A Port Moody councillor says council members should be making every effort to attend council meetings in person.
But if they can’t, they’ll be allowed to attend virtually six times a year — although that number can be extended with permission from the mayor or assent from the rest of council.
That’s the compromise that councillors reached Tuesday, Nov. 14, after a staff report recommended the city’s policy be updated to allow them to attend four meetings a year virtually while some councillors questioned whether there should be a limit at all.
Prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, councillors were allowed to attend meetings electronically twice a year.
Coun. Kyla Knowles said residents expect to be represented at the council table by the politicians they elected.
“The community wants us to be here as much as possible,” she said.
“We made a commitment when we were elected and I think it’s important we keep it.”
But Coun. Callan Morrison said life and work commitments can sometimes get in the way, especially as Port Moody councillors are only part time.
And, he said, even virtual attendance allows disparate voices to be heard in council discussions whether everyone is physically in the same room or not.
“I want to hear every viewpoint around the council table,” he said.
Coun. Haven Lurbiecki said her experience over the past few years has shown virtual attendance is working fine and restricting opportunities for councillors to fulfill their meeting obligations virtually might dissuade some people from considering serving on council.
“Having people present does have value, but we are living in a world where flexibility is valued,” said Lurbiecki, who then introduced a motion to increase the virtual attendance limit to eight a year.
Still, Lurkiecki suggested, if more can be granted by the mayor or council, “why are we even doing this?”
Coun. Diana Dilworth pointed out that allowing virtual attendance eight times would mean a councillor wouldn’t be in chambers for up to four months a year.
“Suggesting at the outset that you cannot show up at city hall for four months is disrespectful,” she said.
“I can’t agree with allowing a member of council to miss four months of meetings.”
It was Coun. Amy Lubik who suggested the allowance be sawed off at six meetings a year.
“It seems fair enough to be in the middle,” she said.
In May 2020, Port Moody set standards of behaviour at its electronic council meetings after a previous meeting where a profanity was uttered by a councillor who thought their microphone was muted.
In Vancouver, a participant in a council meeting got caught flushing their toilet.
The standards direct councillors to maintain professional decorum throughout a meeting, keep their video camera enabled at all times and not use virtual backgrounds.
Sound off: Do you think it's fair for city councillors to attend meetings electronically up to six times a year? Should it be more or less? What is your expectation from your elected representative to appear in person at meetings? Send us a Letter to the Editor to share your thoughts. Please be sure to include your city of residence and your full name.
