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Regional directors upset by candidates election claims

One board member says they diminish years of work by others

by Laura Walz editor@prpeak.com Some Powell River Regional District rural directors have concerns about statements made during the 2011 civic election campaign.

Colin Palmer, board chair and Electoral Area C director, raised the issue of comments made by City of Powell River Councillor Chris McNaughton, who is a city director on the regional board, during the November 10 regional district committee-of-the-whole meeting. He said a lot of people have called him about one of the statements in McNaughton’s election ad, which states “negotiated the agreement for $24-million replacement of Olive Devaud residence.”

Powell River Regional Hospital District (PRRHD) and Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) signed a memorandum of understanding for the $24-million project in March. PRRHD is providing 100 per cent of the capital to build the facility, as well as owning the land.

Palmer said that the board, along with a select committee, negotiated a deal with VCH, discussions that were held in camera. “I didn’t know that one director had done it,” he said. “I just want to make it clear to the hospital board that in my opinion, Director McNaughton did not negotiate the agreement and, as far as I know, he did not lead a negotiating team.”

Palmer also disagreed with the way McNaughton has described a meeting with Kevin Falcon, who was then BC’s minister of health, at a Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) conference.

McNaughton replied that at no point during his campaign has he said he led negotiations. “I did say that I led the discussions with the minister at UBCM,” he said.

McNaughton said if people are calling Palmer, then they are confused. “For that, I would say that I’m sorry that people are confused,” he said. “The intention is not to give the impression that I single-handedly did anything.”

Another contentious issue was who should be credited for having the idea for the funding formula. Since the negotiations were in camera, elected officials are not permitted to discuss what happened.

Patrick Brabazon, Electoral Area A director, told McNaughton he should apologize to the public for his statements. “Chris, in actual fact, you said ‘I led a four-member negotiating team,’” Brabazon said. “That’s in print and that’s in audio tape... In fact, you didn’t.”

However, after the Peak asked Brabazon where McNaughton had said that, Brabazon replied in an email, “If I erred in fact, but not in substance, I can only say that I did so in frustration.”

In his speech at the all-candidates meeting at Powell River Recreation Complex, McNaughton said, “I led a four-member team in discussions with the minister.”

Brabazon also wrote in his email that the negotiations over the replacement of Olive Devaud residence have been going on for a half-decade or more. “Until recently all involved have refrained from introducing personal political advantage into what had been a truly non-partisan public endeavour,” he added. “I believe that the context in which the comments quoted above were delivered diminishes and belittles the years of work undertaken by others.”