Sackville Town Council will gather on Monday, but not for their usual meeting.
Instead of weighing in on the town’s business or hearing from staff, councillors will be there to hear from residents and groups about the upcoming budget priorities for 2021.
The agenda for the meeting has been posted on the town’s website and lists eight presenters that pre-registered by the deadline last week.
Town Clerk Donna Beal says that if council wants to add anyone to the agenda, they can do so in a motion at the beginning of their meeting on Monday.
Almost all of the presenters are local groups who are invited to make a pitch requesting funding or other support for their organizations.
Wendy Alder appears to be the only resident making a presentation about town spending priorities. She is slated to talk about beautification of Exit 506.
The groups presenting are:
- Renaissance Sackville,
- SappyFest Inc.,
- Rural Rides,
- Live Bait Theatre,
- Levee on the Lake,
- and Sackville Minor Hockey.
The Southeast Regional Service Commission is also listed on the agenda to talk about their budget.
The publicity for the meeting was modest. A Facebook post on August 7th put out a call for residents to make presentations on potential town priorities for 2021.
The meeting has been mentioned at town council meetings in August and September, but is not listed on council’s timetable or the town’s community calendar.
Since going to virtual meetings, the town has yet to incorporate hearing from the public, although they have heard from non-town presenters on several occasions, including reps from Mount Allison, and organizers for both the Levee on the Lake and Sappyfest.
Presenters will be sent an online invitation to join the virtual meeting, says Beal. Presentations will go a maximum of 10 minutes. A lifestream of the meeting will be available for public viewing, starting at 7pm on Monday.
