Another week, another chapter in the soap opera at Municipal Hall over appointments to the Squamish Oceanfront Development Corp. (SODC) board. Is it any wonder why some people refer to election time as "silly season"?
Sure, the appointments technically have nothing to do with the election, save for the fact that two members of the current council who happen not to be running for re-election were among the six people appointed to the board at its Oct. 26 meeting. It was a split 3-2 vote and - wouldn't you know it? - the two who voted against the appointments ARE seeking another term. So we shouldn't be surprised that after the vote they've taken great pains to ensure that citizens - read, voters - know exactly why they raised their hand when the word "nay" was called out.
In an ideal world, members of an elected body would always follow the advice of Coun. Corinne Lonsdale and close ranks behind the decision after a vote is taken. But under the circumstances, it's not realistic to expect that. What's more, it's not Patricia Heintzman's or Bryan Raiser's fault that Drew Stotesbury decided to decline his appointment to the board, in spite of the fact that they were the two who voted against. Their votes had nothing to do with him and everything to do with the optics of appointing two elected officials - a practice that's discouraged in the B.C. government's Local Government Corporations Guide. Heintzman is absolutely correct in her assertion that the public response to the appointments would have been the same even if the vote had been unanimous - such appointments are bound to spark controversy, whether there's an election in the offing or not.
After this week's chapter in the saga, Coun. Paul Lalli -one of the two "elected" appointees - said in a published report that he felt that in voting against the appointment and stating her views in a public meeting, Heintzman had essentially "thrown me under the bus." Heintzman, he said, should have given him the "courtesy as a colleague to tell me that she is not going to support me" before the vote. Sorry, Mr. Lalli, but this is not about you or even Mayor Greg Gardner - both of whom we believe will make excellent SODC board members. It's about the optics of appointing elected officials - any elected officials - under the circumstances.
As for Stotesbury, we sincerely hope he receives another invitation from the new council and accepts it, because it seems to us that he's got the experience and expertise Squamish needs to move the project forward.
Hey, it ain't "As the SODC Turns" or "General (SODC) Hospital," but it's our own little soap opera and it's certainly been entertaining. Maybe now we can get on with the real electioneering, eh?
- David Burke
