About

Community Voices Matter was created to make local government decisions easier to understand and community perspectives easier to see.

Most residents do not have time to follow Council meetings, staff reports, public hearings and voting records. As a result, decisions affecting taxes, services, neighbourhoods and the future of the city may receive little public attention until after they have been made.

Opportunities for public input are also limited. City engagement generally focuses on specific projects or policy areas, with the questions and response options determined by the City. This can be useful when feedback is being sought on defined choices, but it may not capture the full range of public opinion. Residents may not agree with any of the options presented or believe an important alternative has been left out.

The City has also disabled public comments on its social media accounts. Residents can still contact the City privately, but they can no longer respond publicly to those posts or see the discussion among other residents.

Residents may write to councillors, speak at eligible meetings or participate in formal engagement opportunities. What has been missing is a consistent place where they can learn about issues before Council, share their views and see how other residents feel.

Community Voices Matter is intended to help fill that gap.

Each survey examines an issue, outcome or course of action involving Victoria City Council. Some focus on a single decision, while others bring together several related decisions that contributed to the same result. Each survey begins with a short summary based on the public record. Participants then answer a small number of questions and can see how other residents responded, how councillors voted and additional information from the decision record.

Our purpose is not to tell residents what to think. It is to provide enough factual context for people to form their own views and to make community opinion more visible to residents, councillors and City staff.

Registration is free. Individual responses remain confidential. They are never published, shared with others or attributed to the participant. Survey results are reported only as combined totals.

By making Council decisions more accessible and community views more visible, Community Voices Matter aims to support informed public participation and greater accountability in local government.