Do you feel like you know enough about what’s going on at the Town of Huntsville? Or if you don’t, are you confident that you know how to find out?
If not, you’re likely not alone and Town staff want to fix that. It may, however, come with a hefty price tag and some councillors want to know if it will be worth it.
The Town’s CAO Denise Corry presented a report to General Committee on August 24 to request that the cost of retaining a communications consultant be considered during 2017 budget deliberations. She wasn’t asking for the funds to be approved just yet, in other words, but instead was gauging interest for the initiative to even be on the budget table before Town staff pursue it further.
We strive for open communications with staff, Council and taxpayers. But the times are changing. There’s a lot of focus now on social media and digital media; there are lots of venues that we don’t want to be missing with respect to our communication. I do feel that although we have a good handle on communications today, we do need experts to help us figure out what the communications of tomorrow look like. I think we are missing the mark on our ability to get the message out there. We need for people to know what direction we are taking, how we plan to get there, and what their role is as ratepayers.
Denise Corry, CAO for the Town of Huntsville
The report also noted that under the Municipal Act, “municipalities have a legal obligation to communicate with citizens since they make decisions for and act on behalf of the public”, and that “honest, coherent and well-structured communications facilitate citizen confidence in government and community support of government decisions. Based on this, communication needs to be a priority in government organizations.”
No Request for Proposal (RFP) has been issued yet, but Corry estimated – based on conversations with other municipalities and companies who have already expressed interest in providing such a service – that the cost of retaining a consultant would be approximately $20,000.
That price tag didn’t sit well with some councillors.
I do agree with the potential economic benefits of communicating better, although in the two short years I’ve been here, consultants in my opinion haven’t been worth the money. I don’t know if I’m keen to spend $20,000 on another consultant.
Councillor Bob Stone
Deputy Mayor Karin Terziano said that she had no concerns about considering the initiative within budget deliberations, but that she wanted details on what the results would be. “I agree that $20,000 for somebody to tell us how to talk to the people we are supposed to be talking to seems pretty steep… I really want to know specifically what somebody’s going to tell us that we don’t know.”
That appeared to be the biggest question around the table: what value would a consultant bring?
Mayor Scott Aitchison suggested that it could be good value for the cost. “I agree with Deputy Mayor Terziano: $20, 000 for someone to tell us how to talk is not a good idea and clearly that’s not what this is. (This) is a way for us to capitalize on existing and emerging technology to communicate much better with our constituents and people who are coming to visit us… How we can better use social media and the tools that exist to be constantly informing the public and our visitors about what’s going on, why they should visit here, and how they can spend their money here… I think once the terms of reference are settled and once you see some RFPs come in you’ll see some pretty creative ideas of ways we can use technology that we haven’t thought of.”
Aitchison then provided an example of what could be possible: “Wouldn’t it be great if we could have on our website a map showing where the snowplow is on your route? It’s one minor example of what we could be doing within the existing realm to serve our constituents better.”
The tools that we have and the emerging tools offer an incredible opportunity for us to put Huntsville on the map in a really unique way. I don’t think there’s any other municipality that is that digitally connected and engaged with their constituents and visitors and it would be just one more way that shows Huntsville is ahead of the curve.
Mayor Scott Aitchison
In response to a question from Councillor Dan Armour about whether a joint venture with other Muskoka municipalities was possible, Corry replied that it is as is sharing services with the District of Muskoka. But, she added, “I don’t want to undermine the importance of this. It has a huge effect on our economic development, and just keeping our ratepayers informed. As I noted, your constituents are interested in what’s happening and I think we should be providing them with every opportunity to have their input.”
Chair Brian Thompson reminded the committee that they were not committing to anything yet, at which point they voted to allow the initiative to be considered as part of 2017 budget deliberations.
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Use the Annual Tax Bill mailings to include any information about budgets and proposed expenditures.A definite NO to any more consultant reports .
If the Town wishes to spend additional monies to keep the ratepayers informed, then perhaps one of the existing staff could have Town Information Officer added to their duties. After all some existing staff already wear three hats; and this individual could actually be compensated for it. It would be important for the person to be IT-savvy and reachable through social media and emerging technologies; as well as in person and by telephone.
Personally, with our aging demographic, I find that many older people do not keep up with technology, and yet this is the largest group who feels itself to be “out of the loop”. Hiring a consultant, therefore, to teach the Town how to “preach largely to the choir” seems somewhat wasteful. Furthermore, consultants are not at all interested in $20,000 projects: What they are interested in, however, is getting their “foot in the door”. Soon every future query with respect to technology will be referred to them, and the Town will be “nickelled and dimed” to death with small invoices.
Yet another problem (if that route is undertaken) is the framing of the RFP. $20,000 buys you very little these days: Even the mayor seems focussed more on tourists, than either permanent or seasonal residents. The desired function was not to be an activities calendar to help us spend money. The desired function was to inform us regarding Town expenditures; how they conform to the strategic plan; how that plan is progressing; and any future public consultations to assist Council in plotting their future direction.
The Doppler already reports on every “open” Council meeting; as well as keeping us informed of all major Town issues. It is to be highly commended, and, without prejudice, this proposal should be viewed with a jaundiced eye.
I have found that any questions I have ever had, directed by either email or telephone to the Town of Huntsville, have always been directed and handled completely and very professionally. Why in heavens name would we need a consultant? With the various newspapers, both on line and hard copy, as well as a well informed staff, is it REALLY necessary to spend money on this when so many other issues could benefit from these dollars? Every time I hear about a consultant or commission being considered, I start to wonder if there is anyone at the Town of Huntsville who is qualified to make decisions or think on their own (or as a group) to resolve issues on behalf of the residents, and if there isn’t anyone, why are you there?