GUEST COLUMN – Why all the conflict? City Hall antics are a bit bush league

By DENIS WALSH

IS OUR CITY ADMINISTRATION operating under a double standard? And did Coun. Neustaeter intend to be so blatant with her not-so-veiled threat? Aren’t recent City Hall antics a bit bush league?

Two weeks ago, CAO Trawin stated the mayor was not in conflict of interest regarding his West Victoria property and his notice of motion to look into relocating the street storage and outreach facility across from City Hall.

At council’s public meeting this past Tuesday though, corporate officer Mazzotta allowed an amendment that changed the mayor’s motion to deal with a specific location into a motion to deal with a general area. This goes against Robert’s Rules of Order.

After allowing “an amendment that strikes out the words that put the motion into effect,” Mazzotta then warned that the mayor was likely in conflict of interest regarding his own motion. She contended “only the courts could determine” the risk to the mayor, and warned consequences might extend to being disqualified from office.

She seemed much more confident a couple of years ago when I was on council. At that time, she said I could vote on the downtown sidewalk expansion despite owning a Victoria Street business.

She told media that “the decision applies to businesses across the city and he therefore has ‘an interest in common’ with those businesses…if it applied only to street-corner businesses like The Vic it would be a different story.”

Given the number of West Victoria business and property owners with “an interest in common” who at Tuesday’s meeting told council that relocation of the facility would greatly benefit them and the community, it therefore is a considerable stretch to find Mayor Hamer-Jackson in conflict.

Though if he is, then maybe so is Coun. O’Reilly, whose Comet Industries Kamloops main office entrance is located at 2^nd and Victoria, even closer to the facility. Surely his company’s credibility is not enhanced if buyers or wealthy investors encounter someone sleeping or shooting up on his doorstep.

What about when council discusses general community security issues? Should Coun. Sarai recuse himself each time because his son works in bylaw services? Should Coun. Neustaeter recuse herself when council discusses issues involving any organization that benefits from the Kamloops United Way, which she heads up?

What about other currently sitting councillors whose spouses or children work directly or under contract for various city services? And what about administrators? Mazzotta’s brother heads the Social, Housing, and Community Development office at City of Kamloops. Should she recuse herself when council discusses topics related to her brother’s portfolio? I guess only the courts can tell.

Regardless, after Mazzotta’s warning that consequences could be dire, underlined by Coun. Neustaeter’s virtue-signaling over “serious ethical territory” and her threat that just 10 people can start a process to oust the mayor, he reluctantly recused himself.

With Mayor Hamer-Jackson out of the way, council dismantled and smothered his motion and sent it to likely die in committee.

Too bad. It seemed a good first step to reduce friction in an area the city recently spent 14 million dollars upgrading and beautifying. Sure, we want to help the disenfranchised, but not at the expense of letting our downtown turn into a skid row.

The mayor’s motion just asked “That Council authorize staff to prepare a report for Council’s consideration regarding a review and potential relocation of the services offered at 48 Victoria St. West.” Simple and fairly non-committal. According to the operators, the facility isn’t big enough anyway and further, the city has other nearby properties that could be used.

But despite the prevailing narrative that the mayor is the problem, council still couldn’t come to an agreement, even with him warned away from the head of the horseshoe.

The groundless threats, disrespect and exaggerated panics over non-issues by certain actors in City Hall and the media whose favourite horse lost are obstructive. Their insistence on leaping at any opportunity to vilify, distract or gag the mayor is becoming tedious.

Maybe 10 residents (does Coun. Neustaeter have some in mind?) would actually risk their time and money taking a dubious issue all the way to Supreme Court in a bid to remove the elected mayor.

Is City Hall prepared to shoulder an expensive lawsuit along with an about $150,000 cost to taxpayers plus the disruption to residents and governance from an unnecessary byelection to replace the elected mayor who obviously wasn’t their pick?

The rest of us just want Mayor Hamer-Jackson to be able to act on the community safety platform the majority of voters supported.

We want our mayor to be able to participate in discussions about a very controversial key entrance point to the core of our downtown, even though he owns a property there he can no longer use due to street issues.

We want residents and visitors to be impressed, not appalled, when they see this major downtown corridor that right now looks like the little sister of Vancouver’s East Hastings.

To make this happen, our mayor has to address factors that have contributed to a piece-by-piece deterioration of West Victoria. In some cases, he may even have to ask our current council to reverse decisions an inattentive former council passed following ill-advised recommendations by City administrators.

The majority spoke last October. The city would be far better off if everyone at City Hall would cooperate with the mayor. He pledged to do his best to make Kamloops safer and better. Isn’t this what we all want?

Denis Walsh is a businessman and former Kamloops City councillor. He did not run in the 2022 civic election.