Provincial consultation meeting today (Wednesday April 1): what to expect

from the Midhurst Ratepayers Association

We hope to see you and your members at the upcoming provincial meeting this Wednesday at the Barrie Army Navy and Air Force Club on 7 George Street, Barrie.  The open house starts at 6 and the meeting runs from 7-9pm.

A basic summary of what to expect is below:
Open House  – this is your chance to look at maps, storyboards, read material and interact with staff 1 to 1

1. Presentation by the Ministry (what you can expect, purpose etc.)
2. General Q&A – this is intended for procedural questions (how to get involved, due dates etc.) but others have taken this opportunity to plead their case to the advisory board members and provincial staff that are there.  Expect that your question will be shut down if it`s not procedural in nature.
3. Discussion within the group. Make sure your points get recorded in your table`s workbook.  In other sessions, people have noticed that their points or ideas are not making it into the workbook which will be collected at the end of the night.  As a result, some have volunteered to be the scribe to ensure that their opinions are included.   Also note that there will be individual workbooks at each table.  You may choose to put your ideas and suggestions in that as well.  The Ministry will still be looking for individual submissions by May 28 (email, website comments or letters) IN ADDITION to the consultation meeting.Table Themes (several tables of each theme)
   Theme 1:  Protecting Agricultural Land, Water and Natural Areas
   Theme 2:  Keeping People & Goods Moving and Building Cost-effective Infrastructure
   Theme 3: Fostering Healthy, Livable and Inclusive Communities
   Theme 4:  Building Communities that Attract Workers and Create Jobs
   Theme 5:  Addressing Climate Change and Building Resilient Communities
   Theme 6:  Improving Implementation and Better Aligning the Plans (Greenbelt, ORM, Growth Plan and Niagara Escarpment)
4. After discussion time, each table will share their top few points to the larger group.We hope to see you there!