Caledon group challenges politicians over land deals
It’s unclear if there is a conflict of interest, a lawyer says, and mayor Allan Thompsons his legal advice says he’s in the clear. However, a citizen group still wonders about the ALLOA development site.
thestar.com
June 10, 2015
By San Grewal
A Caledon citizen’s group is raising questions about whether or not a councillor and the town’s mayor were in a conflict of interest during a recent council meeting that dealt with a proposed development site.
Councillor Gord McClure owns land on the site, and sale documents dated days after the meeting show Mayor Allan Thompson sold land to a developer adjacent to the site.
“Your Voice For Bolton represents residents who agree with our platform, that we want fair land-use policies that conform to provincial guidelines,” said Kim Seipt, a spokesperson for the group. “If there is the appearance council members have a conflict we can’t have full faith that their decisions are fair and equitable to all Caledon residents. We just want council members to tell us if they’re in a conflict.”
Thompson said there is no conflict of interest. “I have conducted myself to the best of my knowledge and abilities with respect to decisions made at both the Region and Town - when I was in doubt I sought legal advice,” he said.
McClure did not respond to questions from the Star.
One municipal-law expert says municipal conflict legislation is unclear on the matter. Kingston-based lawyer Tony Fleming said the issue surrounding McClure and Thompson is, “A wee bit grey.”
The Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, he said, deals with instances when council members “consider” an issue that they could stand to gain from financially. That’s when a conflict has to be declared. He said it’s unclear if anything was being “considered” by council when the delegations were made.
“Without doing research I can’t say whether this is or isn’t offside,” Fleming said.
The issue involves 2,000 acres of farm land called the ALLOA development site. A delegation to town council was made April 14 by a real-estate representative asking councillors to approve a future highway corridor that would keep ALLOA open for development. Both Thompson and McClure attended the meeting. Neither declared a pecuniary interest at the start of the meeting. Council then voted to direct staff to consult with the development group and revisit options for the highway corridor.
Opening up the site near a highway would dramatically increase property values. Property-sale documents dated the following week show Thompson sold land just west of the proposed development site to developer Primont Homes Inc. for $9.4 million.
Last week Thompson said by email that: “With respect to the sale of the Thompson family farm I can tell you that I sought two legal opinions and I’m confident that I was not in a conflict of interest at any of the Town of Caledon council or the Region of Peel Council meetings.”
“Let me for the record state that since being elected in 2003 (as a councillor) I undertook to attend several training courses and workshops on municipal government, most recently the head of council training by (the Association of Municipalities of Ontario). I gained a good understanding of my role and responsibility as an elected official,” he said.
Property records show McClure owns four parcels of land totalling about 300 acres within the ALLOA site. According to property records, one of those parcels owned by McClure was purchased by McClure last year for $3.9 million.
The issue of where development should occur across Caledon’s vast tracts of undeveloped land has mired the town in controversy, with a split between those who want growth focused around Bolton in the southeast, and those who want it spread out to areas including the southwest of Caledon.
