It all should have ended when it started, was Township Mayor Rick Green’s response to Monday’s censure motion which stripped him of his GVRD directorship.

He accused Township councillors of wasting tax money to have him investigated, spending $69,000 on lawyers in a “political” effort to push him out of office.

Those $69,000 could have been used for “building programs [and] fixing roads,” he reiterated several times during a press conference he called Tuesday morning in Township council chambers.

Citing a litany of dust-ups between himself and his council, from differences of opinion over the Langley Events Centre to the Mufford overpass proposal, he charged that councillors are trying to get him to resign.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he told media gathered for his press conference, adding a vow to seek re-election in November 2011.

Councillors Grant Ward and Charlie Fox took in the press conference from the gallery.

Ward explained later that the investigation had been launched because the mayor had made allegations against prominent Langley citizens.

He said Green had taken old allegations – which had been demonstrated a decade ago to have been groundless – and appeared intent on bringing them back one more time.

Fox said it was “never, ever a move to get the mayor out of office – just to make him accountable.”

The current situation goes back to a brown paper package received anonymously by the mayor.

Green said he had received the package on Oct. 27, 2009, and alarmed by the information it contained, called an in camera meeting to discuss its contents with his council.

At the in camera meeting, Green said, his councillors indicated that they had been aware of the matter for more than a decade, and that there was nothing to it.

“That’s where I thought this whole thing would end,” Green told the media gathering. “That’s where it should have ended.”

But Fox said Green gave council the impression at the Oct. 28 meeting that he had received the information in question only the day before.

But “there was something not right” about the situation as outlined by the mayor.

In fact, Green now admits that he had had information for two months, related to the allegations that led to his call for the special in camera meeting.

Not admitting to councillors the rumours he had heard was “the one mistake I made,” Green said.

He also had received an email in August, and was in possession of a corporate registry related to the discredited allegations for weeks before the in camera meeting.

Lawyers called in to investigate the situation found that the mayor had misled his council, and suggestions of wrong-doing by staff were unfounded.

Council resolved to censure the mayor last July, and sought advice for what kinds of punishment they could hand out.

On Monday, Sept. 13, council stripped the mayor of his positions as Langley Township’s representative on the GVRD board.

Fox will take his place there, to maintain the Township’s representation.

Green characterized his council’s action as “outrageous.”

Initial story from www.langleyadvance.com:

Mayor Rick Green is getting his wrist slapped.

His council has resolved to censure Green, and is rescinding all of his appointments.

Green will no longer sit as Langley Township’s representative on the GVRD board of municipal directors, and has been removed from the Fraser Health Municipal Government Advisory Council.

It all goes back a year, to Oct. 29, 2009, when the mayor convened an emergency council meeting to discuss an anonymous letter he had received the previous day.

The letter included corporate records that Green thought might indicate illegal activity involving Langley residents and a municipal employee.

At the meeting, council expressed confidence in its staff.

But in December 2009, an outside law firm was asked to look into the mayor’s handling of the anonymous letter. Thoughout the review, Green maintained that he had no prior knowledge of the records enclosed with the letter.

In May 2010, after receiving the lawyers’ report, Green admitted that he had misled council and the law firm, and apologized. He had had copies of the records in his possession since at least Sept. 2, 2009 – nearly two months before receiving the anonymous letter.

Nearly a month later, on June 14, 2010, Green claimed that the corporate records might have been taken from his office and copied. He implied that the improper use of the documents might have been by municipal employees.

An investigation into his allegations came up with no reason to believe that improper access had been made to the mayor’s office, or that the papers in question had been removed.

The bill for the proceedings leading to the mayor’s censure amounts to more than $69,000.

A press release issued by Township council notes, “Council regrets that so much time, energy, resources and money had to be spent on this issue. The Mayor’s misconduct has impaired Council’s trust in him and, in Council’s view, impaired his ability to represent the Township Council in public and regional matters.”

No wrong-doing was found on the part of any Township resdients or staff, in relation to the matters investigated.

“Council hopes to work cooperatively and productively throughout the final 14 months of the term,” the release concludes.

Township Council censure motion – September 13, 2010 Council Resolution

Whereas at the July 26, 2010 Special Closed Meeting, Council passed a resolution finding that the Mayor misrepresented his knowledge of the true facts to Council when scheduling the Special Closed meeting on October 28, 2009 and failed to disclose his knowledge of the true facts to Council during the Special Closed meeting on October 29, 2009 and thereafter to May 17, 2010; and

Whereas at the July 26, 2010 Special Closed Meeting, Council found that the Mayor misconducted himself in a manner that is worthy of sanction by Council; and

Whereas at the July 26, 2010 Special Closed Meeting, Council asked an outside law firm to investigate possible security breaches in the Mayor’s office and the report on this investigation since delivered to Council found that no breaches had occurred; and

