The Collingwood Judicial Inquiry has announced the list of people who will be providing expert advice and opinions in the final phase of hearings.
This third phase is focused on policy and will help Chief Associate Justice Frank Marrocco form recommendations to include in his final report, due out next year.
During these final days of hearings, including Nov. 27-29 and Dec. 2, Inquiry counsel and the town’s lawyers will be able to speak with experts about good governance and policy matters arising from the terms of reference for the inquiry. The Collingwood Judicial Inquiry’s terms of reference ask Justice Marrocco and his team to look into the 2012 sale of 50 per cent of Collus to PowerStream and the subsequent allocation of the sale proceeds, including payments made to any person or entity involved in building the recreation facilities (Central Park Arena and Centennial Aquatic Centre).
The hearings will begin with a former inquiry Commissioner, Honourable Denise Bellamy. She was Commissioner for the Toronto Computer Leasing Inquiry and the Toronto External Contracts Inquiry. Her report on the two inquiries included 244 recommendations relating to ethics, governance, lobbying, and procurement.
Next, the inquiry will hear from a panel of experts in the area of roles and responsibilities in municipal government.
The panel includes John Fleming whose career includes work as Chief Administrative Officer in two large Ontario municipalities, and who is now a consultant with his own firm focused on governance teaching and advice.
Toronto’s former city solicitor, Anna Kinastowski, will also sit on the panel. She specialized in municipal law, and received many awards in her career including the International Municipal Lawyer’s Association highest award.
Rounding out the first panel is Greg Levine, an integrity commissioner and practising lawyer specializing in administrative, municipal, and government ethics law in Ontario.
The second panel was built to advise on conflict of interest in the municipal context and the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act.
Panel members include Toronto’s integrity commissioner, Valerie Jepson; Ottawa’s first combined city clerk and solicitor Rick O’Connor; and Ontario’s integrity commissioner, Honourable J. David Wake.
The third panel is focused on roles, responsibilities, and accountability for municipal boards and corporations. Panel members include former city solicitor for Mississauga, Mary Ellen Bench, and Wendy Walberk, the city solicitor for Toronto.
The fourth panel was built to address procurement and best practices, and includes experts in the field of public corporation purchasing.
Panelist Marian MacDonald brings her experience as assistant deputy minister of Supply Chain Ontario. In her ten years in that position, she led a team of more than 180 procurement professionals overseeing $6 billion in annual spending. She lives outside of Collingwood.
Mike Pacholok is the chief purchasing officer for the City of Toronto, where he leads a staff of approximately 140 people.
The final panel will focus on the subject of lobbying.
Suzanne Craig will be part of the panel drawing on her role as director of corporate access and privacy for Toronto. She’s been appointed integrity commissioner to more than 20 Ontario municipalities, and lobbyist registrar for the City of Vaughan.
Linda Gehrke will join Craig on the lobbying panel and will bring her experience as the lobbyist registrar at the City of Toronto for eight years.
Robert Marleau will round out the last panel as a recognized expert in parliamentary practice and procedure. He was clerk of the House of Commons for 13 years. He has been the integrity commissioner, lobbyist registrar, and meetings investigator at the City of Ottawa since 2014.
The final phase of hearings will, as usual, be open to the public. You can attend in person at the town hall council chambers, watch live on Rogers TV, or stream online via the RogersTV website here.
