The idea of a flow of information from any level of government to the people who that government represents is generally a good one.
It is very easy for government to make decisions with a seeming complete disconnect from voters.
That occurs even at the municipal level.
An example here in the City of Yorkton is the recent decisions to undertake major reconstructions of Dracup and Mayhew Avenues.
While a key role of municipal government is the maintenance of infrastructure, of which roadways are of course a key component, these two undertakings have ruffled some feathers among taxpayers in both areas of the city.
Along Dracup residents have faced traffic disruptions, reduced access to the street, and car rattling drives for months. The project was actually approved back in 2014, and unless the weather is ideal and everything falls into place exactly as hoped for this summer, work will stretch into 2017.
The work on Mayhew will begin this summer, and at least a portion of it will be complete this year, but in the process access to the Linden Square Mall will be disrupted and that has business owners concerned about the potential impact on business.
While the decisions have been made by Yorkton Council already, to the point tenders for almost every phase of the work have not only been let, but have been accepted as well, the City opted last week to hold an information meeting for the public on the dual projects.
The evening started off on the wrong foot as the City had booked the tiny Ravine Room at the Gallagher Centre, which meant the 75-plus attending were crammed in to the point of standing room only for a number of people. That is never an ideal situation when those attending are already at least somewhat concerned by the projects, if not outright disgruntled. Rarely do people who are completely content with something head out on an evening to listen to why someone else thinks it is a good idea too.
Trent Mandzuk Director of Public Works with the City gave the background on the projects, but that did not placate many who still questioned the cost of using concrete over asphalt, the impact on businesses along the roadways, the plan to install a roundabout, and the long time the projects are taking.
The problem is, no questions from the public was going to change anything in terms of the projects. When it is to the point in the construction process where tenders have been awarded, and the wheels are set to turn, changes are not happening regardless of any arguments that might be offered by the public.
And the answers Mandzuk was able to provide were too often second hand in the sense he was left to point to recommendations and studies carried out by consultants and sector experts none on-hand to more clearly define why the project design is the way it is.
In the end the meeting ended up ringing a bit hollow. There was a chance for limited debate but no chance of change, which left the meeting purely informational, and it was obvious many attending expected more than that.
