Council closes doors

By Richard Rolke Dec 06 2006 http://www.vernonmorningstar.com/
By the time many of you crack open this paper, Vernon council will firmly be behind closed doors this morning. And while in-camera meetings — as they are officially known — aren’t unusual, I am still wondering why this session isn’t being held in a public venue. The topic — and don’t roll your eyes — is Greater Vernon governance. At 2 p.m. today, the North Okanagan Regional District board will hold its regular monthly meeting. Directors will consider resolutions that would neuter the Greater Vernon Services Commission of all authority and reduce it to nothing more than a recommendation-based committee. Because the City of Vernon is a major part of NORD and GVSC, it was decided that council members should discuss the matter before the regional district gathers. And obviously that makes sense, but it still doesn’t explain why those talks are in-camera. The meeting is closed to the public under section 90 (a), (c), (g) and (k) of the provincial Community Charter. For those of you fortunate enough not to understand municipal law, these clauses pertain to labour relations, litigation or potential litigation and negotiations respecting the proposed provision of a municipal service that are at their preliminary stages. Certainly I understand that labour issues should be addressed in-camera because you don’t want employees finding out through the media that their jobs are toast. But while some city staff do contract work for the GVSC, the bulk of GVSC’s employees get cheques from the regional district. The city’s direct involvement in labour relations should be extremely limited. Clause G threw me off because I am not sure why reorganizing GVSC would lead to litigation or potential litigation with the city. And clause K appears to be irrelevant because there is not a proposed provision of a municipal service. GVSC already exists. But let’s say the city’s interpretation of legislation is correct and these items should be debated privately. The reality is that not all of the complex issues pertaining to governance fall into these categories and those topics should be addressed publicly. Specifically, there is no reason for city politicians to be all hush-hush over NORD’s plan to strip GVSC of authority. GVSC is a public agency, funded by taxpayers’ dollars, and residents should be aware of any discussions surrounding potential changes. That certainly was the case at Coldstream council Monday where there was considerable talk about the proposed changes to GVSC, including the removal of delegated authority and who would sit on the committee. I have been told by Coldstream officials that they haven’t looked at GVSC staffing because that is a NORD issue. The Electoral Area Services Commission — which could also have its delegated authority gutted — has used a mix of in-camera and public meetings to look at the situation. In the case of in-camera, it was to investigate the impact of changes on staff, which the rural directors have. And earlier this year, when the same topic arose, legislation didn’t keep Vernon politicians from having their say for everyone to hear. When I inquired Tuesday if any parts of today’s meeting could be brought into the open, I was told by the city that wasn’t possible because a public meeting had not been advertised. So, in the end, it appears like timing more than anything will keep Vernonites in the dark.