Who Will Be The Next Treasurer
Posted by auroracitizen on November 12, 2009
The position of Treasurer for the Town of Aurora is currently occupied by Dan Elliot. Mr. Elliot was appointed to a six-month term, which is shortly coming to an end.
Has anyone seen an advertisement or posting in the paper for this position? Does that mean that Mr. Elliot is getting the position by default or will Council simply extend the contract?
Our guess is that they will use the excuse that to change Treasurers in the middle of the budget process would be irresponsible. Didn’t a former Ontario politician (and Minister of Education) famously get quoted about creating a crisis so they could implement what they wanted?
A better question might be — why wasn’t the position posted immediately upon hiring Mr Elliott so the process of finding a new Treasurer would have already been underway. That would have shown forethought and good planning.
Will there not be a competition for this significant position in our community or will this be another hand-picked appointment?
Aurora Citizen 
evelyn.buck@rogers.com said
I have raised the question when the recruitment process will begin for the permanent appointment of a Treasurer
The Mayor advised the Chief Administrative Officer has authority to make the appointment.
The Town, as required by Provincial regulations,has a recruitment policy.
The Chief Administrative Officer has authority to follow the policy and make a recommendation.
The position is a Bylaw appointment. Bylaws are passed by Council. They are municipal legislation.They are not witin the authority of the Chief Administrative Officer. That establishes the authority to appoint a person to fill a statutary office. .
As yet, there is no sign the recruitment process is taking place.
Non-statutary positions recently approved by Council are already in the process of recruitment. I understand one only took a week to fill.
Does anyone imagine anything happens without full knowledge and approval of the Mayor.
White Knight said
It is not surprising that Councillor Collins-Mrakas is quiet these days. I think she me must be fed up of banging her head against a brick wall because anything she does say or propose is shot down and defeated by the GOS. The same goes for Councillors McRoberts and Buck. I admire them for their resilience. If it were me, I think I might have committed murder by now!
Richard Johnson said
To Interested Observer, November 16, 2009 at 2:46 pm
As I recall, Alison tried to do the best she could with the information that she had. Alison and I communicated a number of times (as I also tried to do with others) and Alison showed up to a Northland Public Open House which was notably held the night after the vote was taken at council, which incidentally begs the question as to why the Mayor would have allowed the vote to be taken at that time in the first place.
I think Alison, Bob McRoberts and Al Wilson also took the time to do a site visit and become better educated on the issue, (also unlike most Council members), however the whole issue was essentially steered by the Mayor and Councillor MacEachern; both of whom seemed to be unable to grasp the identified need, the history of the issue and the viable alternatives.
The sad truth is that a whole lot of people tried to educate the Mayor and Council over a long period of time and some (like me) assumed that the Mayor had a greater understanding of the issues than she apparently did. At the end of the day I personally think that the Mayor only listened to people that told her what she wanted to hear (most notably a few close friends) and her stance appeared to me to be primarily for the camera. The facts and the implications of her actions simply did not appear to matter.
Northland Power and others (including me) offered for over two years to meet with Councillors and / or staff in order to educate them on the issues as a result of the huge amount of misinformation being spread around by Sue Walmer and MegaWHAT but the discussion at Council continued with huge amounts of misinformation being permitted to stand as fact.
Despite promises to allow Northland Power and other well informed people the opportunity to explain their position in detail, Phyllis gave the power company and the OPA ten minutes to present to Council before Council grilled them for over an hour with very basic questions that they should have had the answers to many months before and then (NOTE THIS) Councillor MacEachern miraculously pulled out a lengthy pre-drafted resolution that opposed all of the proposed local generation alternatives thereby sinking any possibility to work constructively with the power companies. Knowing what I know now, it is very likely that it would not have mattered how Northland and the OPA answered any questions because the resolution was pre-drafted and ready to go ! The whole issue was already “in the can”, signed sealed and delivered by the Mayor & Co.
It remains my view there could be serious long term impacts to Aurora and other municipalities, as a direct result of the Mayor and Council’s handling of this issue and so far I think the facts support my opinion.
Because all of the Councils in York Region rejected local generation without even apparently fully understanding why the solution was proposed or how best to implement a power supply solution in the most considerate fashion, an unwanted and less than desirable solution was eventually imposed on King and it is currently nearing the final approval stage. Construction should start in the new year.
