Legislative Workshop
All members of the newly elected Council are required to attend a Legislative Workshop following the election. This year the workshop is scheduled for Saturday, October 27. The City Manager will provide you with specific details of time and place if you are elected.
Regular Council Meetings and Committee Meetings
As a general rule, Whitehorse City Council sits in open meeting every Monday evening. These meetings are alternately Standing Committee and Regular Council meetings, and may be expected to last anywhere from one to three hours.
Council and Senior Management Meetings
In addition to these Monday evening meetings, the practice has been to hold special meetings between staff and council on specific issues as the need arises. These meetings are referred to as Council and Senior Management Meetings. These meetings are topic specific and last either one hour if a lunch meeting, or two hours if held after regular business hours.
All members of Council serve on the Budget Committee, the Emergency Measures Commission, and the City Manager’s Evaluation Committee, which may require a further time commitment.
Ad Hoc Committees
Council members are also appointed to various ad hoc committees whose meetings they are required to attend on behalf of Council. The commitment to these meetings varies depending on the nature of the committee, but normally would require attendance at a meeting on at least a monthly basis.
Council members appointed to the Association of Yukon Communities or the Federation of Canadian Municipalities might also have to travel to meet their obligations.
Special projects such as Strategic Planning will also require additional time.
Public Consultation and Public Events
Every year administration schedules and hosts public meetings on a wide variety of topics as required. It is not mandatory that members of council attend these public meetings, but they provide an opportunity for council to hear directly from the public and some councillors have found attendance beneficial. There is no set schedule for these public meetings as they are held as needed according to the requirements of the process.
Council hosts, and is expected to participate in, annual City functions such as the Civic Dinner during Rendezvous Week, Volunteer of the Year celebrations, the Seniors’ Tea during Seniors and Elders Week, and Sister City exchanges as they occur. In addition, council also receives numerous invitations to receptions, open houses, conferences, celebrations, concerts, annual general meetings and official events.
Materials Review
Council members can expect to spend a considerable amount of time reviewing comments, reports and correspondence that comes to the City via e-mail. There is an office and computer available for councillors at City Hall, and as the City of Whitehorse supports a paperless system, you will be provided with the necessary equipment so that most documents can be provided digitally.