Squamish New Directions (SND), which was reduced from five members of Squamish Council to two in Saturday's municipal election, is considering legal action against a group that distributed an unsigned piece of election literature late last week.The Chief learned last week that an unsigned yellow sheet that was distributed to post boxes throughout Squamish in the final days of the municipal election campaign was sent to residents by a group calling itself the Squamish Taxpayers Association (STA).
The unsigned sheet was critical of SND.
Bob Taylor, the manager of communications with Canada Post in Vancouver, said the Crown Corporation's bill to distribute the flyers was paid by W.R. Drenka on behalf of the STA.
Contacted on Tuesday (Nov. 22) by The Chief, Drenka said he had nothing to say about the controversial unsigned document.
"I got no comment on that," he said in a telephone interview that Drenka abruptly ended after he indicated he had nothing to say.
Mayor Ian Sutherland said the sheet contained lies and he branded it libellous.
"We are seriously considering a lawsuit," said the leader of SND, who won re-election over challenger Terrill Patterson. He and Ray Peters were the only two SND members to win as incumbent SND councillors Jeff Dawson, Dave Fenn and Sonja Lebans went down to defeat.
Sutherland said on Monday (Nov. 25) that SND contacted a lawyer and the group intends to have more conversations about legal options."We'll find out more in the next week or so and find out what our options are," said Sutherland.
According to Taylor, 5,000 copies of the single sheet were put into the post boxes at the post offices in Brackendale, Garibaldi Highlands and Squamish. The flyer also went to the post boxes in condominium complexes and townhouses but Taylor pointed out it didn't go to people who previously requested the corporation not deliver unsolicited ad mail.
Taylor said it isn't customary for Canada Post to distribute unsolicited ad mail without some indication of who is responsible for distributing the item. He said it isn't a policy but the corporation likes advertisers to include some form of contact information as a courtesy to post box customers.
Some Canada Post customers asked local postal employees the name of the individual who paid for the distribution of the yellow sheet but the people who asked the question were told the information was confidential. Taylor confirmed on Monday that Canada Post does not keep that kind of information a secret.
After topping the local poll, Coun. Corinne Lonsdale confirmed on Saturday (Nov. 19) that the sheet included information she has been sharing with residents for some time but Lonsdale said she wasn't the author of the sheet. She also said some of the information came from sources other than herself.
"That information was out all over the place many times, I've said much of it," said Lonsdale. "Some of that came right out of the All Candidates' Meeting."
Lonsdale also said she didn't care if there wasn't a name on the sheet.
"That yellow paper, I believe, is pretty much factual whoever did it," she said.
Lonsdale wouldn't reveal who was behind the creation of the document.
Sutherland described the author of the sheet as a gutless individual."It just shows again why Squamish has done absolutely nothing until three years ago," said the mayor.
Sutherland was re-elected in a tight race with Terrill Patterson. SND incumbents Jeff Dawson, Dave Fenn and Sonja Lebans were not re-elected while their running mate Ray Peters was returned to his seat after the Saturday (Nov. 19) election.jfrench@squamishchief.com
