Regional District politicians say they’re tired of impersonal online Zoom sessions and long for the return to in-person meetings and the comaraderie of human interaction between elected officials and staff.
Local governments are looking to include public participation while adhering to COVID-19 safety protocols.
Tofino mayor Josie Osborne says her council has started to meet in-person recently, and have seen the benefits first hand.
“As the chair of those meetings I have noticed the level of discourse has gone way up,” she said. “We are able to communicate better with each other because we can see each other. It’s better decision-making processes because we’re able to hear and listen to each other in a slightly different way. It’s been almost 6 months since we’ve been able to meet in person so I too am hoping we can gently move back towards that.”
Regional District directors will be getting together for the first time in months when they gather for a weekend strategic planning session in September.
ACRD CAO Doug Holmes said regional district offices will begin re-opening to the public on Monday.
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