Collingwood’s private discussions over airport irks stakeholders
By Ian Adams Collingwood Connection
Secrecy over the future of the Collingwood Regional Airport is troubling to at least one municipal councillor.
Collingwood council discussed the airport behind closed doors at its Jan. 4 meeting, which marks the third time in three months the future of the facility has been debated in camera.
At Monday’s meeting Coun. Kevin Lloyd refused to participate in the in-camera session dealing with the airport. It’s the second time Lloyd has refused to take part in a closed-door session on issues with the airport.
“It’s not been as open and transparent as I believe it should be,” Lloyd said.
The deputy mayor disagreed with Lloyd’s assessment.
“Based on the information and legal opinions we are receiving, there’s no doubt in my mind that in my opinion, those are proper in camera discussions,” said Brian Saunderson.
One of the reasons cited for the closed-door session was the pending acquisition or disposition of land, though Saunderson says the town has not made a decision on whether it would sell the facility.
“The town is not considering any specific course [of direction] right now, [council] is just looking at all the options,” said Saunderson, who is taking questions on the matter because Mayor Sandra Cooper has stepped away from the discussion, citing a conflict of interest as her brother, Paul Bonwick, is a representative of Clearview Aviation Business Park (CABP).
CABP has plans for a multi-million-dollar industrial development beside the airport.
Leave a Reply