O’Leary pushes for neighbourhood groups

West Ward councillor  Angela O’Leary is keen to see neighbourhoods unite to make Hamilton a better city.

O’Leary,  has been working on the idea of “neighbourhood liaison groups” in Frankton for five years, and is keen to implement the plan in other areas.

“The group would include a couple of business owners, perhaps a worker from a social or health agency, a school in the area, a commercial property owner and most importantly some residents well connected in the area. And we’d throw in an elected member as well,” O’Leary said on her Facebook page.

“Basically the people that live and breathe that area – I guess you could say it would work like a community board.”

The proposed groups would aim to explore issues which were relevant to local people from different aspects of life, and increase the speed and efficiency in which concerns and ideas were passed through to the council.

“Take the Dinsdale lower speed limit fiasco. Even before that went out for consultation staff would have gone straight to the liaison group, and suffice to say, the group would have said a huge fat no.”

Some of the proposed groups included Glenview/Bader and Fairfield/Chartwell, while O’Leary said some groups, such as Hamilton East and Frankton, would be large enough to operate on their own.

A councillor known for her avid use of social media, O’Leary encouraged voters to offer their own opinions on the idea via Facebook and Twitter comments.