TAMRMS#: B06
6.1
REQUEST FOR DECISION
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Strategic and Budget Public Engagement Redesign
Presented by: Brian Annin, Public Affairs Advisor, Communication and Public Affairs
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RECOMMENDED MOTION(S)
recommendation
That the Standing Committee of the Whole recommend that Council approve increasing the service level for the community satisfaction survey from once every four years to once every two years starting in 2027.
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SUMMARY
As directed by the Corporate Business Plan, Administration is making changes to its approach for providing public participation opportunities related to Budget and Strategic Planning. One of the changes Administration would like to make is to conduct the Community Satisfaction Survey every two years rather than every four years. This requires a change to the Council-approved service level.
ALIGNMENT TO COUNCIL DIRECTION OR MANDATORY STATUTORY PROVISION
N/A
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Community insight is currently gathered through several established initiatives, including the Community Satisfaction Survey (CSS), annual budget engagement and project-specific public participation. While each serves an important purpose, these activities have evolved independently rather than as a coordinated system aligned to Council's strategic planning and budget cycle.
Council's 2026 to 2029 Strategic Plan identifies strengthening meaningful, transparent and accessible communication and engagement as a key organizational priority. Administration supports this priority by reviewing and redesigning how community insight is gathered and applied to better inform strategic planning, business planning and budget development.
The current approach presents several limitations:
• Budget engagement often occurs after most priorities and funding recommendations have been developed, limiting opportunities for public input to meaningfully influence direction.
• The Community Satisfaction Survey, currently conducted every four years, does not provide sufficiently frequent insight to inform decision-making throughout a Council term.
• Existing engagement activities are not intentionally aligned to provide a coordinated flow of community insight across strategic planning, business planning and budget development.
• There is limited consistency in how community input is gathered, applied and communicated throughout the planning and decision-making cycle.
The proposed framework does not increase engagement for the sake of engagement. Rather, it better aligns existing and targeted engagement activities, so each serves a distinct purpose, reduces duplication, minimizes survey fatigue and provides Council and Administration with timely, decision-relevant community insight at key decision points.
Proposed Engagement Approach:
The proposed framework establishes complementary engagement activities that collectively provide strategic, operational and budget-related community insight throughout the Council term. Each activity has a defined purpose, timing and role within the City's planning and decision-making processes.
MODIFIED - Community Satisfaction Survey (Every Two Years)
A statistically representative survey conducted every two years to:
• Measure resident satisfaction and community priorities
• Monitor trends and progress throughout the Council term
• Inform strategic planning, service planning and future budget considerations
No additional budget is needed due to efficiencies achieved through the 2025 procurement process.
NEW - Community Priorities Forum (January)
An annual hybrid engagement initiative designed to:
• Identify emerging issues and evolving community priorities
• Provide qualitative insight ahead of Council Strategic Planning
• Inform future business planning and budget development
A pilot is proposed for January 2027, with refinements incorporated into future annual forums. This forum will be more robust in the year immediately following a municipal election to provide Council with as much community input as possible to consider as they set their strategic plan for their term. Subsequent years will be less robust but still important in providing annual snapshots of progress and community input into the strategic planning and budgeting cycle.
This project will use existing public participation budget. No additional budget is required currently.
CURRENT - Budget Public Participation (Survey)
Maintain the current online engagement during Council budget deliberations to:
• Support transparency throughout the budget process
• Provide residents with an opportunity to comment on the proposed budget
• Provide Council with current community perspectives during budget deliberations
No changes to the current process or additional budget are proposed.
STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS OR ENGAGEMENT
N/A
IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION(S)
Financial:
None expected at this time. The budget is based on the results of the RFP issued in 2025 and may increase in future years.
Compliance & Legal:
None at this time.
Program or Service:
The impact of increasing the frequency of the Community Satisfaction Survey will be on staff time but can be managed with existing resources.
Organizational:
None at this time.
Risks
The risk of “survey fatigue” amongst residents has been considered in the design of this approach.
ALIGNMENT TO PRIORITIES IN COUNCIL’S STRATEGIC PLAN
Initiative aligned with Strategic Plan:
Strategic and Budget Public Engagement Redesign
ALIGNMENT TO LEVELS OF SERVICE DELIVERY
The current Service Level, I.3.6.c, is:
Community Satisfaction survey is conducted every four years. Survey is offered online or by phone with a target of 400 residents.
Survey results are shared with Council and published on City’s website within 14 days
following presentation to Council.
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Report Date: September 8, 2026
Author(s): Brian Annin
Department: Communications and Public Affairs
Department Director: Paul Pearson
Managing Director: Diane McMordie
Chief Administrative Officer: William Fletcher