Whereas at the July 26, 2010 Special Closed Meeting, Council resolved to consider at its September 13, 2010 Special Closed meeting all of the sanctions available to it in respect of the Mayor’s conduct, including censure and the removal of the Mayor from appointments to all external committees;

Therefore be it resolved that Council formally censure the Mayor for misrepresenting the knowledge of the true facts to Council when scheduling the Special Closed meeting on October 29, 2009 and thereafter to May 17, 2010;

Be it further resolved that Council rescinds all previous appointments of the Mayor effective as of today’s date for the duration of this term of office in respect of:

1. The GVRD Municipal Directors Board,

2.The Fraser Health Municipal Government Advisory Council; and

Further, Council withdraws any previous approvals of the Mayor’s membership on any of the above committees;

Be it further resolved that Mayor Lois Jackson as Chair of the GVRD Municipal Directors Board be forthwith informed of Council’s decision regarding rescission of appointments of the Mayor as a Director of the GVRD Board.

Finally, be it further resolved that this decision of Council to censure the Mayor and to sanction him as above be forthwith released to the public at the conclusion of the meeting in the form of a medial release approved by Council and release of this motion and the July 26, 2010 motion from in camera to the public.

July 26, 2010 Motion – Released from Special Closed Council Meeting

Moved by Councillor Richter,

Seconded by Councillor Bateman,

Whereas on May 17, 2010 the Mayor provided to Council a document entitled “Statement of Full Disclosure” wherein the Mayor admitted that his decision “to tell Council and our lawyers that receipt of the package of information on the morning of October 28 was the first I had heard of it” was “misleading” and the Mayor tendered an unqualified apology in respect of it; and

Whereas by addendum dated June 14, 2010 the Mayor referred to the apology previously tendered and affirmed it and further clarified that the central securities register had been in the Mayor’s office from the time of its receipt in August 2009 until the receipt of the package by the Mayor on October 28, 2009; and

Whereas the Mayor did not disclose these facts to Council at any time prior to the calling of the Special Closed meeting on October 28, 2009, during the Special Closed meeting on October 29, 2009 or otherwise before the “Statement of Full Disclosure” dated May 17, 2010 and delivered to Council on May 17, 2010; and

Whereas the Mayor’s acts in misleading Council in respect of the facts surrounding the calling of the Special Closed meeting on October 28, 2009 and his withholding of the true facts from Council on October 29, 2009 and thereafter to May 17, 2010 goes to the trust that Council can reasonably and reliably have in the Mayor, his further dealings with Council, and his conduct of Township business; and

Whereas Council has been informed as to the remedies available to Council in respect of the above acts, statements, and knowledge of the Mayor as acknowledged by the Mayor; and

Now therefore be it resolved that:

1.Council find that the Mayor misrepresented his knowledge of the true facts to Council when scheduling the Special Closed meeting and failed to disclose his knowledge of the true facts to Council during the Special Closed meeting on October 29, 2009 and thereafter to

May 17, 2010;

2.Council finds that the Mayor misconducted himself in a manner that is worthy of sanction by Council;

3.Council consider all of the sanctions available to it, including censure and removal of the Mayor from all external positions to which he has been appointed by Council to represent the Township, and Council forthwith impose such sanctions on the Mayor as Council determines to be appropriate in the above circumstances.

Be it further resolved that upon Council’s resolution to impose sanctions and concurrent with their implementation that portion of the June 14, 2010 Special Closed meeting of Council motion, labeled F and dealing with the Select Committee of Council pursuant to Section 142 of the Community Charter to inquire into and report on those matters more particularly described as:

1.The calling of a Special closed meeting of the Township Council held October 29, 2009. The procedures and steps followed by the Mayor in relation to the handling and disclosure of the anonymous letter dated October 27, 2009 addressed to Kent Spencer and enclosures; and

2.The statements and disclosures of the Mayor relating to the letter dated October 27, 2009 addressed to Kent Spencer and enclosures and the information contained therein;

be rescinded and thereafter be of no further force and effect; and

Be it further resolved that upon Council’s resolution to impose sanctions and following their implementation that this motion, the minutes of any non-privileged discussion by Council of this motion and any resolution resulting from Council’s discussion of this motion be released by Council from in camera following receipt of an appropriate legal opinion from legal counsel for the Council.

That Council consider sanctions at a Special Closed meeting of Council on September 13, 2010 at 2:30pm; and

That at that meeting, a list of committees, task forces, and regional boards that the Mayor sits on be provided to Council on September 9, 2010; and

That Lidstone & Company provide a public release plan, and

That Lidstone & Company provide results of interviews of staff who held master keys to the Mayor’s office by Mr. Lidstone or staff, along with the Mayor’s Legal Counsel’s response to be included in the Council agenda package for September 13, 2010 and distributed to Council on September 9, 2010.

Section 90(1) (a) Personnel; (d) Security; (e) Property; (g) Legal; (i) Solicitor-Client Privilege

CARRIED

Mayor Green opposed