Vaughan council to appoint former deputy mayor Di Biase's replacement
Councillors vote unanimously to appoint member of public to vacant local, regional council seats, but sitting Regional Councillor Mario Ferri assumes deputy mayor title

yorkregion.com
June 5, 2017
By Adam Martin-Robbins

Vaughan council is appointing former deputy mayor Michael Di Biase’s replacement, rather than spending nearly $1 million to hold a city-wide byelection so voters can choose who fills his seat.

Councillors voted unanimously June 5 to press ahead with a public appointment process after a report from the city clerk stated a byelection to fill Di Biase’s local and regional councillor seat until the end of the term, in 2018, comes with an estimated seven-figure price tag.

“I think it is not financially responsible for this council to go forward with an election when the individual who would be elected probably would serve around a year,” Thornhill Councillor Alan Shefman said, echoing sentiments expressed by his council colleagues before the vote.

Di Biase, who served on council for nearly 30 years, including a stint as mayor from 2002 to 2006, announced he was stepping down May 18 after the release of a damning report by integrity commissioner Suzanne Craig that found he sexually harassed a city employee.

Council's other option was to appoint one of the five local ward councillors to Di Biase's seat then hold a byelection, at a cost of $200,00 to $250,000, or appoint a member of the public to fill that post.

The appointment process to fill his vacant local and regional councillor seat involves advertising the position and having those who are eligible put their names forward.

Applicants will then get the chance to “make their case” to councillors at a special council meeting, expected to be held by the end of June.

To be eligible for appointment to city council, you must be 18 or older, a Canadian citizen, a resident of Vaughan or an owner or tenant of land in Vaughan or the spouse of an owner or tenant.

Those who apply for the job will get to deliver a five-minute pitch before councillors go through the voting process to choose the appointee.

The person they appoint won’t become deputy mayor and get the nearly $8,000 salary bump that comes with that title.

Under the city’s bylaw, the deputy mayor is the regional council candidate who garnered the most votes in the 2014 municipal election. Since Regional Councillor Mario Ferri finished second to Di Biase in that race, he’s now deputy mayor.