Port Moody's mayor says there will be no further investigation into accusations a tour last November that was attended by four councillors was actually an illegal meeting to discuss a major redevelopment project.
The tour was brought to light during a public hearing Oct. 3 for a rezoning application by Vancouver-based developer Wesgroup Properties to allow its massive redevelopment of the Coronation Park neighbourhood to proceed.
A speaker, Jeff Poste, alleged a tour of Wesgroup's River District project in Vancouver by a majority of council actually constituted a meeting and should have been open to public scrutiny.
The allegation sparked one councillor, Haven Lurbiecki, to walk out of the council meeting that followed the public hearing after her motion to defer consideration of Wesgroup's rezoning application until the matter was independently investigated was defeated.
In a statement today, Oct. 11, Port Moody Mayor Meghan Lahti said there's no need for further investigation.
She said outside advice solicited by the city confirmed her understanding that the tour, which she did not attend, was an opportunity to learn more about the developer's approach to its projects.
"I take these types of allegations/concerns seriously," Lahti said.
"Port Moody council conducts its business with transparency, accountability and a strong commitment to serving the best interests of the community."
At Tuesday's council meeting, Lurbiecki called on the city to advocate to the province for the establishment of a municipal government ethics officer to act as a neutral investigator for allegations of conflicts of interest, ethics violations or bullying.
"As it stands now, municipal councils are self-regulating bodies," she said. "The truth is whatever council says it is."
Lurbiecki said while she also received an invitation to attend the tour after she was elected last October, she wasn't comfortable with going once she was sworn in to council and she didn't keep track of the tour's details.
Coun. Diana Dilworth, who did attend the tour, said she saw it as "an opportunity to see some of the best case scenarios of what Coronation Park could look like."
Wesgroup's senior vice-president of development, Brad Jones, said the company had also offered the tour to the previous council.
He said it was a way to show what the developer has done elsewhere and "to speak about the history of Coronation Park that led to approval of the [official community plan]."
While the Community Charter that regulates the conduct of municipal affairs in B.C. states meetings of council must be open to the public, except under very specific circumstances, a special report published in 2012 by the office of the BC Ombudsperson acknowledges there's no specific definition for what constitutes a meeting.
"Local governments are sometimes unsure about when an informal gathering is in fact a meeting subject to the open meeting requirements."
Following the public hearing that lasted nearly three hours, the six councillors who remained at the subsequent meeting unanimously agreed to give third reading to Wesgroup's rezoning application that will pave the way for the redevelopment of 59 properties currently occupied by aging single-family homes into a dense, urban mixed-use neighbourhood that will be home to about 5,500 new residents in six high-rise condo towers and a six-storey rental building, along with office and commercial spaces.
When completed, it will be the largest redevelopment project in Port Moody's history.
