If the current downward trend continues with the number of new COVID-19 cases, Barrie councillors could be back in their seats at city hall by the fall.
Due to the pandemic, councillors had their first Zoom council meeting on March 30, 2020, and have not met in person since two weeks before that.
As COVID case numbers go down and more people get vaccinated, restrictions are lifting stage by stage and larger gatherings are becoming consistently more visible in the near future.
City clerk Wendy Cooke told BarrieToday that council could be sitting side-by-side again not long after the summer break.
“We are looking at the first meeting in September, likely with a hybrid approach,” she said. “The number of staff/public allowed in the chamber will be dependent on provincial regulations in place at the time.”
At this time, only Mayor Jeff Lehman and Cooke have been in the chamber during most meetings.
Coun. Ann-Marie Kungl — who won her Ward 3 seat on Feb. 24, 2020 in a byelection after former councillor Doug Shipley became the MP for Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte — has very few in-person meetings under her belt.
Kungl sat in council chambers only a couple times before the pandemic forced them to go online in March 2020.
She said she was impressed by how quickly city staff enabled council business to continue through virtual meetings over Zoom.
“The online format has supported being able to easily connect and directly 'face' all members of council,” Kungl told BarrieToday. “What I am missing is the personal connections and informal exchange of information we had when we were together before and after council meetings.”
Kungl says she often hears from residents that the virtual meetings have been a convenient way to 'attend' a meeting, being able come and go as their item of interest is dealt with on the agenda.
“Others have expressed that meeting virtually and doing a deputation with the video off doesn't help them feel seen or heard, and that they would have preferred a more personal approach,” she said.
Mayor Jeff Lehman says deputations are already distanced in the chamber as it is, but he doesn’t believe in-person meetings with the public in the chamber will happen until all public health restrictions are lifted for gatherings.
Lehman says there are definitely pros and cons to virtual meetings.
“Online meetings have the advantage of not needing travel, but I have found the lack of personal connection has led to a more negative tone and less collaboration among members," Lehman told BarrieToday. "For the public, however, it does make it much easier to participate in council and committee meetings as they don't have to travel to city hall, if they have the technology."
Technological challenges have occasionally been an issue, he added, "but city staff have been great in pivoting.”
The mayor acknowledges that meetings have been much longer since council went online. Lehman says he believes online meetings "makes it too easy to go down a rabbit hole and get off track, although I have been trying to keep us closer to the agenda.”
Kungl says she personally hasn’t felt that the virtual setting has impacted accountability when it comes to other councillors, but has heard comments from residents.
“I do hear a lot of comments about the lack of eye contact and how council members appear to be disengaged if they are not looking up at the virtual feed,” she said. “ Residents are noticing members on other devices during conversations, and it is hard for some to know if we are engaged in the conversation that is occurring. I think council has been responsive to questions.”
Despite a possible return in September to in-person meetings, Kungl believes virtual meetings have found a permanent place in getting some business done at city hall.
“I think virtual meetings may help us to come together on short notice for special meetings of council on matters that are time-sensitive,” she said. “I think the ability to use the technology that supports our virtual meetings would enable us to address urgent matters and achieve quorum if getting to an in-person meeting was going to be a challenge.”
It's unknown how many visitors would be able to sit in on council meetings when they start up again, but Kungl says there needs to be a plan for anyone who either can’t get in or who may feel hesitant about attending such gatherings.
“I think we always have to start with working with an individual on what supports they need to be able to access council,” she said. “I think we can consider how to find a format that is flexible to meet the needs of residents while respecting procedural bylaws.”
