IT SEEMS THAT OF LATE just about everything of any consequence that's coming to Orangeville and Shelburne councils is being dealt with primarily out of the public eye.

In the case of Orangeville council, issues that might be expected to lead to loud and long debates are dealt with in a summary fashion, with council meetings that deal with a mound of staff-prepared paper often lasting well under two hours.

That's roughly half the length of such meetings during the "Brown regime," and this year the council sessions take place at most twice a month (only once this month), compared with sessions almost weekly in "the old days."

We're left suspecting that the real decision-making is transpiring elsewhere, either by Town staff or at committee meetings seldom attended by the media or the general public.

Whatever the case, the result has been that the public has been learning precious little about what has been going on, most of the news thus far this year having dealt with an examination of budget proposals by members of an unelected committee.

The situation in Shelburne is certainly different. For one thing, the councillors have been meeting far more frequently than their Orangeville counterparts, particularly in the last few weeks.

However, the same sort of problem has been confronting your humble media servants, since virtually all discussions have taken place behind closed doors.

Mayor Ed Crewson says the debate centred on legal issues, although we're far from certain as to whether legal action has actually transpired, or is simply expected, as the result of the juxtaposition of wet weather and an apparent error in capculating how much sewage the town's treatment plant can handle.

It may well be that the Town will face a lawsuit from developers who are suddenly being told they can't complete approved subdivisions, but our understanding is that even if that happened, town ratepayers would be protected through third-party liability.

Whatever the case, surely our readers have a right to know at least the essence of what's going on, be it in committee or in an in camera council session.