Sewage project fails smell test

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This article was published 22/11/2015 (3070 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s ombudsman has ruled the RM of De Salaberry made a series of “procedural irregularities” in pursuing a low-pressure sewage system in St Malo, and that two councillors voted on this project when they should have recused themselves because of conflict of interest.

De Salaberry reeve Marc Marion said in an interview municipal staff will examine the nine recommendations and work to implement them, such as the formation of an updated fact sheet to all taxpayers affected by the project, as well as various efforts to improve transparency.

This matter came before the ombudsman after eight individuals complained about a local improvement project approved for the area north of Gosselin Road along the south shore of St Malo Lake—a place with many seasonal cottages.

In summary, the ombudsman found De Salaberry placed too much authority on an ineligible petition to proceed with the project. The 38-page report also explains the municipality was not as forthcoming with expected costs as they should have been and that two councillors who should have withdrawn from discussions on this project did not.

The report was presented at a RM of De Salaberry council meeting on Nov. 10.

This matter began in 2010 when a petition of 46 signatures was presented to the RM to support installing a low-pressure sewage system. A consulting firm was subsequently hired to provide cost estimates.

The complainants asked for a copy of the petition when they learned of its existence in December 2012. The RM refused to provide it. A formal application was made under The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and when that attempt failed, the ombudsman was contacted who supported the complainant’s demand.

“Unnecessarily withholding this information contributed to a lack of trust between the complainants and municipal officials that could have been avoided,” the report read.

The ombudsman ruled the petition was not sufficient to bring forth a local improvement. Forty-six signatures falls shy of the 67 required for a proposed plan involving 100 lots. Some signatures were also not witnessed or dated, while some parcels had more than one signature attached.

Based on the petition, the project should not have proceeded, the ombudsman declared.

“Although the RM insists that they initiated this project through a resolution, they do not mention this fact in any of their public communications,” said the report.

The complainants also found fault with the insistence the tax levy is applied on a per parcel of land basis. The RM defended its decision to the ombudsman, stating all residences should share an equal burden because all will use the sewer system. The complainants also expressed the full costs of the project were not disclosed to them.

“Given that taxpayers already had concerns regarding this project, including the perception that they would be carrying a disproportionate share of the project costs, failing to provide this information increased the level of mistrust between taxpayers and the RM,” said the report.

One individual who filed an objection at the RM’s public hearing in late 2012 complained they were not informed of the municipal board hearing in April 2013. The ombudsman found no evidence the RM, who mailed letters to others, made a mistake, as it could have been an administrative oversight or simply lost in the mail.

Councillors at the time continue to disagree on whether the sewer project was actually cancelled during a summer 2013 council meeting, which the ombudsman found “disconcerting.”

“Confusion over a vote of this importance calls into question the legitimacy of the project and has the likely potential to undermine public confidence in council,” explained the report.

There is significant dispute surrounding the vote with respect to third reading. Some councillors indicated the vote at a June 11, 2013 meeting was for third reading, while others felt they were deciding whether to hold the vote that day or defer the decision until the next council meeting.

The vote was a tie, which, if it was actually a vote on third reading means the project itself would have ceased then.

On June 25, 2013, despite objection from some that third reading had already been defeated, a vote for third reading was held and passed.

The ombudsman finds the complainants’ assertions cannot be proven nor discounted, but found this saga unsettling.

Allegations of conflict of interest

Though the two councillors in question and the RM rejected assertions of conflict of interest, the ombudsman found the two men should have removed themselves from the discussions because of a perception of bias, intentional or not.

One councillor, Marc Hamonic, was alleged to be in conflict because he owned land that would connect to the new sewer system. The councillor disputed the allegation. Hamonic declared there was no conflict because the low-pressure system would create a cost burden, not benefit, to himself and his children who also own land in the area.

It was also alleged another councillor, Gerry Maynard, was in conflict because his brother, who owns a backhoe business, was one of the two people who presented the initial petition at a 2010 council meeting. Maynard seconded the motion to approve the hiring of a consultant to provide cost estimates.

Reached by phone, Maynard asserted he never had a conflict of interest.

Previous reporting The Carillon did last year revealed the identities of the two councillors. The two men no longer sit on council.

Hamonic did not return a request for comment.

The ombudsman respected the RM’s argument that in smaller communities it is not uncommon to be related to owners who conduct business with the municipality, but the ombudsman’s office felt the perception of bias was still there.

The ombudsman also felt the RM should amend its purchasing and tendering policy, which De Salaberry has acknowledged as an issue. The minimum four invitations for tender for the low-pressure sewage system were not received, only two.

We’ll do ‘some internal looking’: reeve

De Salaberry reeve Marc Marion, who was a councillor during these years, felt the recommendations made by the ombudsman are not major and are already within the scope of practices the municipality undertakes.

The RM has been asked to provide an updated fact sheet to all taxpayers affected by the local improvement, post minutes of council meetings online, revise its council member’s code of conduct to be consistent with their rules governing municipal employees, use registered mail to inform objectors to local improvement plans, update its tendering and procurement policy, stipulate all motions, except motions to adjourn, be provided in writing prior to any vote, train council members and administration staff on better understanding legislative and policy requirements, develop a policy for dealing with conflict of interest and record each council meeting by audio and perhaps video, too.

Marion said the RM will endeavour to implement the recommendations.

“We’re going to do some internal looking at ourselves and maybe take some examples from other RMs, to see how we can maybe tweak this a bit differently,” he said.

He said the municipality attempted to be as transparent as it could throughout this project. He pointed out that some complainants expressed their concerns right away, while others waited years later, becoming another voice in the chorus.

“If you don’t get involved, then don’t scream at the end of the project and say I was never informed.”

Marion defended his former colleagues on allegations of conflict of interest.

“I have worked with the people who are being accused here, they put a lot of time in this project,” he said. “I don’t think you’d find any council in rural Manitoba that doesn’t have some link somehow with people who are in business.”

As for mistakes made by council, Marion explained elected officials are volunteers who sometimes don’t know the intricacies of municipal politics.

Marion said the low-pressure sewage system is almost complete, with some lots still needing to be hooked onto the system.