Brownsburg-Chatham council responds to ex-mayor’s criticism in new letter

The mayor and all six councillors of the Brownsburg-Chatham municipal council have drafted a letter to residents in which they refute the majority of the financial mismanagement allegations brought forward by former mayor Lise Bourgault in late August.

"Lately, certain individuals have conveyed certain false information concerning your town's financial situation, both in newspapers and in public," reads the letter, signed by all seven members of council. "We, the council members, take this opportunity to present you with the correct facts."

Bourgault had previously contacted local media to challenge the current council over its approval of a special tax of nine cents per $100 of evaluation, in a move to pay off the town's current $1.9-million deficit. She said she used Access to Information requests to "find all the budget documents that served to prepare the 2009 budget," adding that her administration planned for a $140,000 surplus.

The current council's letter, as obtained by The Review, begins by noting the town has an accumulated deficit of $1,891,360, as per page 11, line 23 of the 2009 financial report available on Brownsburg-Chatham's website.

"This accumulated deficit is due to an operational deficit of $370,361 in 2008 and $1,520,999 in 2009," the council members state. "We should be able to give you more details in the mayor's financial declaration in November. Nevertheless, we can assure you this deficit was caused by over expenditures found in the approved budget and the declared transactions conforming to legally-recognized accounting principles, and that the auditing firm was the same since 2007."

They added "certain unscheduled expenses" should have equally been accounted for in previous years, such as salary equity and back pay owed to firefighters.

Similar to the letter written by Bourgault, the current Brownsburg-Chatham council presented a point-by-counterpoint breakdown of the claims.

Land consolidation (Bill 212):

Following the approval of the Quebec National Assembly's Bill 212, the town acquired several million square feet of land. The current council said these lots have since become an "active" in the books and, once sold, will generate revenues for the town.

"In 2009, the previous administrators asked to have these lots included in the assessment registry in the name of the Société de développement économique de Brownsburg-Chatham (SDEBC) without even signing any deeds," council members write. "This consequently created legally-unfounded additional revenue in the books which, to no surprise, was refused by our auditors - having judged it contrary to the law.

"The SDEBC is acting as real estate agents in the selling of these lots; in recent talks with them, we agreed to continue this process with some minor adjustments. We all agree that these lots are very hard to sell since many are inaccessible or not adjoining."

Unrealized land sale:

In her letter this summer, Bourgault said the former administration had negotiated the sale of lots in the Vieux-Verger sector with a real estate promoter for $200,000, and questioned why the agreement was not in the books at the end of 2009.

The current administration replied briefly, "In the Vieux-Verger sector, no sale was completed due to no formal offers made by promoters, in spite of generous conditions offered by the town."

Personnel restructure:

Bourgault said her research showed Brownsburg-Chatham paid $60,000 in severance premiums to the recreation operations director, who was fired after the November 2009 election. Though the employee was eventually rehired in 2010, the premium was paid.

In one of the few instances of agreement with the former mayor, the current council replied: "For obvious financial reasons, we had to make difficult decisions, albeit important ones, in downsizing at the upper echelons. These cuts brought about certain short-term costs, which will eventually even out in the long run.

"Some retirements or departures were anticipated, but no provisions had been made available as of December 2009. We are endowed with very competent and professional employees who took the challenge and rose to the occasion; we wish to publicly thank them for it."

Campground royalty fees:

The council wrote that resolution 08-04-125 foresaw revenues of $87,125 in 2009 from the Société récréo-touristique Brownsburg-Chatham (SRTBC), which administers the campground.

"This transfer was made in good order," council members write. "At no time was an additional $100,000 formally asked from them by the town."

Restaurant expropriation case (O'Brien building):

In a case that Bourgault said cost the municipality $118,000, Michel Guilbault, the owner of the Resto-Bar Le Sportif in the former O'Brien building, asked the municipality for $100,000 in compensation after the former administration expropriated the building.

The issue was in front of a provincial administrative tribunal when the current council announced in April that the municipality decided to settle out of court, "because it was better than any outcome we could expect in court."

The official response in the letter, however, was: "The agreement is confidential; we cannot divulge any information or comments until all transactions in this case are completed. Nevertheless, be assured that we are working in the interest of the town."

Share of costs for the Belvedere tower construction:

Bourgault said the expense for Brownsburg-Chatham's share of the Belvedere Tower, which overlooks the Carillon dam, came from a reserve and did not affect the budget. She said the expense was later moved to the general account and charged to the taxpayers.

"This is a joint project with the MRC d'Argenteuil," reads the council's response. "Our town's share was $141,339, paid in 2009 without any provisions in the budget or reserve for this expenditure."

Signage inventory:

"After analysis from the external auditors and our own roads and grounds director, it was found that these signs were old and outdated and in very bad condition," the council wrote, responding to Bourgault's questions about the whereabouts of $53,000 worth of road signage inventory that existed in 2009.

"[It was] consequently erased from the inventory list," the letter reads. "It should have been done years ago."

The letter to Brownsburg-Chatham residents explained that council members adopted a resolution on August 2, asking the Quebec ministry of municipal affairs (MAMROT) "to proceed with an inquiry of certain transactions dating prior to December 31, 2009," but they would not offer any further comment until the report was received.

"The next few years will be difficult financially," council members collectively concluded, adding they will work to improve the scenery and the services of the town, including the Brownsburg library. "We will all be asked to contribute in paying past debts along with investing for the future."

For more information about the letter written by Bourgault, read the September 1 edition of The Review or find it online at www.TheReview.ca.