More information is needed before St. Albert rushes to judgment on the mayor’s alleged expense double-dipping, say some avid municipal political observers.
The Gazette chatted with a few local political observers to get some reaction to this week’s council meeting.
There are two issues at the forefront – the mayor’s remuneration for serving as board chair of the Capital Region Board flowing through his corporation rather than the City of St. Albert, and some questions around Mayor Nolan Crouse’s expense reports submitted to both the city and the CRB.
“They are two different issues, but they are linked,” said Kevin Malinowski, one of the founders of Poliwings, a St. Albert politics discussion group.
Malinowski is in favour of Coun. Cam MacKay’s disclosure motion, and thinks the transparency would be better if all of the mayor’s remuneration and expenses for the CRB were run through the city as well.
He said he believes MacKay and Coun. Sheena Hughes’ reactions are about fixing a problem, rather than a political witch hunt.
“We have to push through, we have to see what’s happening,” he said.
Dana Popadynetz, another Poliwings founder, was concerned about the manner in which the expense information came out, which was during discussion at council. He noted in an email that it was not directly related to the motion being discussed. He said he would have provided notice of motion asking for an audit of the expenses.
In an interview, Popadynetz said he doesn’t necessarily agree with city administration taking on the review.
“I feel like it should be a third-party non-involved committee perhaps,” he said.
He cautioned jumping to conclusions, and noted while these issues highlight the need for some more municipal checks and balances, it’s important judgment not be passed until a review is done.
Former councillor Malcolm Parker said he thinks it’s right to ask if Crouse’s CRB honorarium should be funnelled through the city instead.
But Parker is worried about this sidetracking council from the important civic work it needs to do, noting when he was deputy mayor he’d go to the mayor with questions about the mayor’s expenses.
“We’re not focusing on the things that really matter,” Parker said.
Joe Becigneul, known for his volunteer work around St. Albert including Northern Alberta Business Incubator and the chamber of commerce, had similar comments. He suggested full disclosure to clear the air.
“These people have to work together collaboratively for the betterment of the city for the next three years, so let’s get this all on the table, let’s get it cleaned up and let’s move on,” Becigneul said.
Former councillor Neil Korotash thought the reactions he’s observed on social media were premature.
“I think often in politics there’s kneejerk reactions and there’s people who want to get upset and hate on politicians,” Korotash said, adding he thinks that reaction is premature until all the information is on the table.
“I know Nolan is a man of integrity,” Korotash said.
Ken Allred, former MLA and council alderman, said while it does seem odd that the CRB required Crouse to be paid through a corporation, the concept of running all of Crouse’s CRB payments and expenses through the city seems “like an awful lot of extra bureaucracy.”
He said it is a concern if there are indeed errors in the expenses, adding politicians need to be open and transparent, but he wondered about the time and energy being spent on reviewing what are reportedly relatively minor amounts.
“We’re just nickel and diming some of these things,” Allred said.
