(2014-2018 Term of Council)
Below is the green link to the findings of the OPP Post-Retirement Report after the previous deputy mayor Bob Meadows and I went to the OPP. The previous township council, under the CAO Eric Wargel, refused to address our concerns with the post retirement benefits (health and dental) that were being paid out till the age of 80 for staff and their family – all this without any proper documentation or approvals from past council. He retired a few days before I was elected as mayor. Past Mayor Mary Small Brett tried to down play the OPP findings by stating the OPP found no wrong doing.
However, the last page last paragraph of the O.P.P report, under Conclusion states “While individual employees or perhaps individual members of council could have been held accountable by the corporation for not following the Bylaw 94-44, there is no evidence anyone committed a criminal offence”. The OPP determined that it was not a criminal offence as there was not enough documentation for them to move forward. The Post Retirement Benefits were then cancelled saving the tax payers hundred of thousands in taxes over the years had it not been cancelled. No one on council or staff was held accountable for this action.
As a consequence to our concerns and because we went to the O.P.P, the previous council claimed that Councillor Meadows and I violated the Council Code of conduct. The results of the investigation found that Councillor Meadows and I were working in the township’s best interest and that the root cause of this problem was staff not following proper procedures, policies and by-laws. It also stated that the township should hire an outside consultant to fix the problems – this was never followed.
After Councillor Meadows and I were cleared in the investigation, we were put under another investigation for harassing the township planner as we gave evidence at a land tribunal hearing against the township on the Everett Gravel Pit.
The lawyer, Harold Elston, was hired by the township to be the new Integrity Commissioner and he conducted the harassment investigation against Councillor Meadows and I.
Mr. Elston was contacted by the previous Deputy Mayor Little who ran against me for mayor in 2018 and the past CAO, Mr. Wargel, both of whom were found by the O.P.P to be involved in the post retirement benefits and 13 other financial irregularities. This included salary increases without council’s approval and mileage claims by the CAO without proper documentation.
Mr. Elston was hired without following the process as required under the Municipal Act and he assured the township he would quickly come up with a report. This raised red flags as to how he could determine a quick report when he had not yet seen the files or the complaints. I was informed by a resident that Mr. Elston should not be the township integrity commissioner as he had been suspended by the Law Society for misappropriating money from his clients. Where was Mr. Elston’s integrity (Law Society Order attached below)? Was the township desperate to get a report against me as I had put my name to run for mayor in 2018?
Mr. Harold Elston’s quick investigation, without providing all the evidence as requested by Councillor Meadows and my lawyer, came out just before the 2018 elections. The report stated that I harassed the planner as I, as a resident, gave evidence against the township at the Gravel Pit Tribunal hearing. His report stated that I ‘QUESTIONED” the planner during council meetings (which is my obligation as a member of council to ask questions before I approve a report). Additionally, as per the law, any evidence given in any legal proceedings (including Tribunal hearings) is covered under absolute privilege immunity and yet I was found to have violated the Council Code of Conduct and my salary was suspended for three months again without proper process as required under the municipal act, ontario.
Harold Elston’s report also stated that I did not understand planning matters. The concern I had was that there could be possibilities of flooding issues as the pit was in a flood plane area and a vulnerable aquifer. Of note this did occur and the neighbouring properties flooded.
It is quite a coincidence that the 2018 investigation that was put against me was supported by the person running against me for mayor and the report came out just before the elections as the person running against me for Mayor was identified by the O.P.P in their investigation on the post retirement benefits and other financial problems of the township.
Additionally, in 2022 Scott Anderson who ran against me for Mayor put the censure against me without any evidence just before the elections. The integrity commissioner report on Annette Bays harassment complaint stated that her complaint and the censure had similar complaints and I was cleared of all the harassment false allegations from Annette Bays, so I would have been cleared of all the false allegations in the censure also had the council followed the laws and given the censure to the integrity commissioner to investigate. It has been found that Mayor Scott Anderson’s actions and involvement in the Colgan subdivision has caused millions in losses for the township and he has been named in lawsuits that he has put on township residents to pay his legal costs.
