The Selkirk Community Renewal Corporation (SCRC) has kicked off a community consultation process to help shape its new five-year Neighbourhood Renewal Plan that will carry through to 2030. The goal is to hear directly from residents about what matters most when it comes to local programs, services, and community development.
“The five year neighborhood renewal plan is a document that guides our organization on the priorities of the City of Selkirk, so it helps us to see needs and then where we can fill in gaps in the community with programs and events that we host, how to reach out for partnerships in the community, and also how to review and approve the applications that we receive for our small grants funds for our organization,” said Ashley Henry, Executive Director, Selkirk Community Renewal Corporation.
She explained that they are looking to update the document with current information and that the process involves connecting directly with the community to talk about our needs. This involves putting out a digital survey that’s easy for people to fill in from the comfort of their homes, with a paper form also available for those who prefer a lower-tech option.
The survey is meant to learn more about Selkirk. Questions include topics like what you value about your neighbourhood, what helps people feel safe or makes people feel unsafe in our neighbourhoods, what makes people feel heard or involved in our community, and more questions that dig deeper into what strengthens or hinders our neighbourhoods.
For those who prefer to chat in person to express their ideas, there will be at least one local in-person consultation event. This event takes place on June 10 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the Gaynor Family Regional Library.
Henry explained that everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend the event at the library.
“(It’s) open to the public, so anyone can attend. We are hoping to get invites out to the community as much as we can. It’s not always easy to do that, to try to reach the bigger population, but for sure the invite is extended to the public,” said Henry.
Attending this event or filling out the survey is the best way to let the SCRC know about your neighbourhood before they move to the next steps.
“(We’ll have the) community consultation forum and then we’ll likely do some smaller group consultations as well, with various groups around Selkirk to get more feedback and to complete more surveys. Myself and my staff have certain organizations that we’ll go and sit with in person to continue that process and get as much feedback from the community as we can,” said Henry.
She says that it’s very important that they get this feedback so the SCRC can do the most good possible for Selkirk.
“For our organization, it was our mandate when we first started in 2008, and it was a requirement that was placed upon us from the provincial government. Our umbrella organization was formerly Neighbourhoods Alive, which is now the Community Development Branch. It gives us a purpose in the community and just helps guide us in filling the needs of the community. It’s similar, I guess, to a strategic plan, but it’s really a guiding document for our organization and everything that we implement in the community,” said Henry.
She also explained that they are looking for feedback from every person from every walk of life. Even if you don’t think you’ll have much to say, hearing anything that you’d like to share is important.
Henry hopes to hear from you.
“We would love to hear the feedback from residents in the City of Selkirk on what they would like to see. And I know sometimes it feels like your voices aren’t heard, but that’s something that Selkirk Community Renewal Corporation takes into consideration. We are that resource in the community that helps connect other resources together. We’re like the bridge that fills the gap in the City of Selkirk, and so having people’s voices and what they would like, and then finding out what we can do to help with those(is what we’re trying to do),” she said.
