Regina city council removes Dan LeBlanc from community safety board
Following a tense meeting with heated debate, Regina City Council voted to remove Ward 6 Coun. Dan LeBlanc from his position on the board of community safety and well being.
Only two councillors, including LeBlanc himself, voted against the motion presented by Mayor Sandra Masters to remove him.
“I figured that was the way it would go,” LeBlanc said after Wednesday’s meeting.
Mayor Sandra Masters, along with Coun. Hawkins, Bresciani, Findura, Mancinelli, Nelson, Stadnichuk and Mohl all voted in favour to remove LeBlanc, while Coun. Stevens was the only other councillor to support him.
Ward 8 Coun. Shanon Zachidniak was not present at the meeting.
“That’s about the way it was in December,” LeBlanc said.
THE DEBATE
The motion was one of the first brought forward by Mayor Masters in the new year.
On Wednesday, multiple community members came to Henry Baker Hall with a chorus of support for LeBlanc.
“It’s critical for the board to have [him],” resident Carl Cherland said. “He is uniquely qualified to serve on the board. His efforts since being on council have clearly shown his care and focus on social justice and environmental issues.”
“Coun. LeBlanc was the first city councillor to immediately reach out to our organization to hear our concerns after attaining elected office,” Regina Anti-poverty Ministry advocate Peter Gilmer said. “We believe it is important there be representation from either Wards 3 or 6 on committees dealing with community wellness.”
“He also has the ability to empower people to work for positive social change to make our city a better place for everyone,” Florence Stratton said.
LeBlanc said when the motion initially came forward, he had plans to voluntarily resign from the board.
“But community members told me it wasn’t about me, it was about [them],” he said. “It’s about pushing back against people who dared come into the council chambers in December.”
“I was heartened to see people come support and speak in favour of community representation.”
It was not enough.
“The word that keeps coming forward to me is trust,” Coun. Lori Bresciani said. “We all have our beliefs and we all care about the most vulnerable, but it’s how we work together as a council.”
“How dare any delegate or anybody in Regina question any of our authority, any of our giving, loving and kindness towards people,” Coun. Terina Nelson said. “For anybody to say only one person on this council is good enough to serve on this committee, shame on you.”
“Councillor LeBlanc is a good man,” Coun. Bob Hawkins said. “[However] he is not the right man to represent this council.”
Coun. Stevens asked Hawkins if the court proceedings in December were the reason he wanted LeBlanc off the board.
“The court action was a material change of circumstances that had to be considered,” Hawkins said. “This motion was a directive in achieving that goal.”
Stevens went on to ask the mayor if she thought it was because LeBlanc was not committed enough to make the change the board aims to achieve.
“Not at all,” Masters said.
Stevens then asked Masters if there was any voice in the vulnerable populations who had come forward with evidence LeBlanc could not represent the issues of the board.
“Yes,” she said.
“Would you be prepared to share those with council?” Stevens asked. “I haven’t seen them.”
“Not even a little bit,” Masters responded. “Part of the reason you didn’t see anyone here supporting today is because the actual public feedback myself and some of the other councillors have is outreach from individuals feeling bad for [us] about what happened at budget time.”
Stevens said public outrage is normal in their line of work.
“We all get hate,” he said. “I see nothing convincing me we should pursue this and essentially purge and punish a councillor being committed to the issues embedded within this strategy.”
Ward 1 Coun. Cheryl Stadnichuk said she originally voted LeBlanc to the board because she thought he would be an asset.
“I do have a really strong concern after the events in December,” she said. “I would like to know what he will do to repair [our trust]. I would like to give [him] a second chance but there needs to be some trust building.”
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE BOARD?
The board featured a member of council, other community volunteers and City Manager Niki Anderson
“It’s important to have administrative senior leadership in those discussions,” Anderson said.
However, the board is still without an executive director.
Chief of staff to the city manager Ly Pham said hiring one is the committee’s top priority and has paused all work in the community action tables.
“With what has happened in our community, there was some fear there was a shift in expectations of what they were supposed to do,” she said. “Administration also acknowledged it is very difficult to be able to provide guidance and direction if the organization is not clear on how we actually drive that forward.”
Masters said the removal will create a safer space for discussion for the board.
“What you saw from council today was an agreement that there’s a need for both a safe space for the board of volunteers, for Niki and an individual who actually represents the voice of council,” she said.
Now removed from his position on the community safety board, Coun. LeBlanc has concerns.
“I suspect [my replacement] will not be councillor Stevens,” he said. “Heritage and North Central will not have a seat at the table where they need to be.”
Stevens said to achieve the goals of the board, council may not always act proper.
“It may mean stepping on toes,” he said. “We talk around ourselves about credibility and trust but what really matters, is addictions, domestic violence and food insecurity. We can not get along so long as we’re producing outcomes for those individuals,” he said.
Council will vote on who will replace LeBlanc at its next meeting on Feb. 22.
“We’re going to have someone on the committee who doesn’t represent Heritage or North Central. That’s a big red flag,” LeBlanc said. “From a credibility perspective, we are very likely to have someone on that board who voted against addressing houselessness on a housing-first model.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Former Air Canada employees among suspects identified in gold heist at Pearson Airport: police
Nine people have been arrested in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year, Peel Regional Police said Wednesday.
MPs summon ArriveCan contractor to the House to be admonished in rare parliamentary display
Enacting an extraordinarily rarely used parliamentary power, MPs have summoned an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons on Wednesday afternoon to be admonished publicly for failing to answer their questions.
'Enormous sum of money': Actor Hugh Grant settles privacy lawsuit against tabloid
British actor Hugh Grant has settled a lawsuit against the publisher of Rupert Murdoch's tabloid newspaper, The Sun, over claims journalists used private investigators to tap his phone and burgle his house, he said on Wednesday.
Gas prices across Ontario expected to climb to levels not seen since 2022, analyst says
Ontario is going to see a big jump at the pumps later this week as gas prices in the province hit levels not seen in nearly two years, according to one industry analyst.
Ancient skeletons unearthed in France reveal Mafia-style killings
More than 5,500 years ago, two women were tied up and probably buried alive in a ritual sacrifice, using a form of torture associated today with the Italian Mafia, according to an analysis of skeletons discovered at an archaeological site in southwest France.
O.J. Simpson was chilling with a beer on a couch before Easter, lawyer says. 2 weeks later he was dead
O.J. Simpson's last robust discussion with his longtime lawyer was just before Easter, at the country club home Simpson leased southwest of the Las Vegas Strip. About a week later, on April 5, a doctor said Simpson was 'transitioning.'
Some of the winners and losers in the 2024 federal budget
With a variety of fiscal and policy measures announced in the federal budget, winners include small businesses and fintech companies while losers include the tobacco industry and Canadian pension funds.
U.K. plan to phase out smoking for good passes first hurdle
The British government's plan for a landmark smoking ban that aims to stop young people from ever smoking cleared its first hurdle in Parliament on Tuesday despite vocal opposition from within Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party.
Father of boy accused of stabbing 2 Australian clerics saw no signs of extremism, Muslim leader says
The father of a boy accused of stabbing two Christian clerics in Australia saw no signs of his son’s extremism, a Muslim community leader said on Wednesday as police began arresting suspected rioters who besieged a Sydney church demanding revenge.