New Westminster city council is taking the show on the road for a few upcoming meetings.
City council kicked off several meetings in the community on Aug. 31 at Anvil Centre. On Sept. 14, council will meet at the Queensborough Community Centre at 5:30 p.m., and on Sept. 28 council will have an open workshop at 2:30 p.m. and a public hearing at 6 p.m. at the Sapperton Pensioners Hall.
Mayor Jonathan Cote said council is “going on a roadtrip” and travelling around the community while some renovations are underway in council chambers.
“Originally we were just going to move into another room at city hall but we thought this is an opportunity to get out into the different neighbourhoods in the community,” he told the Record. “We already have an annual meeting that we have in Queensborough every year, but we thought now is the perfect time to add a few more meetings.”
The renovations at city hall presented council with an opportunity to get out into New West neighbourhoods, Cote said.
“Hopefully, the agendas can be tailored a little bit to have some more topics that are relevant to the particular neighbourhoods and give people a chance to have closer access to their council,” he said. “If successful, maybe this is something we do every once in a while in the city and try to get to different parts of the different neighbourhoods in New Westminster.”
In recent years, council has attempted to hold a meeting in Queensborough once a year.
“The Queensborough meetings have been very successful. We have always gotten a good turnout at those meetings,” Cote said. “Queensborough maybe more so than the other neighbourhoods in New West does feel a little bit more isolated, that’s why I feel it’s even more important for us to make sure council is having a regular presence out there.”
