Zorra Township Council Briefs

Thursday, 7 May 2020 at 16:44

Zorra Township has changed the procedures for scheduling presentations at council and also addressed concerns around planning in the current climate.

ZORRA TOWNSHIP - Groups and citizens who wish to appear before Zorra Council should check the municipalities website because procedures around presentations have changed.

Council is asking for more advance notice, although there is an exemption for last minute appearances. Council also does not want to three or four people appearing on a single issue, all citing the same facts. Mayor Marcus Ryan says that council hopes the limits will allow for more diverse presentations.

"We want to hear more from residents and when you hear repeated delegations, not only on the same topic, but the same material on the same topic, whenever you make time for that, it means you are not making time for someone else to come forward with something else. By all means people can come forward and make a delegation on the same topic and they can even express support on the same topic, but they should come forward with some new information."

Ryan says last minute request will be allowed with presenters having 3 minutes with no discussion with council.

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ZORRA TOWNSHIP - Zorra Council does not want the current situation to shut down the planning process.

Councils concerns centred around ensuring that everyone who may have concerns has access to the process. Any planning decision has to undergo public scrutiny, In most cases there is little or no opposition but the process must be followed. Zorra has 10 applications in the system and will hold a one day meeting the end of the month to deal with the first six based on when they were filed.

The only objection to holding the meeting seems to come from the County planning department who is worried that a crowd at a meeting may exceed the provincial limit of five people.

(Story submitted by retired reporter and Heart FM volunteer Brian Donlevy)