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New Westminster – New Westminster City Council has adopted a new public engagement strategy that will provide guidance for the City’s engagement practices and aid in the delivery of high quality public consultation. New Westminster City Council adopted the new strategy and a regular session of council last evening.
The City of New Westminster Public Engagement Strategy was developed in collaboration with the Mayor’s Task Force on Public Engagement and the Simon Fraser University (SFU) Centre for Dialogue. In January 2015, Mayor Jonathan Coté established a task force to identify options and make recommendations for enhancing community public engagement and encouraging greater civic participation by residents and businesses. The Task Force is chaired by the Mayor and consists of two councillors, seven community members and five staff.
“The City of New Westminster recognizes the importance of quality public engagement and the role it plays in enabling purposeful and sound civic decision-making,” said Mayor Jonathan Coté. “Council and staff are committed to investing in and exploring new and innovative ways to meaningfully connect with the public to shape our community together in a pro-active and positive way.”
The City of New Westminster Public Engagement Strategy builds on the Mayor’s Task Force’s work in reviewing the City’s current engagement practices and incorporates input from community members on their vision and ideas for future engagement. The Strategy includes a set of principles that establish the goals and standards for good public engagement in New Westminster and will help to measure the success of engagement initiatives. An Action Plan was also created that identifies recommendations and detailed priorities developed by the Public Engagement Task Force.
“The City of New Westminster Public Engagement Strategy reflects the ideas and feedback received from community members, staff and members of Council that provides an important resource to enhance the way we connect and engage with the public,” said Mayor Coté. “I want to thank everyone who participated in this process and I look forward to implementing the strategy.”
The City of New Westminster Public Engagement Strategy can be viewed at www.newwestcity.ca.
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