City's public consultations demand a lot

This might sound almost like a parody of government bureaucracy, so I feel a duty to assure you right off the top that this column is not a gag.

- MATT ELLIOTT

Here’s the news: having spent the past few months holding a series of public consultations about how to improve the public consultation process, Toronto city hall’s planning and housing committee will consider a report this week that recommends more public consultations about public consultations.

“Staff will continue to consult stakeholders on potential policy amendments related to pre-application consultation and community consultation meetings and report back” next spring, concludes the report set to be debated Thursday.

Geez, why rush into things? Why not first hold some consultations about whether to continue to consult about consultations?

OK, now I’m joking. But seriously, this is emblematic of one of the big barriers with getting stuff done at the local level. City hall is straightup obsessed with consulting the public before things happen.

A lot of the time, it’s an understandable obsession because municipal government decisions tend to have a direct impact on the dayto-day lives of residents. If you’re going to add a stop sign, install some new playground equipment in a park, or change zoning to allow for a skyscraper, it makes sense to want to get input from people who live nearby.