Documents reveal behind-the-scenes confusion as Strait Shores council crumbled

As the council in Strait Shores publicly teetered on the edge before falling apart this past spring, there was just as much chaos behind the scenes.

Documents CBC News obtained through a right to information request show confusion at the provincial level, as officials tried to interpret their own rules after a slew of council resignations and a code of conduct investigation.

Initially, the minister of local government couldn't even get help from the Local Governance Commission, which considered the matter outside its mandate, the documents show.

Meanwhile, one of the embattled councillors in Strait Shores got into an expletive-laden email exchange with a constituent who questioned council's actions. 

The area's MLA, Megan Mitton of the Green Party, says the way the situation was handled is proof the amalgamation of communities across New Brunswick, including Strait Shores, happened with too little support from the province.

Councillor's controversial debut

Strait Shores, a rural community near Sackville and Shediac, was amalgamated in 2023. Its troubles began after Coun. Andy MacGregor was elected in a January byelection.

A critic of council who pushed for transparency, he was soon blamed for the resignation of the mayor, who called him "the town bully" in a scathing resignation letter. An official from the Southeast Regional Service Commission, which the council asked for advice, wrote that MacGregor was "harassing, intimidating and defaming staff," the documents show.

MacGregor had become subject of a code of conduct investigation. But he was sanctioned and banished from municipal property before the outside investigator finished his investigation and found him at fault. 

Just weeks later, the Local Governance Commission, which can investigate a code of conduct dispute after a local council investigation is completed, ruled the Strait Shores effort lacked due process. After that report came out, two councillors resigned, taking away quorum from council and leaving an unelected provincial supervisor in charge for a year. 

Resignations caused problems

The documents show the council resignations led to back-and-forth among officials with the department, Elections N.B., the Local Governance Commission, and Strait Shores to determine if the resignations had been documented and were legitimate.

Provincial briefing notes from March suggested the council departures might not be over, with one section titled "Potential for more council resignations."

Another difficulty the department had to untangle was how council sanctioned MacGregor by not allowing him in the municipal building. This effectively barred him from participating in council meetings. But it also meant council did not have enough members to officially vote and act on the report into his transgressions. 

An internal email among provincial officials said MacGregor's office banishment was done on the recommendation of  Gerard Belliveau, project manager with the Southeast Regional Service Commission. The municipality had requested help from the service commission, which oversees certain local government matters in their region, because council had never dealt with a code of conduct complaint before, the documents show. 

Marc André Chiasson, spokesperson for the commission, said in an email to CBC on Wednesday that the commission's role was strictly advisory. 

"We supported the development of a suitable code of conduct and provided guidance on how to address the situation in a manner that would help mitigate potential legal risks to the municipality," Chiasson wrote.

By late March, government began to consider involving the Local Governance Commission, which can investigate code of conduct violations.

"The current ban against Mr. MacGregor will have to be addressed as they can't have a council meeting until he is able to enter the municipal building," department official Grace Lee Cutler wrote. 

"This is the first time this has come to light, so we are unsure how the Commission will respond."

On April 15, Aaron Kennedy, the minister, sent a formal letter to commission chair Giselle Goguen, requesting her office investigate MacGregor because council was unable to act itself.

The next day, Goguen denied the minister's request, saying the commission had not had an official complaint and can only investigate after a local investigation by council.

"This is an unfortunate situation, however, the [commission] does not have the authority to intervene in these exceptional circumstances as we are bound by our legislation," Goguen wrote.

It wasn't until later that month that the commission completed its own investigation once legally allowed to.

Commission director Mary Oley declined to comment for this story.

MLA wanted clarity from department

In March, Mitton wrote the department, seeking clarity on Strait Shores because her constituents were "not getting answers from the municipality" and a "vacuum" of information was causing stress, conflict and rumours.

"I would have liked to see more information and sooner," Mitton said in a recent interview when asked to describe the department's response to Strait Shores. 

Mitton said she never got much of an answer to her emails. She got the impression the department was "unprepared for what was happening and were not as responsive as I think they should have been."

Mitton said the 2023 amalgamation was a major challenge forced on municipalities, and the Strait Shores problems were a result.

"Unfortunately, because of how everything went, this municipality doesn't have elected representation for over a year. And so I think that's too bad."

She added that  there is confusion about responsibilities between the Department of Local Government and the Local Governance Commission, and she hopes to see the commission come to the legislature's public accounts committee to answer questions.

But the responsibility to help train and support municipalities lies with the department, she said, and "I don't think that they adequately supported this municipality, again, multiple municipalities, in terms of the transition."

CBC News requested an interview with Local Government to ask if any lessons had been learned from the Strait Shores experience. A spokesperson referred the CBC to its interview with Kennedy in April, before the Strait Shores council was dissolved, and said his comment then would stand.

Kennedy said at the time that municipalities don't want Fredericton "meddling" in their affairs. 

Councillors felt under attack

Strait Shores council also saw some pressure from the community, with documents showing members of the public writing to both Kennedy and councillors to express support for MacGregor.

One resident, whose name is redacted in the documents, wrote to Stacy Jones before her resignation from council to defend MacGregor and ask why he was still suspended.

"He was just doing his job as an elected official. If he isn't allowed to do his job then maybe you all should resign," the resident wrote.  

Jones's response, captured in a screen shot later sent to Kennedy by the resident, was brief: "Go f--k yourself!!!!," the councillor wrote. 

When she eventually resigned on April 28, Jones wrote: "Consider yourselves lucky that I was bound by a code of conduct that prevented me from speaking freely."

"But I will no longer be held under those restrictions. The truth will be told, and I will not be silenced."

Coun. Tanya Haynes resigned the same day, and while she was disappointed her resignation would trigger council's dissolution, she said it was clear she "can no longer effectively contribute to this toxic and unproductive environment. With no back up from anyone and only being told to take the verbal abuse."

At the last council meeting before quorum was lost, CBC News observed at least one citizen raising their voice at councillors and refusing to leave, with several councillors saying they felt unsafe. 

Acting mayor Annamarie Boyd struck a more optimistic in her letter to Kennedy announcing the council had lost quorum.

"I will not give up on this community, as I have said many times, I love this community and I will always remain its biggest cheerleader," Boyd wrote.