Two Courtenay councillors were outvoted on three motions relating to council's Comox Valley Regional District board directors at Monday's council meeting.
The vote was four to two on each motion with Coun. Ronna-Rae Leonard and Coun. Doug Hillian voting one way, and Mayor Larry Jangula, Coun. Starr Winchester, Coun. Bill Anglin and Coun. Jon Ambler voting the other. Coun. Manno Theos was not at the meeting.
Ambler, Theos and Winchester were chosen by Jangula as Courtenay directors on the CVRD board at the inaugural Courtenay council meeting on Dec. 5. Leonard, Hillian and Anglin were listed as alternates.
When Winchester had to miss a CVRD board meeting in mid-March, she asked Anglin to attend, and he did.
At a council meeting shortly after that, Leonard expressed concern that she was not asked to attend a CVRD board meeting as she thought she was first up on the call list of alternates.
The minutes from the inaugural meeting in December state: "Alternate Regional District directors in the following order: #1 Councillor Leonard, #2 Councillor Hillian, #3 Councillor Anglin."
However, Jangula, Winchester, Anglin and Ambler said they did not remember voting on a calling order for alternates.
Leonard and Hillian both said they thought there was an order to alternates when they voted.
Councillors asked City director of legislative services John Ward 鈥� who takes meeting minutes 鈥� for clarification.
"In the original documentation with the council it didn't say 'in the following order,' but the minutes do indicate 'in the following order,'" explained Ward, who said it must have been a mistake and apologized.
Hillian pointed out that those minutes were adopted by council at the next meeting, making those minutes official.
Winchester said she didn't remember alternates ever being prioritized, even when she first sat on council about 18 years ago.
Leonard disagreed.
"This particular practice has been in place for, I think, as long as I've been on this council," said Leonard.
According to the minutes from the 2005 and 2008 inaugural council meetings, alternate regional district board directors were listed with numbers beside their names, but the list does not specify 'in the following order.'
Leonard was listed as an alternate from 2005 to 2011 and she said she remembers being asked to attend CVRD meetings in the past. But she couldn't say which order alternates were called in as she never asked about it, she just received a call and went to the meeting. She was listed as No. 1 from 2008 to 2011.
At Monday's council meeting Ambler brought forward a motion to establish a system for calling alternate directors.
This motion specified that the mayor would identify "an" alternate and ensure their availability, then the director of legislative services would notify the CVRD that an alternate would be attending the board meeting.
"I've found that we're slightly too informal in how we do it (contacting alternate directors) and it's more up to the person who's going away to identify the alternate, and I don't think that's appropriate," said Ambler, adding that he believes Courtenay will be allowed a fourth director on the CVRD board within a year, creating more of a requirement for alternates, and a clearer system.
Leonard made a motion for an amendment to Ambler's motion which took out the line that the mayor would identify an alternate director; instead, the director of legislative services would notify the alternate directors in the order specified in the inaugural meeting minutes.
This motion was defeated with only Hillian and Leonard voting for it.
Winchester then made a motion to add Jangula to the list of alternate directors.
Hillian pointed out that Jangula said he would not attend CVRD board meetings when he announced the CVRD directors in December.
At Monday's meeting Jangula said he would only go to CVRD meetings when needed.
"If the need does arise, if it's something, for example like we talked about tonight, the waste-to-energy which I have a lot of background and experience in, and then there is a need for another director because one of our regular ones doesn't go," Jangula said.
The motion was carried with Leonard and Hillian voting against.
Ambler's original motion was then voted on, and passed, again with Leonard and Hillian opposed.
writer@comoxvalleyrecord.com
