Some new faces, some new ideas and a new venue highlighted the last in this spring series of Open Houses and visioning workshops, as part of Oak Bay’s Official Community Plan (OCP) renewal process. The June 4th Open House in the church gym of Emmanuel Baptist was a bright, open and roomy space. Residents popped in between 5:00 and 8:00 p.m. while staff, Council members and volunteers from the OCP advisory committee (OPAC) staffed tables and topics, answered questions and encouraged participants to share their views about Oak Bay’s future.
This session was not the buzz I experienced on May 25th at the Windsor Pavilion, when the room was busy and bustling with conversation and ideas were flowing freely.
It might have been the beautiful evening or the power failure in parts of Oak Bay but I found that the June 4th Open House was less lively and had lower numbers compared with May 25th. Nevertheless, the consultant, Catherine Berris, engaged with many of the participants while gathering their feedback. Every resident had something important to say about Oak Bay’s future and the consultant has a big task ahead putting all the information together.
By the way, I have had a lot of positive comments from residents who attended a number of the public sessions. They thanked us for the opportunity to participate, suggesting that this process was long overdue and a real opportunity to influence change.
I attended almost all of the sessions and I enjoyed listening to and talking with residents. Thank you for your participation, your enthusiasm and, most of all, your commitment to making the OCP renewal process a true community event! Stay tuned…