Municipalities

Carp River model’s water levels manipulated on eve of public report: documents

Topics: 
Municipalities, Whistleblowers
Rating: 
0

David Reevely – May 13, 2013

Engineers trying to fix a flawed model of how the Carp River floods in bad storms manipulated figures to make the river’s flow seem slower at critical points, newly released documents say.

The figures were rejected by other experts before anything was done with them, said a city manager working on the file, Don Herweyer, but he wasn’t sure why they’d been worked up in the first place. “Maybe it was just a modelling exercise to get the effects of different changes,” he said. “I don’t know.”

Former Laval mayor charged with two counts of gangsterism, 37 nabbed

Topics: 
Quebec, Corruption, Municipalities, Organized crime, Construction industry
Rating: 
0

CTV News – May 9, 2013

Laval’s “mayor-for-life” was once considered an untouchable force in Quebec politics. On Thursday afternoon, Gilles Vaillancourt sat in front of a judge in handcuffs, facing one of the most serious charges in Canadian law.

Vaillancourt had run Laval virtually unopposed since 1989, stepping down last November after a series of raids on his homes, office and bank accounts. The former mayor is now facing 12 counts, including two charges of gangsterism.

Cornwall whistleblower speaks out, files suit against city

Topics: 
Ontario, Whistleblowers, Municipalities
Rating: 
4

April 11, 2013

Cornwall's deputy fire chief is one of two whistleblowers going after the city and Mayor Bob Kilger with allegations of contravening the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act.

Rob Hickley issued a media release where he comes clean as the whistleblower."I have filed an application in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice against my employer, the City of Cornwall and Mayor Bob Kilger," Hickley said in the release.

Collingwood town officials face OPP probe

Topics: 
Municipalities, Conflict of interest, Government transparency, Ontario
Rating: 
0

Dave Seglins – March 8, 2013

Ontario Provincial Police are investigating allegations of corruption and conflict of interest levelled against elected officials in the town of Collingwood, a popular ski and summer destination northwest of Toronto.

CBC News has learned the OPP's anti-rackets branch has received three separate complaints from citizens over a string of recent council decisions and proposals involving multi-million-dollar projects, and a proposed casino in the town.

Montreal city hall raided by anti-corruption police

Topics: 
Quebec, Corruption, Municipalities
Rating: 
3

February 19, 2013

Montreal's city hall has been raided by anti-corruption police seeking evidence of fraud and breach of trust. Other offices of the Canadian city and of Union Montreal, former Mayor Gerald Tremblay's party, were also raided.

Mr Tremblay and the mayor of Laval have both stepped down amid allegations related to the construction industry. Further details on the targets of the inquiry were unavailable; A police spokeswoman said the raid was part of a two-year investigation.

Ottawa mayor’s office rushed casino vote, strategized with developer

Topics: 
Municipalities, Government ethics, Ontario
Rating: 
3

Watson staff co-ordinated push with OLG, documents reveal

David Reevely – January 21, 2013

The rush to approve the idea of a new casino for Ottawa was entirely self-imposed, driven by Mayor Jim Watson and his staff, newly released documents show.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., which wants the new casino, was prepared to give the city time for a full debate, according to correspondence released to the Citizen under access-to-information legislation. Much of correspondence is between Serge Arpin, Watson’s chief of staff, and Giacomo “Jake” Pastore, OLG’s manager of community and municipal relations.

City whistleblowing engineer off the hook for legal expenses

Topics: 
Municipalities, Whistleblowers
Rating: 
4
Ted Cooper

David Reevely – January 8, 2013

A renegade city engineer who’s fought development plans along the Carp River won’t have to pay a builder anything for his failed efforts to stop one of its projects, the Ontario Municipal Board has ruled.

But Ted Cooper, who’s battled Richcraft for years on his own time and on his own dime, has walked perilously close to the line and should probably knock it off, the OMB’s adjudicator Marc Denhez wrote in a decision released quietly in late December.

Ottawa whistleblower wins battle against developer

Topics: 
Municipalities, Whistleblowers, Victories
Rating: 
3
Ted Cooper

City water resources engineer worried about development along Carp River flood plain

CBC News – November 1, 2012

The man who blew the whistle on a development plan in the city's west end has won another battle in his long fight with developers. Ted Cooper is a water resources engineer for the City of Ottawa, but as a citizen, Cooper has complained to authorities several times about what he calls faulty development designs on the flood plains of the Carp River.

"But this time the developer fought back," Cooper said. Kanata West is a 700-hectare project near Scotiabank Place.

Quebec corruption scandal claims the career of a third mayor

Topics: 
Quebec, Corruption, Municipalities, Government ethics
Rating: 
0

Sidhartha Banerjee – November 30, 2012

A Quebec mayor who faces several corruption-related charges announced his resignation Friday but insisted his legal woes had nothing to do with the decision.

Richard Marcotte, the top municipal official in Mascouche, told a local newspaper that family-related reasons prompted him to end his 22-year spell in power.

Alberta municipalities oppose whistleblower protection

Topics: 
Municipalities, Alberta, Legislation
Rating: 
4

David Hutton – September 13, 2012

The Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) has come out against whistleblower protection for municipal employees. In a letter to Alberta mayors, councillors and CAOs the association argues that the legislation now being prepared by the provincial government should not apply to municipalities.

This message to AUMA members comes in response to consultations being carried out by Service Alberta to inform the development of the new law.

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