Whether it was to express frustrations over wasted time and money, poor customer service, or rules that flat out made no sense, local businesses and residents were able to have their say on Wednesday night.
Municipal officials also encouraged the honesty and tough criticism during a town hall in council chambers presenting the Continuous Improvement and Red Tape Reduction Project.
The event began with an overview of the project, launched last June, and a rundown of ongoing improvement activities in building development, planning, economic development and legal services.
This was followed by deputations from a number of individuals who approached the podium to discuss their experiences with the municipality.
Brent DeNure, owner of Ten-Seven Cafe & Lounge in Chatham, said he and his wife went through a nightmarish building permit and appeal process.
He said there was a “complete disconnect” with staff when there shouldn’t have been.
“Chatham-Kent made provincial precedent by becoming the first municipality ever to appeal their own issuance of a building permit,” he said after Wednesday’s event, noting that businesses are counting on municipal administration to be a partner, not an adversary.
“I had to lawyer up and engineer up to go to Toronto to defend a legally binding building permit.”
Saying there are problems with the culture and trust, DeNure added he remains “cautiously optimistic” with a new mayor and council at the helm.
John Norton, general manager of community development, called it important for the municipality to hear “harsh and strong” comments if it wants to improve its practices.
“Where we’ve made mistakes, we have to do much better,” he said.
When it comes to customer service, Norton said the public doesn’t have a choice since it’s the municipality that offers the services in question.
He said Chatham-Kent needs to push itself to be the best as a result.
Chet Liu, a local engineering consultant, said he’s heard from many clients frustrated with the red tape, adding he sympathizes with them.
“I’m helping the customer and I see what they’re going through,” he said.
Stressing he’s not out to “make anybody look bad,” Liu said he’ll continue to fight for his clients, adding he strives to help people and isn’t in it for the money.
Norton said the municipality aims to hire the best applicants for the job, whatever the department might be.
However, he admitted that finding people who have the needed professional qualifications, along with strong customer service skills, can be challenging.
“I’m not suggesting that that’s an excuse,” Norton said. “That’s one of my biggest challenges as a general manager. Finding people to come in and work for the municipality with the qualifications – and having that complete package, to have their people skills as well.”
The town hall, hosted by the Community Development Advisory Committee, was supposed to take place Tuesday, but was rescheduled due to inclement weather. About 30 people were in attendance, along with Chatham-Kent staff and several councillors.
During the staff presentations, various departmental initiatives were presented, including a website redesign for building development services to assist clients navigating forms and processes; centralized inspection staff; and the introduction of a development standards manual.
For users of municipal facilities, Chatham-Kent is also looking at reducing or amending insurance requirements.
In the economic development department, director Stuart McFadden said his priorities include client education on processes and codes, adding “there’s things we can control and things we can’t control.”
Reallocating staff resources – using savings redirected from foreign direct investment initiatives – to assist new or existing businesses in Chatham-Kent is another measure, he said.
“We want to be the conduit between business and government,” McFadden said.
He said his department isn’t getting out of investment attraction, but will do it differently.
In his wrap-up comments, Norton said staff will go back and “digest” the feedback on Wednesday, as well as through the survey and consultations.
He expects recommendations will come to council this spring.
“Then we’ll continue to carry it forward, because we always want to be continuously improving,” he said.
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