Brampton councillors to tackle ‘delegation of authority’ issue

By San Grewal Toronto Star September 5 2012 

Brampton councillors took turns chastising senior city staff Wednesday for routinely keeping councillors in the dark and “failing to report” on important issues that are supposed to be council business.

“It seems more and more we’re not getting reports back, we’re not knowing what’s happening,” said Paul Palleschi, the councillor who added the issue of “delegation of authority” to the agenda for Wednesday’s council meeting. He pointed to several specific real estate, land purchase and other issues that have been handed over to bureaucrats to handle over the years.

Councillors said they were dumbfounded to find out through the press recently that the province’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, after a long investigation they knew nothing about, had ordered the city to release details of Brampton’s downtown redevelopment after staff refused to disclose information even to council about its cost and square footage.

“Surely to God it does not mean council should be kept in the dark,” Councillor Bob Callahan said after city clerk Peter Fay explained that back in the ’90s council had delegated authority over freedom of information issues to staff.

Callahan pressed on, asking why council wasn’t informed that the refusal by city bureaucrats to release information on the Dominus downtown development plan was being investigated — or of the commissioner’s eventual decision ordering them to release the details.

“Someone knew, and we were in the dark. Things might have been very much different had I known about all of this,” Callahan said, referring to the council decision to accept the Dominus plan without knowing some of the costing details.

He was interrupted by Mayor Susan Fennell, sitting next to him, who said something that was inaudible to others in the room.

“Madam Mayor, don’t threaten me with a lawsuit,” Callahan fired back.

Fennell denied threatening him.

“Yes you did,” Callahan responded.

The discussion came just days after Friday’s announcement that council had decided not to renew city manager Deborah Dubenofsky’s contract.

The heated mood continued inside council chambers, with Councillor Gael Miles coming to the staff’s defence.

“We are not responsible for the operations of the city,” she said, suggesting that if staff wasn’t given authority on some matters, councillors would be bogged down with minor issues and unable to do their jobs. “How much micro-managing do you want to do?” she asked.

Palleschi and Councillor Elaine Moore took offence to Miles’ suggestion that the important issues being discussed weren’t council’s responsibility.

“Maybe your philosophy is we shouldn’t be involved with operations,” Palleschi responded. “My philosophy is, sometimes we should be involved in operations — the buck stops here.”

“We ultimately have the authority on operational issues,” Moore added. “Councillor Miles doesn’t think it’s important to be involved in operational matters; that’s her prerogative. Ninety per cent of the calls I get from residents are about operational matters.”

When Moore asked if the IPC decision might lead the way to council getting more information about the Dominus deal that staff has not disclosed — such as the financing details, and how someone in an apparent conflict of interest was picked to supplant council’s oversight role in the never-before-used bidding process — she was told by staff that legal advice would be needed before giving an answer.

“We’re back to the extreme we were at 20 years ago, when we weren’t told anything,” Councillor Grant Gibson said. He said he’s tired of finding out about controversial issues through the newspapers.

“That’s not acceptable.”

Brampton releases details of downtown expansion project