The results of a workshop on the city’s outdoor areas will help the council decide how to spend your money, which inevitably means prioritising some facilities and projects over others.

For some people the whole process will sound a trifle boring but at some point in the future some of those people will ask why there aren’t enough seats in Summer Street or why, after paying rates for years, they still don’t have a footpath running past the house.

The answer could be that they never bothered to tell the council these things were priorities for them and they wanted more money spent and a timetable set down for completing them.

The public consultation process may also give the city a chance to reflect on whether there has been any change from a 2009 survey that found residents were not satisfied with pubic toilets, parks and the management of waterways and creeks. It would be good for city planners to know whether money spent has given residents the facilities they wanted, but again community feedback is necessary.

There are some pretty big outdoor issues on the horizon, including the future use of Wade Park and the Waratah sports complex, and some ongoing projects like cycleway and footpath construction and it makes sense for residents to give council a good indication of where their priorities lie.

The challenge with generating community interest for planning discussions like Wednesday’s is overcoming public apathy and the feeling that no matter what an individual says the council runs to its own agenda.

Planning for the future requires councils to take a big picture and long-term approach and, in the absence of any real feedback from individuals or groups, the community can’t be too critical if planners don’t deliver what’s appreciated.