Rocky View County (RVC) has withdrawn its appeal regarding a decision relating to the former censure and sanctions of three council members in 2019.
While Mayor Don Kochan nor any of the three involved councillors were able to comment as of press time, Kochan explained they just have to make sure all the T’s are crossed and I’s dotted.
“Unfortunately, what we have to do is make sure everything is cleaned up before I can make a comment and we will be providing a press release fairly shortly, I think,” he said prior to the Rocky View Weekly's print deadline.
In the announcement released on March 22, Kochan stated it was time for council to move forward.
“Past concerns have been remediated and, as a newly elected council, we are committed to effectively working together to restore relationships both within council and within our communities,” the statement read.
The appeal referred to was initiated in July 2020, when RVC appealed a court decision by the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta to set aside sanctions imposed on Couns. Kevin Hanson, Samanntha Wright, and Deputy Mayor Crystal Kissel.
Several council members, at the time, hoped the appeal would emphasize the Code of Conduct was not followed by Hanson, Wright and Kissel when they submitted a letter to the editor to the Rocky View Weekly in 2019, which the rest of council deemed used discourteous and disrespectful language.
The three councillors were sanctioned in June 2019 by their colleagues as a result of their Code of Conduct breach, but applied for a judicial review in an effort to overturn the sanctions.
On July 15, 2020, Justice James Eamon delivered a decision on the judicial review sought by the sanctioned councillors. According to his report, he found that sanctions followed “a rational path” corresponding to breaches of RVC’s Code of Conduct Bylaw but struck them down "for failure to adequately address [a] reasonable apprehension of bias allegation.”
The County appealed the court’s decision to set aside those sanctions, but after the item returned to council chambers multiple times in the ensuing months, was ultimately withdrawn.
Hanson, Wright, and Kissel sued RVC for $96,000 in back pay in March 2021, arguing they should be reimbursed for their lost wages. The $32,000 sought by each councillor reflected their reduced pay over the 13-month period they were sanctioned.
Back and forth negotiations have continued over recent months. This article will be updated online at AirdrieToday.com once the County's press release has been issued.
