Concern with Public Consultation Process and the local Arts and Culture Function

Hello all:

In my previous blog entry, I'd released the dates/times/locations for the stakeholder/general public and First Nations meetings', with regards to the creation of the Service Delivery Plan for the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Function

While I take no issue with the meetings taking place with stakeholders' and the general public, I do have a concern with the consultant meeting with First Nations Bands, in the process to creating the Service Delivery Plan (Business Plan) for the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Function

If the intent to meet with First Nation Bands was to introduce them to the Function and see if they desired to participate, by way of contract to contribute funds equivalent to what their reserve lands would have been taxed for this Function, then that is a good thing and the meeting should proceed

However, if the intent of the above meeting is to introduce them to a potential source of funds for First Nations Cultural Projects to which they could apply for funding, then I would have to object on the grounds that they are receiving a benefit to which they were neither taxed for or contributed money towards to ensure those who are taxed are receiving equal consideration for funding of arts and culture events or arts/culture building financial support

Also, the stakeholder survey requests whether or not the person filling it out wishes to join an advisory board to give advice to the Central Cariboo Joint Committee on this Function - I believe once the Business Plan (Service Delivery Plan) is in place, then there is no further need for the Community Arts Council to give advice to the local Joint Committee on this Function, although a semi-formal meeting between the local Arts Council and the Joint Committee each year to develop yearly Business Plan Goals is probably a good thing to do.

Also, when these meetings occur, I believe the General Public has an absolute right to hear what the stakeholders' for this Function are telling the consultant, in terms of what they (Stakeholders') want the Function to do, year over year

Also, there is no process to get public input on the Draft Service Delivery Plan prior to it being submitted to the CRD Board of Directors' for adoption at the Finance/Budget Committee Meeting on October 8th, 2009. The plan should be subject to public scrutiny and the CRD Board should take the public comments on the Draft Service Delivery Plan into consideration, when deciding whether or not to adopt the 2010 Business Plan for the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Function

I have a meeting with the City of Williams Lake Mayor Kerry Cook on Friday, August 7th, 2009 at 2:30pm and I intend to raise this subject with her and a few others and I'll report out on the outcome of that meeting here. The blog entry should be available, sometime late Friday evening