Penticton council will be giving a public open house a try.

The open house will be a trial for a potential alternative to the public question period during regular council meetings.

On Tuesday, Coun. Isaac Gilbert had proposed to move to a quarterly open house with the public and council outside of council chambers.

Explaining his reasoning behind the motion, Gilbert said that he felt there was an accessibility issue for public questions, such as the variable times at which they happen and limitations on how long individuals can speak.

Speakers are restricted to talk about what is on the council agenda of that day during question period.

Gilbert’s motion received no support from council. Instead a one-time trial of the open house was proposed and received unanimous support.

Other councillors expressed their support in increasing the amount of public interest, as well as concerns about removing the existing public question period.

A date and location for the trial open house has not yet been announced.

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