Park development and road infrastructure were common themes throughout the five Talktober sessions held in local neighbourhoods by city council, said Mayor Lyn Hall.
"Now what council will do is take the whole list once staff have accumulated that information," said Hall the day after the final meeting. "It'll start to become part of the budget process in the new year."
Pedestrian safety or cyclist safety and providing sidewalks, bike lanes and lighting were all common requests across neighbourhoods. The city is reviewing its draft park strategy and calling on public feedback, so citizens seemed engaged in that topic and a call for green spaces on vacant city property.
Some feedback won't have to wait until budget talks. Because of feedback at the Blackburn session, the city learned Midland Road was in need of gravel and grading.
"Staff got on that right away," said Hall, adding city crews got out this week to address the issue.
"There are some things that we can almost do a week later. As soon as we hear it, we can get working on it because it's a general maintenance piece. Some of the stuff can be dealt with in our current budget."
Blackburn residents also wanted better lighting near the elementary school and the community centre, which would likely involve either sidewalks or widening of the road to give pedestrians safer walking access.
At the College of New Caledonia session, student housing and air quality came up, as did comments on lighting, sidewalks and a request for snow removal along the paved pathway to the University of Northern B.C. along Tyner Boulevard.
In College Heights, several people spoke of the city's high level of water consumption, which tied in to a recent staff report on a new 10-year water conservation plan.
"That's something that we hadn't heard before," Hall said, but it's supported by the report's comparison to similar-sized communities. "We're certainly one of the highest in the province."
The community also called for a bike, skate and dog park behind Malaspina school.
At that meeting, Hall said he stressed the need for community mobilization, which the residents have already followed up with staff about.
"It really does help," he said, adding it's important to get people connected with the right department so they understand the process. "They want something very similar to what we're seeing at Duchess Park but with the add-on of a skate park."
In the Hart, the key takeaway was the drive for seniors housing.
"We see the need for it so it's really us and them working together and trying to get a developer," he said.
"We're going to work diligently on that one."
Other discussions included the redevelopment of Heather Road Park, like bike paths or a toddler playground as well as new lights along Foothills Boulevard.
"We're hoping to see that very soon," Hall said, adding in the transit survey, Hart residents asked for bus routes to the Elksentre and Hart Community Centre.
Participation was on par with last year, Hall said, and this year, with the addition of the service department on site, they took about 20 service requests.
