City council returns to chambers IRL for 1st time since pandemic began
Joanne Chianello | CBC News | Posted: March 23, 2022 8:00 AM | Last Updated: March 23, 2022
City hall launches hybrid model Wednesday after 2 years of virtual meetings
At the start of this week, Cumberland Coun. Catherine Kitts sat at her designated seat in the council chamber horseshoe for the first time.
Which, as Kitts put it, is "pretty wild" considering she was sent to council in a byelection almost 18 months ago.
Two years ago, Ottawa's city council met for the first time in its history exclusively online. That ends Wednesday when most councillors are expected to return to Andrew S. Haydon Hall — although there's an option for those who want to continue to participate virtually.
Kitts had only ever been in council chambers officially once, when she was sworn in after her October 2020 victory.
This week, she took advantage of the clerk's office offer to help councillors refresh their memories on the council-chamber technology. Kitts has never used the laptop or turned on the microphone at her spot at the table.
In fact, there are still a few of her colleagues and some senior staff members she hasn't met face-to-face.
"There's a big, key element to the role I've never had the opportunity to experience," Kitts told CBC.
Last IRL day at council was a doozy
The last time council met "in real life" was Monday, March 9, 2020.
If there was ever a day to tide councillors over for in-person meetings for two years, that day was it.
More than 12 hours of meetings included two separate gatherings of the finance and economic development committee, sandwiched around a special council meeting to deal with legal issues over — what else? — the troubled Confederation Line.
After meeting in camera for three hours, council voted unanimously and quickly to declare Rideau Transit Group in default of its contract with the city (for the first time).
WATCH | The last council meeting to take place at City Hall:
Near the end of the night, councillors discovered Mayor Jim Watson was the only member of city council who knew that SNC-Lavalin had failed to reach the minimum score before voting for the contract. Some members weren't too pleased.
By the time the next council meeting was called two weeks later, the world had gone virtual — including Ottawa City Hall — and the mayor declared a municipal state of emergency over the COVID-19 outbreak.
Council's changed — just like other workplaces
Wednesday, in keeping with ever-loosening pandemic measures, council returns to its home on Laurier Avenue West. Like most workplaces, it's changed.
A hybrid model means the council meeting will take place in person, but virtually as well. So far, four councilllors — Rick Chiarelli, Jan Harder, Matthew Luloff, and Scott Moffatt — have said they'll be participating via Zoom.
To accommodate the online participants, all council members will have to follow along online and use the "raised hand" option on Zoom to ask a question, whether in the chamber or not.
If you're in council chambers — which, for now, is limited to councillors, staff and media — you'll be able to see who's speaking projected onto the screen behind the mayor's dais.
Because the public viewing gallery is closed until at least the end of April, the meeting will be streamed in Jean Pigott Hall for anyone who'd like to catch it almost IRL.
Committee meetings will still be virtual only. Even when they do begin to meet in person again, there's a sense they should incorporate ways for the public to participate online.
Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower is the co-chair of the planning committee and he's seen first-hand the increased engagement by residents across the city in issues such as the urban boundary and the official plan.
Instead of having to bus across town to come to a meeting, or take an entire day off work, online committee meetings have allowed more people to have a say, according to Gower.
"There were a lot of barriers for people to come out and speak in front of committee," he said. "I've expressed my desire that we have an online way we can participate in committees."
But he's quick to add "I've had enough of these Zoom council meetings."
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Kitts echoes that sentiment.
Even before she was elected, she saw the temperature rising at council meetings. After they went virtual, it seemed to get worse.
She's hoping coming together in person will allow council to work together under less tension in these last few months of the term.
"I can imagine that there's an element of working together face-to-face that I've just been missing."