REID ALL ABOUT IT – What are ‘coffee’ meetings with the CAO all about?

An occasional glimpse into the mayoral life of Reid Hamer-Jackson.

The mayor wants to know what “coffees with Byron” are all about, and whether they represent unsanctioned closed door meetings. For example, a “Byron/Council Coffee Meeting” is scheduled for 8:15 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. tomorrow, Tuesday in the executive boardroom. Of course, in-camera meetings that aren’t scheduled for a specific purpose and approved at a regular open meeting aren’t allowed under the Community Charter. All councillors have been invited to tomorrow’s meeting, which includes civic operations director Jen Fretz as well as CAO Byron McCorkell. “You always express how important these meetings are yet when I asked in an open meeting what happens in a Byron/council coffee meeting most of you just held your coffee cups in the air,” he wrote to Kelly Hall, the current deputy mayor. He says the “coffee” meetings have been taking place for a long time “and I don’t believe you all can be discussing coffee are you?” No response from Hall so far; I’ve got a request in to City Hall for an explanation….

Speaking of meetings and such, the mayor is miffed he didn’t receive a clear invitation to a “photo opportunity” for a City-Interior Health partnership on a new healthcare outreach van. Although an invite went out from a City staffer to the “all council” email address, councillors received the invite in their personal in-boxes as well, while the mayor didn’t….

Hamer-Jackson thinks the City should host an all-candidates question and answer session. “I believe the city owes it to the public and taxpayers and ultimately the bosses to allow them the opportunity to ask questions to six mayoral candidates and 29 councillor candidates.”