An Integrity Commissioner investigation has dismissed formal complaints concerning Councillors Sam Branderhorst and Kate MacNaughton over the dissolution of the former Athol Recreation Committee.

Social media posts by both councillors and comments reported in the Picton Gazette formed part of the complaints.

Interim Integrity Commissioner Meaghan Barrett of Aird & Berlis LLP said she found neither Ms. Branderhorst nor Ms. McNaughton contravened Sections 2, General Integrity, or 7, Improper Use of Influence, of the County’s Code of Conduct.

Interim Integrity Commissioner Meaghan Barrett of Aird & Berlis LLP reported to Council that she found neither councillor contravened Sections 2, on General Integrity or 7, Improper Use of Influence, of the County’s Code of Conduct.

Origin Story

At a May 6, 2024 Athol Recreation Committee meeting, a proposed agreement between the HUB Childcare Centre and the municipality to use the Athol Town Hall as a daycare centre was discussed.

Councillor Sam Branderhorst (Supplied Photo)

The deal would have created 24 preschool child care spaces at the Town Hall that fall. Councillor Branderhorst advised ARC members that Council was reviewing underused properties to determine if any could be sold.

She suggested use of the Town Hall as a satellite daycare centre could save it from the chopping block.

But the plans fell apart. HUB Executive Director Stacey Stanford told the Gazette at the time that despite assurances from the leaders of the legacy groups who regularly used the Hall that the daycare was welcome, she sensed antagonism from members who felt their historical access would be curtailed.

Public Posts

A social media outcry followed, primarily from desperate parents who had been hoping for a childcare facility. Ms. MacNaughton posted on Facebook to ask the public not to tar the ARC and the Cherry Valley Women’s Institute with one brush, noting it was only a couple of members who opposed the plan.

Councillor Kate MacNaughton (Photo: Jason Parks / Gazette Staff)

Closed Session

Council emerged from closed session September 10 with a motion from Ms. Branderhorst, seconded by Ms. MacNaughton, to dissolve what was left of the ARC and re-strike the committee at a later date.

Since January 2024, a half-dozen committee members had resigned including Committee Chair Carmen MacCallum. A September 18 Picton Gazette article reported Councillor MacNaughton saying, “When we see this many committee members resign in less than a year, it can be a red flag that there are dynamics issues. … We’ve had six resignations this past year alone and we’re not even halfway through the term. Pressing the reset button lets the committee start fresh.”

Among other allegations, the complainants objected to Ms. Banderhorst’s comments at the May 6 Council meeting, stating she improperly used her position as a member of Council contrary to Section 7 of the Code when she suggested the Town Hall would be sold if it was not used as a satellite location by the local daycare. They also said she contravened Section 2 of the Code because she failed to secure an alternative “rain date” venue for Athol Day, despite agreeing to do so, which led to the event’s last minute cancellation.

The complainants contended that the dissolution motion should have been conducted in open session, and that dissolving the Committee was a way for Ms. Branderhorst to avoid repercussions for failing to secure an alternate site or a rain date for Athol Day 2024.

Findings

In her conclusions, Ms. Barrett noted Ms. Branderhorst was a party to Council discussions earlier in 2024 concerning underused town halls and that it was understandable that she would raise the issue and seek potential solutions with the ARC at the May 6 meeting.

She also pointed to a January 6, 2025 report made by Aird & Berlis colleague John George Pappas who reasoned that, under the provisions in the Municipal Act surrounding identifiable individuals, the matter was correctly dealt with in closed session.

“[The closed session] highlighted actions that were having a significant negative impact on other members of the ARC and which contributed to a challenging and unsustainable working environment. A verbal update also included the experiences of an affected member who shared their account on the condition it only be shared in closed session, reflecting the sensitivity and personal nature of the matters raised,” noted Ms. Barrett.

“Council was advised six members of the ARC had resigned over a nine-month period, citing the behaviour of certain members of the ARC as the primary reason for their departure,” Ms. Barrett said. “The verbal update to Council described how this behaviour had created what was characterized as an “unbearable” working environment, rendering the ARC unable to function effectively.”

Finally, the complaint concerning Ms. MacNaughton’s social media post was dismissed as it was submitted after the 90-day deadline.

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