A councillor and candidate for mayor of Wood Buffalo is dismissing allegations contained in a recently-filed lawsuit that he is in a conflict of interest while voting on land issues around the airport.
Calgary-based Pacific Investments and Development is seeking an injunction against Coun. Allan Vinni and Wood Buffalo municipality because he failed to disclose he holds shares in a competing business that stood to gain financially from decisions made at municipal council, the company said.
The claim has not been proven in court and a justice is yet to rule whether the injunction will be ordered or granted. The matter will be in court on Oct.17; the morning after election day.
In an interview with CBC News, Vinni denied the allegations filled in the Sept. 22 lawsuit.
“This is total rubbish,” Vinni said from his law office in Fort McMurray. “It’s based on this story they (Pacific Investments) have concocted.”
The claim says in 2013 Vinni voted on motions involving Pacific Investments while holding shares in a numbered company which held a Crown lease on land near the Fort McMurray International Airport.
Pacific Investments is the general partner in the Prairie Creek Business Park and it intends to develop the land for warehouses, fabrication and as industrial land for businesses that support the oilsands.
The Prairie Creek Industrial Park is located three kilometres from downtown Fort McMurray along Highway 63. (CBC)
Pacific Investments claims the two companies are in direct competition.
At least one of the numbered company’s tenants was interested in purchasing land in its business park, Pacific Investments said in a supporting affidavit.
‘An unreasonable bias’
According to the application, Pacific Investments wants the court to prevent Vinni from debating or voting on issues regarding its business park if he wins the mayoral race.
The company anticipates it will have matters before municipal council and the company is engaged in ongoing discussions with the Wood Buffalo municipality about the extension of water and sewer lines.
“In the event that Mr. Vinni is elected mayor,” the court documents said, “there are serious issues as to whether Mr. Vinni remains in conflict of interest and whether he has an unreasonable bias against Pacific that should require him to recuse himself from any votes.”
Vinni said he wasn’t aware of any bias at the time of voting and maintains years after there is no conflict of interest nor any need to recuse himself.
On the contrary, he voted to redesignate Prairie Creek Business Park, which resulted in the company paying lower taxes, he said.
“I have always been supportive of them and supportive of getting the urban service area extended to include their property, which has been accomplished,” Vinni said. “The record shows that this is true.”
Vinni said none of the motions he voted on directly affected his own business interests and so he was not in a conflict of interest under the Municipal Government Act.
He likened the issue to property taxes, saying most councillors own land in Wood Buffalo and pay municipal taxes and voting to lower taxes for all residents does not put them in conflict.
Because the motion doesn’t solely affect councillors, he said, the law of general application rules.
“It’s pretty obvious how silly it is,” Vinni said. “It’s a matter of how close it gets to benefiting you.”
Pacific Investments and Development Ltd. is the general partner and represents a group investors who own the Prairie Creek Business Park. (Pacific Investments)
Municipality unwelcoming
The affidavit also claims the municipality is an unwelcoming place to outside developers. It alleges then chief administrative officer, Glen Laubenstein, often held a Wednesday night dinner club with local businesses and Pacific Investments was never invited.
Pacific Investments, the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo and Laubenstein have declined to comment.
The regional municipality is also involved in another lawsuit involving Pacific Investments & Development. It has filed a statement of defence in court denying the allegations.
The company claims it was excluded from the municipality’s urban service area and has paid taxes about four times higher than other businesses within Fort McMurray.
It’s suing the municipality and Laubenstein for $65 million.
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