Update on Thursday, October 6: The report is now open for public feedback until Tuesday, October 18, 2022 at 4 p.m.
The Town of Antigonish and Municipality of the County of Antigonish have extended the deadline for feedback to the What We Heard Report related to the Exploration of Consolidation until October 6, 2022. The Report was released to the public on Thursday, September 15. The original deadline for feedback was Thursday, September 29, 2022.
“When the report was released, we built in a two-week window for Antigonish residents to review it and submit feedback,” says Laurie Boucher, Mayor of Antigonish. “Taking into consideration what our community has gone through since the storm last weekend, we wanted to extend the deadline.”
The What We Heard Report is a summary document of information gathered throughout the community engagement stage of the exploration of consolidation. There were 24 engagement sessions, both in person and online, and community members had the opportunity to send emails or leave voicemails with feedback.
The report is a key piece of information Councils were looking for as part of their overall decision-making process. The purpose of the report was not to measure who was for or against consolidation, but to capture the overarching themes of the discussions that took place as part of the community engagement.
“We are asking residents to review the report and let us know if anything was missed,” says Owen McCarron, Warden with the Municipality of the County of Antigonish. “We know thousands of our residents went days without power and/or internet access this week. Extending the deadline was the right thing to do.”
If anyone feels their perspective was not captured or there is a major theme missing, they are welcome to submit their feedback via email to info@antigonish.ca, phone 1-833-563-2786, or drop off their written submission to the Town or County offices by October 6, 2022 at 4 p.m.
It is expected that Councils will make the decision on whether to move forward with consolidation or not this fall.
For more information on the exploration of consolidation and to read the What We Heard Report, please visit www.antigonish.ca
Media Contacts:
Shannon Long
Town of Antigonish
902-318-9245
shannon.long@townofantigonish.ca
Shirlyn Donovan
Municipality of the County of Antigonish
902-863-1117
shirlyn.donovan@antigonishcounty.ns.ca