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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOctober 26, 2011 oty o¢~ Minutes/Meeting Summary i, ,i Sustainable Pickering Advisory Committee CAO Boardroom C - Wednesday, October 26, 2011 11:30 am Attendees: Mayor Ryan Doug Dickerson, Chair, City Councillor, Ward 2 David Pickles, Vice-Chair, City Councillor, Ward 3 Peter Rodrigues, Regional Councillor, Ward 3 Tom Melymuk, Director, Office of Sustainability Lynn Winterstein, Manager, Marketing & Business Development Chantal Whitaker, Coordinator, Sustainability Terry Green, Durham Sustain Ability Carol Redmond, (Acting) Executive Assistant, Council (Recording Secretary) Absent: N/A Item/ Details Discussion & Conclusion Action Items/Status Ref # (summary of discussion) (includedeadline as a ro riate 1. Presentation: Sustainabilit Survey Report Ter Green Councillor Dickerson called the meeting to order at.11:35 am. T. Green provided an overview of the survey results. A copy of the survey results was distributed to Committee members. T. Green advised that overall, the survey results indicated positive feedback from the community. Baselines have now been established, and community feedback obtained to support future work. Councillor Dickerson suggested the Committee wait to discuss the details of the report until Mayor Ryan arrived. Mayor Ryan arrived at 11:55 am. A Discussion ensued regarding the survey results. Committee Members agreed that the survey presentation was excellent. The objective of the survey was accomplished; baseline measurements for sustainability indicators were established. Page 1 CORP0228-2/02 T. Melymuk noted that caution should be taken when interpreting and/or over analyzing the results as the survey provides only a part of the City's sustainability picture. Councillor Dickerson commented that we have a good baseline, and it will be interesting to compare with future surveys. Those that were engaged will be interested to see the results outlined within the Measuring Sustainability Report. Mayor Ryan asked if there was a way to further correlate the findings with demographics. T..Green responded that further work could be done if requested by the City. After discussion regarding the locally grown food component of the survey, L. Winterstein commented that the participating farmers advised that the Pickering Town Centre market was the most successful one in Durham. Councillor Dickerson thanked T. Green for his informative presentation. T. Green left the meeting at 12:45 pm. Councillor Rodrigues questioned why residents were not members of the Sustainable Pickering Advisory Committee. Councillor Dickerson explained that the initial decision was to only have councillors on the Committee to provide appropriate political guidance. to the program, but that in time, membership may be opened to include residents. 2. Measurin Sustainabilit' Report Update C. Whitaker C. Whitaker advised that the draft Measuring Sustainability Report will be provided to the Committee for review in November. Promotion of the report will include all communication tools such as newsletters, social media, media releases etc., including the production of a small card that will be easier to carry around and will include an invitation to visit an HTML site linked to the report and a QR code to scan for smart phone users. T. Melymuk reminded members that the first report (released in 2010) covered only half of the indicators. The second report will include all indicators. Page 2 CORP0228-2/02 C. Whitaker advised that the final draft will be ready by year end. Councillor Dickerson suggested that the next meeting focus on the Measuring Sustainability report and its release to Council. 3. 2012 Work tan T. Mel muk T. Melymuk distributed a draft 2012 workplan. Discussion ensued on the following items. Sustainable Neighbourhood Challenge C. Whitaker provided an overview of the 'Festival of Neighbourhoods' program in Kitchener where the City challenged its residents to organize themselves into neighbourhood groups, and register for events and initiatives in the community. Through a capital infrastructure grant, a $10,000 award was invested into the winning neighbourhood. C. Whitaker suggested that the City could develop a similar program, focusing on sustainability initiatives. C. Whitaker noted that the City is trying to find more interesting ways to engage the community. She commented that it may be appropriate to use the contribution program funds to support the City's neighbourhood challenge. Committee members were generally supportive of this approach. Development Guidelines for Downtown Pickering T. Melymuk reported that staff are in the process of hiring a consultant to assist staff in the planning and design study for Downtown Pickering. That study will include the preparation of sustainable place-making guidelines for the downtown. Sustainable Pickering Corporate Policy T. Melymuk advised that a Corporate Sustainability Policy will be developed in 2012. The policy will be used to formalize the City's sustainability practices and protocols to remind staff of the City's interest in sustainability, and help them work and behave in a sustainable manner. FCM's Partners for Climate Protection Program T. Melymuk advised that a number of years ago, Pickering completed three of the five steps of FCM's Climate Protection Program, and that we will commence required work in 2012 to complete the last two steps in the program. Page 3 CORP0228-2/02 Sustainable Pickering Day T. Melymuk proposed that Sustainable Pickering Day again be held in conjunction with Earth Hour in 2012 (i.e. Sat. March 3). Staff will also consider launching the Sustainable Neighbourhood Challenge on that day. Sustainability Events and Partnerships T. Melymuk advised that staff will continue to participate in events such as Clean Air Commute and Bike to Work Day and committees like GTA Clean Air Council and Durham Environmental Coordinating Committee. Sustainable Pickering Contribution Program The program brought in a record $12,000 this year. In terms of next year's program, consideration will be given to directing some or all of the funds raised to the City's Neighbourhood Challenge. 4. Other Business All C. Whitaker advised that the Region of Durham has hired Brian Kelly, a full-time, Manager, Sustainability. Next meeting date: December 14, 2011. Meeting Adjourned: 1:40 pm Copy: CAO City Clerk Page A CORP0228-2/02