The City of New Westminster is hosting small group dialogues in the next phase of its COVID-19 pandemic recovery planning process.
Residents, business owners and other stakeholders are invited to share their ideas and priorities with the city as it moves through COVID-19 pandemic recovery. The city is seeking feedback on issues such as climate action, affordability, racism, sustainable transportation, health and safety through COVID-19, employment and economy, and supports for vulnerable residents.
The small-group dialogues will build on feedback the city received through an online survey conducted earlier this summer.
Several small-group dialogues are scheduled to take place in September. The free sessions will be offered in a variety of formats, including online and in-person – with social distancing and COVID-19 protocols in place:
*Thursday, Sept. 10 from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Hume Park picnic shelter
*Wednesday, Sept. 16 from 11 a.m. to noon on Zoom
*Saturday, Sept. 19 from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. in the picnic shelter at Port Royal Park
*Monday, Sept. 21 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Zoom
*Tuesday, Sept. 22 to 2 to 3:30 p.m. by 2 to 3:30 telephone
*Saturday Sept. 26 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Zoom
To register for one of the free sessions, go to www.eventbright.ca and search for Community Dialogue Sessions: Building a Stronger New West. The city asks that people only register for one session so it can include as many voices as possible.
To reach as many people as possible, the city is making supports available for these sessions, including childcare for the in-person sessions, tech tutorials for the Zoom sessions, translation, ASL interpretation, etc. Anyone who is unable to participate on these dates can email [email protected] and the city will try to find a way to allow their participation in the engagement process.
In July, the city surveyed community members about a wide variety of issues related to the pandemic recovery, including changes to roadways to allow more space for pedestrians and cyclists and the creation of new parklets. It also sought input the city’s stance on climate change – and whether there are any particular climate-action activities the city should prioritize through the recovery period.
“Engagement on the city’s pandemic recovery is expected to continue through the summer and into September 2020,” said a notice about the survey. “We will report back to council and the community in the fall about what we heard, and input received will be considered in recovery planning as well as various departments, projects and decision-making.”
