City council meetings could move to Wednesdays

For years, Yellowknife mayor and council have met at City Hall on most Mondays at noon and then sometimes again in the evening. That could soon change.

Currently, the city’s Governance and Priorities Committee – also known as GPC – usually meets at 12:05pm on the first, second, third and fourth Mondays of each month, save for July, August and December, when the committee meets less often.

At GPC meetings, mayor and council learn about and initially discuss issues and proposals, then determine if they warrant further discussion or work from municipal staff, or whether they should go to a council meeting for a formal vote.

Council meetings are usually held at 7pm on the second and fourth Monday every month, save for July, August and December.

At this past Monday’s GPC meeting, several city councillors expressed support for a proposal to change that schedule.

If approved, GPC meetings would move to 12:05pm on the first, second and third Wednesdays of most months and council meetings to 12:05pm on the fourth Wednesday of the month.

‘More informed decision-making and productive discussions’

Mayor Ben Hendriksen said the switch to Wednesday meetings would address many councillors’ concerns about not having enough time to review materials ahead of meetings.

At the moment, the city sends agendas to councillors around noon on the preceding Friday before each Monday meeting.

“Finding the time to digest the material over the weekend? It’s been a challenge so far,” councillor Rob Foote said.

He added the current schedule gives councillors little time to come up with good questions or for city staff to properly respond.

A memo to councillors states giving them more time to review agenda packages could lead to “more informed decision-making and productive discussions.”

Hendriksen said fewer meetings a month would mean council could schedule additional meetings when needed, rather than having to cancel meetings when there are not enough substantive matters to discuss.

“It’s trying to balance the work of the city, public expectation, public engagement, making sure it’s as meaningful as possible,” he said of the proposed changes.

Councillor Steve Payne expressed support for giving the schedule changes a try.

“The nice thing is we do have some time that if it really doesn’t work out, we can change it back,” he said.

Ryan Fequet said he was in favour trying something new that would give councillors more time to reach out to their networks ahead of meetings.

“It’s a small town. Everybody knows people and often we can learn valuable information to help inform conversations,” he said.

Fequet added the current tight timeframe between when agendas are released and meetings take place can make it challenging for the public to be engaged and participate. He said he also does not want city staff to have to work on weekends to address councillors’ questions.

“That’s not a very good work-life balance and does not convey the type of messaging that we want our staff to hear from council,” he said.

Rob Warburton expressed some concern that moving council meetings from evenings to afternoons could affect the public’s ability to attend. He noted, however, that not all residents work regular office hours.

“In the end, I guess I’d like to see how that works,” he said.

Hendriksen added that residents have time to contact council about the proposed changes before councillors vote on the idea.

Other possible changes

Other potential changes to Yellowknife’s council procedures bylaw discussed on Monday include recording councillors’ meeting attendance, excusing city directors from attending meetings unless required, banning signs in the council chamber and clarifying the requirements for presentations to be added to meeting agendas.

“It may not be sexy but it’s important,” Garett Cochrane said, describing the proposed changes as “good housekeeping with our governance.”

Fequet said he would like members of the public to be allowed to make presentations at GPC meetings on issues about which they are passionate. Currently, residents are only able to give presentations at council meetings.

“Right now, we have people who are emailing us and showing up at those council meetings feeling like they’re just hitting a brick wall and that we’re not listening,” Fequet said.

Hendriksen, Cochrane and Stacie Arden-Smith disagreed with that idea, saying GPC meetings are a time for council to have an initial understanding of an issue before getting public input. Hendriksen added that councillors’ minds aren’t always made up before an issue reaches a council meeting.

“I know I’ve had plenty of times where something has moved past GPC and I’ve been thinking one way, and my mind’s changed by the time it got to council,” he said.

Yellowknife councillors have yet to formally vote on any changes to council procedures.

The matter is expected to come back to council in January. Because the proposed changes require amendments to a bylaw, they will need to pass three votes before they are enacted.

City manager Stephen Van Dine said the city hopes that, if approved by council, the changes will be implemented some time in February.