I think that Alison did her best given the apparent odds of having an educated and civil discussion at Council. Alison’s views clearly aren’t heard in any event so I doubt that she could have had any effect on the eventual outcome.
fed up said
The point in all of this is that the mayor doesn’t have any idea how to run a proper meeting.
Anonymous for a reason said
Welcome back, Junius. I too watched the council meeting again, and I still can’t believe her Morrisness “lost it” (yes, Granger felt it coming and verbalized it so). I totally agree that this mayor uses “bluster to cover her fluster” but this time she has really shown herself up. She prides herself on every little detail, but this situation was beyond her. When she gets rattled she goes on the defensive and any semblance of the rules go by the wayside. Instead of apologizing and acknowledging the break in the rules, she just carried on with her modified interpretation of the event with Granger, the nodding dog, waiting for his tummy to be rubbed. I wonder if the events would have transpired in the same way had her sidekick Evelina been present? She being noticeable absent because of her supporter Walter being a delegate.
Thank you, Alison, for your willingness to call Mayor Morris out. It isn’t pleasant, but it is necessary and I appreciate you taking a stand.
Interested Observer said
Thanks White Knight, I wasn’t aware of Councillor Collins-Mrakas’ previous contributions. What was her position on the power plant being built in Aurora?
evelyn.buck@rogers.com said
An often over-looked factor in the Mor-Mac operation is the need to hold the group together in slavish support. Councillors Granger and Gaertner illustrate the modus operandi perfectly.
Their contribution to debate has been noted in this blog. Lack of coherence, constant repetition and indecipherable questions are a constant aberration from orderly debate. The rules prohibit all of the above. But to enforce them would risk a breach in the circle of power.
In return for absolute power, the Mayor must be pay a price.
Last Tuesday, I was recognised by the Chair. Hardly had I risen to speak than Councillor Granger interrupted calling a Point of Order and a Point of Privilege and a dozen other things beside. The Chair failed to make the ruling called for.
Councillor Collins Mrakas called for order and insisted on a response.
That’s what triggered the Mayor’s exodus from the chair.
When the presiding member leaves the chair, the meeting is automatically adjourned “until a time to be named”.
That didn’t happen either.
Anonymous for a reason said
White Knight @ 7:31 – Right on! I have great respect for A C-M and I hope she runs again. She is a bright light in all the murkiness of this council.
Junius said
Dear Interested Observer,
Watch the tape of the meeting.
At approximately 1:35, Councilor Granger called a Point of Order to seek clarity on an issue that Councilor Buck was addressing.
To help with this, I quote from Wikipedia
“A point of order may be raised if the rules appear to have been broken. This may interrupt a speaker during debate, or anything else if the breach of the rules warrants it. The point is resolved before business continues.
“The point of order calls upon the chair to make a ruling. The motion is sometimes erroneously used to ask a question of information or a question of parliamentary procedure. The Chair may rule on the point of order or submit it to the judgment of the assembly. If the chair accepts the point of order, it is said to be sustained or ruled well-taken. If not, it is said to be overruled or ruled not well-taken”
Councilor Granger was using the Point of Order incorrectly, and Councilor Collins-Mrakas correctly raised her own Point of Order. Her Point of Order was that Councilor Granger did not have a Point of Order. Entirely legitimate.
Mayor Morris should have immediately ruled Councilor Granger out of order. It is patently obvious that she does not know what she is doing, cannot properly run a meeting, and uses bluster to cover her fluster.
What happened instead was the Mayor refusing to even acknowledge the legitimate Point of Order of Councilor Collins-Mrakas and instead allowing Councilor Granger to ramble on and on and on. He never did raise a Point of Order. He simply rambled on about the motion on the floor. Again, completely out of order. When Councilor Collins-Mrakas refused to allow the point of order to be ignored our current Mayor called a recess.
Again, from Wikipedia:
“Under the commonly used Robert’s Rules of Order, a motion to recess may not be called when another person has the floor, is not reconsiderable, and requires a second and a majority vote.”
To call a recess, there must be a legitimate reason. Simply not knowing what to do, is not a legitimate reason. Again, the Mayor proved that she is not capable of running a meeting, as she simply does not know the rules.
