The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Despite concerns that it limits debate, city council's group committee meetings remain largely open to the public. That was the message from council last week after Flin Flon resident Kathryn Church asked where 'the meat' of their conversations take place. She said council's regular meetings often last 15 minutes and don't provide enough background information to allow her to confidently offer suggestions. Coun. Bill Hanson identified Committee of the Whole meetings, attended by all councillors before and after the general meetings. When Church asked whether she is allowed to attend the committee meetings, Coun. Hanson said she can. While he made it clear he was not trying to deter anyone from attending, Coun. Hanson said having the media or public at committee meetings can unintentionally restrict debate. 'When you're deep in discussion or when you've got an issue, the only problem with having the public involved is _ and it's not a problem and the whole process should be transparent _ is people hesitate to brainstorm in front of the press,' he said. Coun. Hanson said sometimes in brainstorming, one councillor will 'throw stupid stuff out there' and another 'might say something dumb' but a third one 'might put the two and two together and come up with something brilliant.' 'But for that process to happen, it's hard to do that in front of people that you're not in committee with, do you know what I mean?' he said. 'People don't want to let their hair down in front of the press or in front of the public sometimes, you know, when they're brainstorming, because when you say stuff it could be taken out of context.' While Committee of the Whole meetings are public, council shifts the location of the meetings from the Council Chambers to a back room at City Hall. Asked why that's the case, Coun. Tim Babcock, currently the deputy mayor, said much of it is disinterest from the public. 'I mean, we could open it up and we could just have our whole meeting in (the Council Chambers), but you guys will be here until 10 o'clock every night,' he told the public at the April 2 council meeting. Then there is the fact that Committee of the Whole often goes in camera _ that is, with no public allowed _ to discuss sensitive matters such as personnel. Coun. Babcock estimated that two-thirds of the committee meetings are in camera. Council does not go in camera during regular meetings. Committee of the Whole meetings begin at 7 p.m. the first and third Tuesday of each month. They then break for the regular meeting, at 7:45 p.m., and resume at the conclusion of the regular meeting.
