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MiDnight Meetings <br />We’ve also seen the introduction of <br />‘24-hour meetings’ which are seen to <br />discourage participation by forcing <br />deputants to attend Committee meet- <br />ings in the middle of the night. <br />DaytiMe Meetings <br />Most of the public consultations at <br />City Hall and our Civic Centres are <br />held during the daytime and the tim- <br />ing of each item is not announced. <br />Often this means that Councillors <br />only get to hear one side of the story. <br />Private developers or billboard com- <br />panies can afford to have lobbyists <br />attend all day, but residents are not <br />able to wait around for their item. <br />shrinking <br />Deputations <br />The amount of time allotted to <br />public budget deputations has been <br />drastically cut back this year – from <br />5 minutes, to 3, and then 2. <br />Moving ForWarD <br />If we want to boost participation, <br />we should explore: <br />• evening meetings (6-9PM) <br />• timed items with clear schedules <br />• on-site childcare <br />• provision of refreshments <br />• increased promotion of meetings <br />• clear plain language materials that <br />explain the process including any <br />required translations for Toronto’s <br />diverse communities <br />1 2 3 4 5 <br />SPRING 2011 <br />SUMMER 2011 <br />FALL 2011 <br />2012 ?MaxiMuM length oF puBlic <br />BuDget Deputations