When they came back from the unauthorized recess, the Mayor then described what Councilor Granger’s Point of Order was (he obviously was not able to do this himself).
Note she did not call Councilor Collins-Mrakas out of order, neither did she rule on Councilor Granger’s “Point of Order”.
She simply declared a recess, walked away from it all…and then came back as if nothing had happened.
We probably will never know what Councilor Collins-Mrakas said, as it was off mic, but in watching the tape several times, I would suggest it was more that the Mayor was being challenged than anything else.
It would also be interesting to know what the Mayor said to Councilor Collins-Mrakas when she walked by her.
If you think I’m making it up, watch the tape of the meeting and see for yourself. But, save yourself some of the pain, and start around 1 hour 25 minutes.
White Knight said
At the start of this council’s term I was most impressed with Councillor Collins-Mrakas. She struck me as intelligent, interested, inquiring and what came out of her mouth was intelligible, coherent, analytical and logical. I found this so particularly re the power plant, budget and other issues.
I am aware that she has been the object of others’ vitriolic attacks and threats both in publica and behind the scenes. Is it any wonder that she appears to have lost her voice nowadays? However, I believe that although she may be “down”, she is certainly not “out”. I like to think that she is just biding her time and like a phoenix will rise again out of the ashes of this pathetic administration. She has many, many admirers and supporters in town and I think that will all translate into votes in 2010, if she chooses to run again. She garners voters’ respect and goodness knows there is very little to respect about this council. She shows up the the tree hugger, the control freak, Cruella de Ville, the buffoon, the space cadet and the fence hopper, all of whom sit to her left-but-one. They can only dream about the integrity and intelligence that is Councillor Collins-Mrakas.
White Knight said
Firstly I do not believe that an IC should be recruited by council members. I believe the recruitment should be done by an impartial panel of people, totally removed from council members.
Secondly, I would not wish to have an IC who is a lawyer. I think we have seen quite enough of what lawyers have instigated or catalyzed during this term (I cannot refer to previous terms as I have not lived in the town long enough). I would also like to suggest that lawyer and ethics probably do not belong in the same sentence. Provincial and federal politics are heavily weighted with lawyers and look at the unsavoury conduct we have witnessed at those two levels.
Thirdly, I believe emphatically that a lawyer who has been retained to carry out council’s business should NOT even have a whisper of being considered as a candidate for the position of IC.
But hey, Aurora’s politics are full of murky goings-on sowho would be surprised if the rumour turns out to be fact?
fed up said
Perhaps someone should send Gaertner an email explaining who will be on the very last float in the Santa Claus parade.
Anonymous said
Allison exact words were Oh God. The mayor considered that as swearing. Seems strange that the mayor held a Prayer Meeting where I am sure many people said Oh God and she did not stop that meeting.
The mayor was clearly in the wrong as she should have ruled on the Point of Order that Grainger called and then proceeded to stupidly keep going. It is up to the mayor to rule on a point of order before business can move along. She did not, as it would have made one of the GOS look bad. Allison had every right to ask the mayor for her ruling before proceeding.Come on phyliss you have challenged your share of points of order when you were a councillor. At least Mayor Jones ruled on them the proper way and did not hide as you did.
I watched the meeting on Rogers 5 or 6 times and it was great to hear Grainger say just before you called the meeting for a break say ” You are not going to loose it are you”. Who did you call on your balackberry as you left. Perhaps your co-mayor who probably was watching from home. You seemed lost without her.
Perhaps at the beginning of the next Council meeting on Nov 24th you should apoligize to Allison for your comments that she swore.
Do you have the guts to admit for once you were wrong.
I was also disaapointed that the GOS left staff out to dry when you allowed Walter M ( Evilina’s friend ) to run down the staff that you say you are trying to prtect from Councillor Buck. What a joke that you would protect staff.
Interested Observer said
Agree with you on the Rememberance question Broderick. Still wonder about Councillor MC and also curious as to what she said to cause the mayor to call a recess?
Anonymous said
I think that Allison has proven herself as a most competent Councillor. She has worked relentlessly to try and make this council workable. She has integrity and intelligence well above this joke of a mayor.At the last Council meeting the mayor once again tried to belittle Allison’s efforts and yet the same mayor ignored the stupidity of bobble head Granger.This mayor has tunnel vision and does not see how ridiculous she looks with her rulings of bias and bullying.
