No action against developer who exceeded contribution limit in Richmond Hill

Vaughan's Frank Mazzotta donated $5,050 to 5 candidates

Yorkregion.com
July 15, 2019
Shelia Wang

A joint compliance audit committee decided not to take legal action against a Vaughan-based developer who exceeded the campaign contribution limit in the last Richmond Hill municipal election.

Frank Mazzotta, president of Armour Heights Developments, donated a total of $5,050 to several Richmond Hill candidates who were running for office in last October’s election, exceeding the limit by $50.

The joint audit committee, chaired by Kelly Gravelle, voted unanimously on June 20 at a hearing to commence no legal actions against Mazzotta due to the fact his over-contribution was “inadvertent.”

Three of the nine committee members appointed from across York Region were present at the hearing along with three staff members from the city including City Clerk Stephen Huycke.

The 17-minute-long meeting was held following a report on May 22 by the city clerk who found Mazzotta in an apparent contravention of the contribution limit capped at $5,000 set out in the Municipal Elections Act.

Records show that the developer donated $1,200 -- the maximum contribution allowed for individual candidates -- to Carmine Perrelli, Dave Barrow, Greg Beros and Nick Papa. Three of them were elected to council.

Mazzotta also contributed $250 to Tom Muench’s campaign.

In his oral statement, Mazzotta said that his over-contribution was a result of “a clerical error and oversight.”

He said made an “adding mistake” and donated $250 to Muench when he only had $200 left in his “total contribution room.”

Mazzotta’s over-contribution was not required to be returned, as the Municipal Elections Act does not provide such mechanism, according to Richmond Hill spokesperson Libbi Hood.

“As these deliberations were in private, we cannot comment on why the committee decided as it did beyond the reasons provided in the decision itself,” Hood wrote.

The Municipal Elections Act states that a contributor shall not make contributions that exceed $1,200 to any one candidate in an election; and shall not make contributions exceeding $5,000 to two or more candidates for office on the same council.

Mazzotta could not be reached for comment.

Armour Heights, the well-known condo developer he presides over and also known as Elbay Developments, has a stake in the real estate market in Richmond Hill as well.

A search on the city’s website found Elbay Developments as the developer behind portions of the lands near the northeast corner of the intersection of Bayview Avenue and Elgin Mills Road East.

The company is planning to build 216 stacked townhouses in the area, according to a staff report for a committee of the whole meeting on June 4.

Council officially approved its request at a council meeting on June 11 to re-designated the lots from low-density to a medium/high density residential area.

It is not appropriate for the city clerk to comment on the decision made by the joint audit committee which is regarded as an “independent quasi-judicial” body, the spokesperson said.

There has been no precedent, either.

This was the first time that the municipal clerk was required to conduct a review of the campaign contributions reported on the financial statements submitted by candidates, which is a new legislative requirement for the 2018 municipal elections in Ontario, Hood noted.

But it’s probably not going to be the only audit to be made on the campaign contributions in the last municipal election.

The Liberal learned at least two Richmond Hill residents have submitted their applications to the clerk's office for an audit of the election contributions and expenses of four council members; Joe DiPaola, Carmine Perrelli, Greg Beros and Tom Muench.

A hearing of the joint compliance audit committee is scheduled for July 18 at 9:30 a.m. in the council chambers.

The committee is expected to decide whether an audit will take place.

Any person can attend the meeting, but may be asked to leave the meeting room if the committee decides to deliberate in private.