Kamloops city council has quashed the idea of starting meetings in the evenings instead of the afternoon.

Council voted 5-4 yesterday against having staff explore the option of starting meetings at 6 p.m.

Councillor Bill Sarai says he doesn’t think starting meetings later would impact turnout among the constituency.

“So I think if there’s an issue that the people are passionate about, and they’re interested in, they will be here. I just think that for staff, to pay the overtime, we’re going to be in the place where we’re paying people after hours. And that’s not something I think the residents of Kamloops will want.”

Councillor Mike O’Reilly says regardless of when council meetings start the time won’t be perfect for everyone.

“I don’t think there’s any silver bullet that’s going to be a perfect time to do this. But I’m curious, when we look at how many people are watching online, public hearings I understand at this point aren’t broadcast. So maybe there’s that opportunity, for people to have more of an idea of what’s going on. As we know technology is kind of taking over.”

And to that inquiry, Kamloops city staff did say they could look to expand council broadcasts to include public hearings.

The idea to start council meetings later was pitched by councillor Dale Bass earlier this spring, who says the current 1:30 p.m. start time can be restrictive for people to come.

Kamloops council meetings occasionally extend into the evenings, and the city’s bylaws say council meetings have to end by 11 p.m.