Keep up the great work Allison and never let the GOS get to you. Between them, they do not total the intelligence that you have.
Broderick Epps said
To Interested Observer.
If we are to believe your assessment of Allison MC and Evelyn Buck, what do you make of Wendy Gaertner, who continues to amaze with her absolute stupidity (refer to Remembrance Day question).If AMC and EB are marginal players can’t wait to read about Gaertner.
Spill the beans said
Thanks, Council Cop. Yes, I think Mr. Mascarin has positioned himself well, and Phyllis is desperate to hang on to any “professional” that she feels justifies her actions. Although she did think Mr. Nitkin was in her corner, which demonstrates to me how utterly and ridiculously self-righteous she is.
As much as we might think that the Mayor wouldn’t be foolish enough to name a “supporter” to any position at this stage of the term, we must remember how justified she feels she is in every action she takes. She blindly goes about her mission and damn the torpedos.
She doesn’t give a toss because she believes that it is just a small band of discontents from this blog that she has to ignore.
She shouldn’t count on that.
Interested Observer said
To Knowledgbeable in Aurora,
Wanted to comment on a couple of your items.
Alison does appear to understand what a point of order is but if that’s her most significant contribution to the town then her contributions are very minimal. Having gone through many of the council meetings it appears her greatest impact has been on how the town meetings should be run and on a few occasions aligning with Councillor Buck on some of her efforts.
As for Ms Buck making PM squirm, that does happen. Unfortunately Ms. Buck would make anybody squirm as she appears in many cases to be rabbling and grasping. She tries to insinuate wrong doing at every turn. Her repeated claims that minutes have been altered, her rabbling against staff investigating adequate road signage warning of curves ahead in the road, to speakers that will or will not be allowed to present. For the valid contributions she makes in council there are many times where she is out of sync as demonstrated by the frequent votes that end up 8 to 1. Does this reflect a councillor that is looking after the well being of Aurora?
Not Surprised said
To Council Cop:
Did the Mayor and her cohorts not know that Mr. Nitkin was not a lawyer? Was the information provided in his resume and his discussions not completely and unequavicably supportive of the creditials the man has? Is there some reason we should be aware of that would suggest at any given time that Mr. Nitkin presented himself as a lawyer? Did it not take them months to hire him? Are you saying the GOS did not do their homework?
To hire Mr Mascarin now to become the new IC would be the last nail in the coffin for the GOS in my books. Not only did he compose the “report” that substantiated absolutely nothing concrete about any of the absurd accusations heaved against Councillor Buck, how could he possibly be the man to investigate and rule any complaint against the GOS as he is clearly one and the same with them. He may be a very good lawyer in his discipline but my goodness he has nothing to offer in the realm of Integrity Commissioner. If he had any one of the credentials they were lost in what he did to Councillor Buck.
In my opinion to hire this man would quite simply be another public cash giveaway to one of her buddies by the Mayor, but why should this position be any different than the others except that we are very aware of her strategy or lack thereof.
We should not allow this council to hire another Integrity Commissioner at this point in time. My greatest concern is that the GOS have no integrity between them to know that this is not something that they should be doing now or ever again.
Anonymous indeed said
I’m hearing rumblings that Ron is looking for someone new to cover council meetings for The Auroran.
I’m excited by the possibility that we’ll get more in-depth council coverage in The Auroran. It is even more important now that campaigning for the next election has so obviously started.
Kathy Banks said
More to the point, does Mr. Elliott want to be the Treasure of Aurora? I understand Mr Elliott is a seasoned treasurer with many years experience with Richmond Hill. After being with the Town of Aurora for 6 months, he’d probably be only too happy to get away from the Mayor/council from “Hell”. Would you want to work under those people?
Unfortunately its the citizens of Aurora who are paying a very high price for their management style. We’ve already lost several excellent upper management/senior staff and I truly can’t see anyone with any integrity wanting to work here under these circumstances.
So, if Mr. Elliott hasn’t applied for the job- maybe he has good reason!
