Fort Frances Town Council is expected to soon have its power restricted when it goes into a temporary “lame duck” period.
A lame duck council occurs when fewer than 75 per cent of its current members choose not to run again. For Fort Frances, this means that only two members need to decide they’re not running in October for the next term of council for a lame duck period to come into effect.
Mayor Andrew Hallikas and Coun. Wendy Brunetta have already made it public that they have no plans to run again. This places council below its 75 per cent requirement, however they still have until nomination day on Aug. 21 to change their minds.
“Here’s everything they can’t do,” Municipal Clerk Chelsea Greig wrote to The Times in an email. “The appointment or removal from office of any officer of the municipality; the hiring or dismissal of any employee of the municipality; the disposition of any real or personal property of the municipality which has a value exceeding $50,000 at the time of disposal; and making any expenditures or incurring any other liability which exceeds $50,000.”
The purpose of this process is so that outgoing members are prevented from committing the new council to major decisions or projects that they may not feel are in the community’s best interest.
These restricted powers are delegated to the town Chief Administrative Officer during this time, ensuring regular operations can still proceed.
The last time Fort Frances had a lame duck council was during its last election cycle of mayor and council. According to Greig, there were no pressing decisions at the time to leave any major issues unresolved.
During the current cycle, the biggest unresolved item is the future of Sunny Cove Camp. Council previously reconsidered the sale of the camp in favour of rehabilitating it, directing administration to develop a report focused on repair costs and future uses of the site. This brought the decision for the camp’s future back to square one.
With no new updates as of Monday evening’s council meeting, it will be carried over to the next council to determine how the camp will be handled, as the CAO’s delegation of power is typically used only on time-sensitive matters.
This period is expected to begin when nominations are certified on Aug. 24. This will last until a new council is sworn in on Nov. 16.
