Chestermere council orders investigation into city finances, the second ordered in a week
The City of Chestermere finds itself involved in three investigations, the most recent being ordered by council into its own "irregular" finances.
Councillors have ordered a third party to look into severance packages handed out to two former city employees equaling $600,000.
"We had one staff member who was paid about $400,000 that had worked here for about four years. We had another staff member who had been paid around $200,000 that, again, had worked for a similar timeframe," said Chestermere Mayor Jeff Colvin.
The city is not naming the former staffers or publicly releasing what positions they had when they resigned.
Colvin said city policy is that any expense over $75,000 must be signed off on by city council, but it didn't happen in the case of the severance payments.
"You want the consumers to have confidence in their government. And if you don't have reviews and inspections, how are you ever supposed to have confidence?" Colvin asked.
The look into severance payments comes less than a week after council ordered another third-party investigation into its own utilities company, formerly known as Chestermere Utilities Inc.
Council voted to dissolve the company in Nov. 2021 after audits found millions of dollars unaccounted for or missing.
The third-party investigations will be handled by an independent accounting firm, officials say. There's no timeline for how long it will take, though Colvin doesn't expect it to take very long.
PROVINCIAL PROBE
Its investigations into itself come as city hall is being looked into by Alberta's Minister of Municipal Affairs.
In a letter sent in March, minister Ric McIver cited possible "code of conduct infractions" among the issues his office would be looking at in Chestermere.
There's no word when the provincial investigation will be completed.
The city is not naming the former staffers or publicly releasing what positions they had when they resigned.
"The appointed inspector continues to review and assess the management, administration and operations of the city," reads a statement to CTV News from McIver's press secretary Scott Johnston.
"When the inspection process is complete, Municipal Affairs will share the inspector’s report with the City of Chestermere and its residents.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Still so much love between us,' Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
What to know about avian influenza in dairy cows and the risk to humans
Why is H5N1, or bird flu, a concern, how does it spread, and is there a vaccine? Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions about avian influenza.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
opinion The special relationship between King Charles and the Princess of Wales
Royal commentator Afua Hagan writes that when King Charles recently admitted Catherine to the Order of the Companions of Honour, it not only made history, but it reinforced the strong bond between the King and his beloved daughter-in-law.
Pro-plastic lobbyist presence at UN talks is 'troubling,' say advocates
Environmentalist groups are sounding the alarm about a steep increase in the number of pro-plastic lobbyists at the UN pollution talks taking place this week.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
$70M Lotto Max winners kept prize a secret from family for 2 months
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Trump's lawyers grill ex-tabloid publisher as 1st week of hush money trial testimony nears a close
After prosecutors' lead witness painted a tawdry portrait of “catch-and-kill” tabloid schemes, defence lawyers in Donald Trump's criminal trial on Friday sought to dig into an account of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election.