KB
Something Fishy in Aurora said
To Quote Council Cop:
“I’m told that the Mayor and staff have been heard to be contemplating that the new Integrity Commissioner should be the very man that wrote the legal opinion bashing Councillor Buck in the first place ! Yes, the same report that remains posted on the town’s website that the Mayor also seems to think can’t be removed from the website by an order in council (that’s another puzzle that a few people are now trying to figure out).”
Why is this a puzzle? The Mayor and others still think that by firing the I.C. that this issue has not been dealt with appropriately and once they find the puppet to do the job that they want done, it will be brought back before the new I.C. And if the Mayor and others are allowed to install another puppet on staff, we know what the outcome of the (old/new) Code of Conduct complaint will be.
Until then they want the “evidence” kept in the public eye.
Broderick Epps said
Anonymous Nov 13 10:13 wrote “If you don’t follow the rules how can you fairly disqualify someone from the bid? A point that seems to be lost on many of the readers of this blog as well as Council”.
Yes there is something lost on me. The tender requirements clearly stated “Supplier must include in their bid package proof of certification by way of letter of validation from the CWB (Canadian Welders Bureau). Mr Mestrinaro’s firm did not have it. The sub-contractor Mr. Mestrinaro normally uses does but at closing time had not been contacted hence no LETTER OF VALIDATION FROM CWB).If you had bothered to read Mr. Elliots (agenda item 9 GC Nov 3) there is no sense that rules were broken by the town . But on the other hand when it comes to Mr. Mestrinao at least one is. Town bylaws explicitly don’t allow a member (paid) of a committee to try and influence a decision they may be a monetary benefactor to.While this may be light years over the heads of the likes of Gaertner and Granger, Ms. Morris is well aware of this given her history with Tim Jones. If one wants to enter in the conspiracy realm as this anonymous poster appears to want to stray go ahead and fire the first volley. This could get ugly.
evelyn.buck@rogers.com said
The procedure bylaw does not permit a delegate to return a second time to repeat the same argument.
Even Councillors are not permitted to raise a matter for re-consideration until six months have passed.
Or unless a motion to suspend the rules of procedure is passed with a two-thirds majority.
Councillor MacEachern’s friends are not governed by any rules.
Susan Walmer was back twice recently in as many weeks to repeat the same presentation.
Council Cop said
To Spill the beans, November 13, 2009 at 9:06 pm :
OK, OK… I’ll share.
Apparently there is yet another almost unfathomable rumour flying about Town Hall. Part of me thinks this CAN’T possibly be true, but for that very reason there is a very good chance that it is true given the history of this Council.
I’m told that the Mayor and staff have been heard to be contemplating that the new Integrity Commissioner should be the very man that wrote the legal opinion bashing Councillor Buck in the first place ! Yes, the same report that remains posted on the town’s website that the Mayor also seems to think can’t be removed from the website by an order in council (that’s another puzzle that a few people are now trying to figure out). The former integrity commissioner called this same report “ill-formed”, “incomplete”, “inappropriate” and potentially politically motivated so I’m not so sure it should serve as credentials for our next Integrity Commissioner !
John Mascarin is of Aird and Berlis was the author of the said report. He is a specialist in helping developers get building permits with municipal governments. I have no doubt that he is a good lawyer but I’m unaware of what specific qualifications he has that might even come close to those of Mr. Nitkin, who was fired from the IC job and widely discredited at by the Mayor in the process because presumably, he was not a lawyer and quite possibly because he did not render the decision the Mayor wanted. You will have to call the Mayor to get her exact reasoning on the whole affair and good luck with that.
At this stage this could go a few different ways. The Mayor might actually realise how politically damaging and ridiculous such a transparent move would be or she will feel compelled to live out her divine will and once again create her own logic to support this move. The third option could be to deny, deny, deny.
I can’t bring myself to call the Town on this one, so I’ll leave it to others to ask the questions.
Knowledgeable in Aurora said
So much ground to cover in this thread – I can’t resist:
1. Treasurer – Dan Elliott has the credentials and experience for the job and actually could be good for Aurora, but now that he has made the cardinal sin of crossing EM’s friend he will be history. It’s a key position and the GOS just keep making a joke out of senior staff. They should be replaced, not staff.
