{"id":39458,"date":"2021-02-16T18:08:47","date_gmt":"2021-02-16T23:08:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/?p=39458"},"modified":"2021-02-17T12:32:40","modified_gmt":"2021-02-17T17:32:40","slug":"director-anderson-to-be-given-notice-of-srds-expectations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/director-anderson-to-be-given-notice-of-srds-expectations\/","title":{"rendered":"Director Anderson to be given notice of SRD’s expectations"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Roy L Hales<\/p>\n

The Strathcona Regional District (SRD) is sending Cortes Island Regional Director Noba Anderson<\/a>\u00a0a\u00a0letter advising of the SRD Board\u2019s expectations<\/a> regarding communications between directors and regional district staff.<\/p>\n

This is the latest development in the ongoing issue. The board\u2019s original motion for a lawsuit aimed to have Anderson disqualified from holding office.<\/p>\n

Campbell River Director Claire Moglove<\/a> explained, at the Feb. 10 board meeting, they should not attempted to have Anderson removed from office.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe chances of success, in my view, are fairly low...the risks to the organization should we not succeed, should we lose, could be quite significant,\" Moglove said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t just do nothing, because the behaviour needs to be addressed,\" she added.<\/p>\n

Moglove outlined four possible courses of action, before moving that the SRD send Anderson a letter.<\/a><\/p>\n

Tahsis representative and Mayor Martin Davis<\/a> seconded the motion, which carried.<\/p>\n

Previous conflicts<\/h2>\n

Prior to this, the SRD Board refused to pay Anderson\u2019s legal costs in what the Supreme Court of British Columbia found to be a frivolous lawsuit<\/a>\u00a0a handful of Cortes residents brought against her.<\/p>\n

The SRD then censured Anderson<\/a>\u00a0for showing confidential SRD documents, associated with the suit, to her lawyer.<\/p>\n

The board\u2019s conduct is currently the subject of a lawsuit that Anderson has brought before the Supreme Court of British Columbia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This most recent incident started on\u00a0Dec. 17, 2019 when Anderson emailed an SRD staff member<\/a> that his impending referral of a property, that she co-owns with several other Cortes residents, could be a waste of time, unless he waits for the Ministry of Transportation to explain what they would accept as far as roads go. There was a strong possibility that he would have to do the work twice.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, unless you have already completed the referral, it would be wonderful if you could hold off until the new year. All the very best to you. Warmly, Noba,\u201d wrote Anderson in response.<\/p>\n

The SRD interprets this email as insider influence and a violation of section 102 of the Community Charter.<\/p>\n

At the Boards\u2019s last meeting, Anderson\u2019s lawyer,\u00a0Matthew Voell<\/a>, explained their position.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe key requirement\u2026for a breach of section 102<\/a>, is that the board member must not use their office to attempt to influence a staff member in respect to a decision being made \u2026 It does not prohibit a board member from acting in a personal capacity with respect to their property, rather there has to be an attempt to leverage their position as a Director. To use the language from 102, \u2018use his or her office to influence a decision,'\" Voell wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is somewhat of a unique situation because there are a number of owners. Imagine a situation where there is only one owner and that owner is a board member. Of course the board member is entitled, in their personal capacity and not as a board member, to engage with staff in the issues involving their property,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Voell produced a long stream of emails demonstrating that staff repeatedly initiated the direct contacts with Anderson. Voell maintained that Anderson \"communicated with Regional District staff in her personal capacity and not in her role as a director,\" used her personal email address, and \"almost always copied her land partner Ms. Lovena Harvey.\"<\/p>\n

In their subsequent\u00a0press release<\/a>, the SRD Board highlight the idea that is not sufficient for Anderson to use her personal email address.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe use of personal email does not immunize a Director from the application of section 102 of the community Charter, in cases where the influence or attempted influence and an officer or employee of the local government,\" explained Kathryn Stuart<\/a>, the SRD's lawyer.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2026The person receiving the communication will undoubtedly know, the person is an elected official,\" she added.<\/p>\n

Stuart said that it was not sufficient for Anderson to tell staff she was acting in her personal capacity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a number of\u00a0 circumstances where an elected official could communicate with a staff member in his or her personal capacity and that would not be a breach of Section 102 \u2026 Examples would include: an official could communicate directly with staff when they are paying their taxes, purchasing a dog license or applying for a building permit,\" she said.<\/p>\n

Stuart is drawing up a letter informing Anderson how the Board expects directors to behave.<\/p>\n

Proposed Integrity Commission<\/h2>\n

Campbell River Mayor Andy Adams<\/a> moved that the SRD request that an \"integrity commission\" be created.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe chair of the SRD be authorized to write a letter to the Provincial Government Attorney General\u2019s office requesting the implementation of an integrity commission,\" Adams said.<\/p>\n

He added that while British Columbia does not yet have such a commission, other provinces do and they are very helpful \u201cin guiding local governments, Regional Districts, in matters that are maybe beyond their capability or scope to handle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moglove agreed to the proposal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe lack of teeth of the community charter. There is not a lot that a local government can do when there may be some behaviour that is not appropriate,\" Moglove said.<\/p>\n

Links of Interest<\/h2>\n