Springwater Township’s former mayor will be tapped for his historical knowledge of the municipality — at a cost of $300 an hour.
Tony Guergis’s years at the council table as a mayor, deputy mayor, and councillor — along with three terms as the warden of Simcoe County council — would give the municipality a “foundation of knowledge and experience’’ as it faces its future and the potential for a boundary adjustment with the City of Barrie, said Ward 4 Coun. Anita Moore.
For more than an hour, councillors engaged in a broad debate that at times went beyond the scope of the motion and into what the municipality’s strategy should be in its discussions with its urban neighbour.
Barrie is looking to annex about 2,500 acres of the township, along with land from Oro-Medonte, in order to create an employment area. Both municipalities have signalled neither is interested in moving boundary lines, but would be happy to discuss sharing services.
Moore’s motion didn’t mention the boundary issue with Barrie, which caught a couple of council members off-guard — including Mayor Jennifer Coughlin, who expressed concern that the wording of the motion was vague and could potentially be misleading to residents.
Her concerns were echoed by Coun. Matt Garwood, who also noted there were “sensitivities” to Guergis’s history in local politics — notably Site 41, which cost him re-election in 2010.
Guergis also ran unsuccessfully to return to the mayor’s position, in 2014 and 2018.
Garwood said the motion also had the appearance of saying one thing publicly, “while using the curtain of a closed meeting to disguise this delicate discussion. I’m not disagreeing that this is important … if the goal is to discuss (a map showing boundary line options), with the City of Barrie, let’s discuss it with the City of Barrie
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“What I disagree with is bringing in somebody who does not have the trust of this community, and bringing in somebody who is not elected, right now, to represent this community,” he said.
Prior to the debate, council heard from two members of the public who both expressed concerns about hiring Guergis.
Coughlin said she reached out to former mayors Bill French, Don Allen, and Linda Collins, and other previous members of council, and “all who have offered to come and provide guidance to this council for free.”
Moore stuck to her position, and said Guergis’s experience should prove invaluable.
“I agree this may be a bit unconventional, (but) these are unconventional times, and uncharted for this council,” she said. “It is not meant to be personal, but meant to be helpful, and would encourage this council to present a real co-ordinated effort in navigating uncharted waters and a possible annexation.”
Guergis’ payments would be capped at $10,000.
Moore said there is precedent federally, when former prime minister Brian Mulroney was brought in as an adviser to the current Liberal government on recent negotiations on a new trade agreement with the U.S. and Mexico on the basis of his historical knowledge.
She said while the decision to bring in Mulroney was “widely criticized … it quietly and effectively accomplished Canada’s objective.
“When faced with the most important decision this council and this township will have to consider, we should arm ourselves with all the information we can gather in order to make the best decision for our residents,” Moore said.
Coughlin said she had been contacted by Guergis the previous week with the idea of him making a formal presentation to council, behind closed doors, on the negotiations with Barrie on boundary adjustments.
Coughlin said she declined the offer, particularly as council has already stated publicly the township is not interested in discussing moving the boundary.
“It is off the table,” she said. “If we want to go into closed session and dive in to what a counter offer looks like from the City of Barrie, we should have done that on Nov. 17 rather than putting up a resolution that we’re going to stop negotiations.
“Barrie wants land, we want servicing. Is there a path forward? I believe that there is,” she said. “And I believe that this council, if we get there with the expertise (of senior staff) … they can lead us through negotiations. If staff believed there was something that was out of the realm of this building, they would come to us and say, ‘we need to hire someone.’ ”
Council supported bringing in Guergis in a 4-3 recorded vote.
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