Public involvement key in 2004: mayor

While Mayor Dan Onichuk only has been at the reins for little over a month, he’s got definite goals in mind for the year ahead.
And like he said in campaign promises, the involvement of the same citizens of the Town of Fort Frances who elected him are a pivotal part of those plans.
“The first thing I’m going to do is try and streamline the meeting process,” Mayor Onichuk said yesterday. “Right now, we’re downstairs, upstairs, in-camera, not in-camera.
“I want to have the committee of the whole upstairs, where there’s a public gallery.
“I want to establish a standard starting time, say at 6:30 p.m., so everyone will know when we’ll begin every time,” he added. “If we have some in-camera business, we’ll meet at 5 p.m. and discuss that, for up to an hour-and-a-half, at which time we’ll have our open meeting.
“If we still need more in-camera business, we’ll do that after the public meeting.
“It should provide better access for the public,” the mayor remarked. “We’re going open things up a bit. The more we open the doors to the public, the better.”
Mayor Onichuk noted a motion to standardize start times for meetings, and to hold committee of the whole meetings in council chambers, should come before council at its next regular meeting this Monday night (Jan. 12).
He said he’d also like to see a regular time slot set aside at all council meetings during which the public can come forward with any concerns—even if they didn’t contact the town clerk ahead of time for a properly-scheduled delegation.
Mayor Onichuk said encouraging public attendance at council meetings not only makes for a steady flow of communication between the electorate and town council, but should boost citizens’ participation when it comes to the annual budget process, for instance—one of council’s immediate concerns.
“Our first and most difficult item of business is getting through the budget process,” he admitted. “They had meetings about it last summer, but it had basically gone nowhere before the new council was elected.”
While town administration and management have been working hard to compile figures, such as operating costs and capital expenditures, in the past short while, Mayor Onichuk said the first public discussion of the 2004 budget by council will be at its Jan. 26 meeting.
Also at that time, the corporate audit first presented to council last month will be discussed.
“Some things in the audit piqued my interest, some things I just can’t agree with,” Mayor Onichuk hinted of the corporate audit, which continues to be a private document due to the fact it contains recommendations regarding personnel and union negotiations.
Likewise, later this year the town will start developing its strategic plan, which Mayor Onichuk hopes to have in place before the 2005 budget process.
“How can we plan the future of our town if we don’t have a strategy? This is where the people come in,” he remarked.
And looking to draw still more involvement from the community, Mayor Onichuk confirmed the committees he suggested last month will be going ahead.
A call for members to sit on the Public Transportation Advisory Committee and the Social Activities Advisory Committee will be advertised in the near future.
  The purpose of the first is to determine if the current “Dial-A-Ride” system is adequate as well as whether the public wants more options for public transportation, or even any at all.
The second committee will include representatives from various age groups (from teens to senior citizens) to give their input as to having more events planned in the community.