Wear comfortable shoes.

By Pepper Parr

October 23rd, 2019

BURLINGTON, ON

This article has been revised to include comments from ECoB

Last October we elected a new city council. They said they were going to make changes and that they were going to engage you in that process.

They weren’t kidding.

Two views of the downtown core:  The first picture is what Burlington once was, the rendering below that is what some people want Burlington to be.

This was the factory at the bottom of Brant street where fruit and vegetables were canned. There aren’t many people around these days who remember the pungent smell of tomatoes being boiled and canned. Below is what some citizens want.

The Waterfront Hotel site is up for re-development. There is a group of citizens who want to see a clear line from the bottom of Brant Street out into the lake with the redeveloped hotel site moves to the east.

Today there are two Action Labs at which the city is going to reveal two concepts on what the city might look like in the future.

Both are taking place at the Lions Club at 1pm-3pm & 7pm-9pm.

There is also a Walking Tour – Sat. Oct 26 – 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.
This is part of the Taking a Closer Look at the Downtown exercise.
Tour leaves the No Frills plaza 571 Brant St at 1:30 p.m.

1. See first-hand the areas of downtown that are being looked at as part of the re-examination of the adopted Official Plan

2. Experience what mid and tall rise buildings feel like from the street, when walking through the downtown.

The event has not been all that well promoted.  ECoB, the Engaged Citizens of Burlington relased the following information earlier today.

What will happen?

1. The city will show two preliminary concepts for the revised Official Plan for Downtown.
2. You will be invited to provide feedback via a ‘citizen action lab’ workshop.
3. Your feedback will be included in the next stage as a final plan is drawn up for consideration by Council.

The failure of the city to successfully engage with the public on the Official Plan in 2017/18 was a major reason for the creation of Engaged Citizens of Burlington and for the changes on Burlington Council last year.

Is the City Doing Engagement Right This Time?

ECoB has welcomed the improved processes that are being used for public meetings during the process of revisiting the downtown plan.

Nevertheless, we are disappointed that given a year to review the downtown OP, the city is still relying on citizens being able to attend public meetings or visiting city websites to provide comment. We believe it was essential for the city to reach out to residents who traditionally do not or cannot attend public meetings or participate in online questionnaires. A small additional budget for more vigorous public engagement would have helped the city obtain public comment that was statistically relevant and representative of the whole community.

Nevertheless, don’t miss the opportunity to have your say on the draft plans! Make sure your voice is heard!