2. CAO Garbe – it’s about time!
3. Phyllis’ ability to run a meeting – in her overzealous attempt to make Grainger look like he actually has some idea of what he is talking about, she once again shows her extreme bias against those Councillors who actually know what a point of order is. Keep it up Alison, despite Phyllis’ efforts to embarass you, the public is watching and knows better.
4. Integrity Commissioner – there is no way the public should allow the GOS to hire anyone. They are done in less than a year and they should not be permitted to saddle a new Council with their choice. Phyllis: please show some common sense and let the next Council decide who and even if they want an IC. You don’t really believe you will still be there after next October do you??
5. C Buck – keep asking the questions, it’s fun watching PM squirm.
fed up said
council cop–you cannot just drop half a bombshell–let the rest of us know who the mayor is considering–if this latest news is as earth shattering as you imply, then the citizens of this town deserve to know–if it is only rumour at this point then you would have been wise to keep quiet rather than stir the pot–
Spill the beans said
Council Cop – please share. Exposing potential silliness could actually head it off at the pass! Preventative measures are required as we head into the final year of this term.
Following Events said
Council Cop said
November 13, 2009 at 1:48 pm
“If the rumours about who the Mayor is considering to be the next Integrity Commissioner are true then we can just wait to see the fireworks fly ! I bet she will run for cover if the public ever finds out what the Mayor apparently thinks constitutes her next great idea.”
Do tell, Council Cop. Don’t hinder the discussion.
evelyn.buck@rogers.com said
The most telling aspect of the Mestrianro affair is thathe was permitted to delegate at all. He is an appointed ,member of the Committee of Adjustment. All committee members are bound by conflict of interest regulations.
An elected or appointed member may compete for town business but may not influence the decision to award the contract.
A person seeking to delegate to Council must state his purpose. If the matter is administrative it should be handled by the administration.
Mr. Mestrinaro’s contract bid was so handled.
Mr. Mestrinaro’s first request to delegate should have been refused. The second was twice as improper.Since he had refused to accept that he had not won the contract, his purpose was known beforehand, He was in effect enabled by the Presiding mmember to make false accusations against staff in a public forum.
Just as at the beginning of the term,when Mr, Mestrinaro returned,time and time again to challengeg staff competence. Aurora Cable was harassed for months for their plans to erect three turbines on their property within the terms of the zoning.
It was after that, the Mayor and four constant supporters saw fit to appoint the gentleman to a paid position on the Committee of Adjustment.
Council Cop said
If the rumours about who the Mayor is considering to be the next Integrity Commissioner are true then we can just wait to see the fireworks fly ! I bet she will run for cover if the public ever finds out what the Mayor apparently thinks constitutes her next great idea.
Council Cop said
I’d like to know who was sending the Mayor the Blackberry messages throughout the meeting !
The fact that it was Granger and the Mayor that were breaking procedural rules seems to escape the Mayor, but you know what direction the finger will always be pointed.
The Mayor never did rule on Granger’s outlandish comments. He was throwing as much mud in the air as usual with absolutely no supporting reasoning, but that is all somehow Alison’s fault.
The Mayor blasted Alison both on and off camera and the word is that the e-mails are now flying around town these days with the Mayor claiming the moral high ground once again. The Mayor is not only apoplectic but she is also clearly confused about how she has breached procedure once again. It can’t be much fun to be riding a sinking ship while poking yet more holes in it at the same time.
Anonymous said
The delegate was right on in outlining the bid review procedure for the council. Mr. Elliott said only two people, one from his department and a town lawyer reviewed the bid. The rules call for at least three and one being from the department that is requesting the product. What really surprises me is that no one seemed to care.
As for the CAO, Mr. Garbe, why he is taking it out on the delegate, it was his staff that screwed up. They should know the rules. And saying that the order has already being issued. That’s what Dan Elliott said in his memo. But at the meeting he said the PO was pending. So what is it? Pending or ordered? Can’t be both.
As for the Mayor, doesn’t she control the microphones? I wonder who really wrote the legal opinion? That’s all the delegate asked for. Mr. Cooper said it was a town lawyer. That leaves him or Ms. Phillips. What’s the big secret? Unless of course there was no legal opinion.
