It's not like the City and Developers weren't already alerted that the internet would be a problem. The service in Oshawa north of Highway 407 is poor at best and when a whole community tries to get on broadband the signal becomes even more unstable and at times simply drops off.
Thursday, Oct 28, 2021, between 6:30 pm and 9:30 pm the Virtual Meeting conducted by the Developers' Consultant and the City of Oshawa Development Services staff was painful to listen to on many levels, but the immediate and big problem with the evening's intermittent internet is a reason many residents are asking for a DO OVER.
Dropped calls, static and scratchy reception were the norm. Many were unable to open the link and resorted to phoning in, but were not able to follow the presentation power point maps. For some reason instead of the fairly familiar Zoom platform, the City and Developers decided to use the Webex platform which was unfamiliar to a lot of people who complained to me. I tried to help a senior neighbor get on-line, but the connection was so brutal I lost track how many times we lost the connection. I personally know of one single mom to the west, another local business owner to the south, and three other neighbours close by, who gave up, or were not allowed to join in because they didn't realize they needed to pre-register.
Result: the meeting was not transparent and an undeniable accessibility fail.
Any attempt by those meeting organizers and promoters to claim the virtual meeting for Columbus area residents was a 'fulsome public process' I'd say are wanting to sprinkle fairy dust.
I support the area residents' request (see flyer below) for a do over in-person meeting in 2022. I sincerely hope other Oshawa residents have their back too.
p.s. more posts to follow related to this latest and largest Oshawa sprawl plan yet, and the absurdity of the process for the Part II Plan north of Hwy 407.
Thursday, Oct 28, 2021, between 6:30 pm and 9:30 pm the Virtual Meeting conducted by the Developers' Consultant and the City of Oshawa Development Services staff was painful to listen to on many levels, but the immediate and big problem with the evening's intermittent internet is a reason many residents are asking for a DO OVER.
Dropped calls, static and scratchy reception were the norm. Many were unable to open the link and resorted to phoning in, but were not able to follow the presentation power point maps. For some reason instead of the fairly familiar Zoom platform, the City and Developers decided to use the Webex platform which was unfamiliar to a lot of people who complained to me. I tried to help a senior neighbor get on-line, but the connection was so brutal I lost track how many times we lost the connection. I personally know of one single mom to the west, another local business owner to the south, and three other neighbours close by, who gave up, or were not allowed to join in because they didn't realize they needed to pre-register.
Result: the meeting was not transparent and an undeniable accessibility fail.
Any attempt by those meeting organizers and promoters to claim the virtual meeting for Columbus area residents was a 'fulsome public process' I'd say are wanting to sprinkle fairy dust.
I support the area residents' request (see flyer below) for a do over in-person meeting in 2022. I sincerely hope other Oshawa residents have their back too.
p.s. more posts to follow related to this latest and largest Oshawa sprawl plan yet, and the absurdity of the process for the Part II Plan north of Hwy 407.