If you don’t follow the rules how can you fairly disqualify someone from the bid? A point that seems to be lost on many of the readers of this blog as well as Council. And aren’t these the same staff the had everyone in arms about cooking the minutes? And isn’t Mr. Elliott the one who said there was nothing to investigate when it came to the funds given to St. Kitts’ Canada Day committee?
fed up said
What was with the recess called by the mayor after Collins-Marakas challenged her lordship regarding the point of order and councillor Granger? I have never witnessed such unprofessional conduct by a person who pretends to be a leader. Evelina was not sitting by her side for her constant advice, so the mayor really did not know what to do when put under pressure for her inability to run a proper meeting.
Broderick Epps said
As the Walter Mestrinaro boondoggle continues to consume Aurora Council, perhaps it is time to call out Ms. Morris for yet another white lie. Recently she has taken to praising staff for their efforts and also continually saying council stands behind staff. Well the Mestrinaro affair proves otherwise. A good leader stands behind staff. CAO Garbe gets it as he defended staff and an obviously peturbed Treasurer against Mestrinaro’s claim of staff incompetance. Where was our Mayor? Why does she allow this obvious disgrace of belittling staff to go on? Doesn’t Ms. Morris’s resume posted on the Town Website, talk about her over 10 years HR experience? What HR person would allow staff to be dragged through the Mestrinaro quagmire.? Doesn’t this situation really go a long way into explaining the mass exodus of staff out of Aurora.?
Many questions …. little answers. But really all answers point to Ms. Morris being a fraud!
White Knight said
I hope you are right, Councillor Buck. I don’t think I could stomach another appointment. When the whole town was crying “By-election”, what did we get? An appointment! I have an aversion to “hand picks” and “appointments.” We have more than our fair share of both on Municipal Dr. now.
Speaking of interim positions, isn’t the Town Clerk position held by Mr. Cooper on a temporary basis? When is that one supposed to end?
Anonymous Just Because said
I didn’t see the meeting but nothing this group does will ever surprise me. At least I heard Mr. Garbe actually defended a staff member. He should have been doing this all along. It’s his job. I lost my respect for that man when I saw him sit silently too many times when staff were being attacked. He should be standing up for them rahter than worrying about carrying the mayor’s purse. He should be concerned about how he will appear to his new boss once Morris is ousted, never to be returned next October.
Council Cop said
Hasn’t Walter brought this same issue to council three times now ? You have to wonder if Evelina is advising her friend Walter to keep the pressure on staff, becasue it sure would fit with her M.O. and that of the Mayor’s.
I don’t know the full story here but apparently Walter lost a bid in a town procurement process and he just can’t take “no” for an answer so it’s once again time to tar the town staff.
I guess it should come as no surpriuse that the Mayor did not come to the defence of town staff or the town’s procurment process.
We’ll just have to see how long this story drags on for, becasue you know that it is not over.
evelyn.buck@rogers.com said
The interim contract for the Treasurer;s position was twelve months’
Regulations require municipalities to have a Recruitment policy. Aurora does.
If regulations are followed there will be a competition.
Equity within the administration is a essential for morale.
I believe we should and will adhere to Provincial regulations.
Anonymous said
The mayor,who accused Councillor Buck of bad mouthing staff earlier this year and who will not allow that accusation to leave the town website allowed Evilena’s friend Walter to do the same thing on Tuesday night. The group of six, who pretend to defend the town staff ( those who are left )sat silently and basically defended Evilena’s friend against the staff as did the mayor.
This topic should not have been allowed to go this far.
There are two sets of rules.Mormac’s friends, St Kitts and now Walter vs. all others.
Another embarassment for Aurora.
Anonymous for a reason said
Mr. Elliott was visibly annoyed when Evelina’s good friend and supporter Walter was at the podium at Council on Tuesday. While Dan was doing his utmost to be professional, he almost gave too much away about a “legal” opinion until he was reigned in and interrupted. The nervous twitching on Phyllis’ face was very telling.
Phyllis doesn’t like people who don’t stay on script – her script – so he may be a man with a mind of his own.
I’m so desperate for some member of senior staff not to be under her micro-managing spell that I’m looking for any bit of positive, but intensing disliking the process of this appointment.
Will it be left to Councillor Buck to ask the question of the Treasurer’s position?