Tag Archives: Aldo DiCarlo

A Look Back – Candidate Aldo DiCarlo on Toxic Town Hall

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Question 2. Generally when an organization has many Senior Management Team leave, transfer or get terminated there is a deep culture problem in the organization. So much staff turnover costs the organization money several thousand dollars and devastates employee morale. Do you believe that there is a toxic work culture at Amherstburg Town Hall and if you do how will you work with town Administration to make sure the work culture is fixed?

2014 then-candidate Aldo DiCarlo

This question seems to stem from question 1. To start, I believe there is likely a toxic work culture at Town Hall. If there isn’t, there’s definitely something wrong that needs to be addressed. As I stated in my answer to the first question, I believe the environment stems from the top. As mayor, I would definitely bring a new perspective and foster an environment of openness and congeniality that will hopefully trickle down. I believe in leading by example. Only by allowing people to share ideas, without fear of repercussions, can there be any movement to a positive and productive work environment. I can’t see dealing with this issue without a detailed review of the Town Hall staff structure.

Amherstburg Vote 2022

A Look Back – Candidate Aldo DiCarlo on Town Hall

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The burg watch created an historic first when it facilitated residents’ questions to the candidates during the 2014 municipal election. Since 2022 is another election year, I thought it would be worthwhile to revisit then-candidates’ answers.

Question 1. Amherstburg Town hall has been losing senior employees at an alarming rate. It seems pretty obvious that there is a negative culture at Town Hall. If the culture is not changed we will continue to waste taxpayer dollars paying to resolve conflicts and re-train employees when adults can’t get along. How will you unearth the root causes and fix the toxic culture at Town Hall and save Amherstburg from this costly mess? We can no longer afford the costs of discontinuity.

2014 then-candidate Aldo DiCarlo:

In order to answer this question, I will assume that Town Hall does indeed have a toxic work environment. The first thing I would do is confirm this to be true. It has been my experience that toxic work environments originate from the top, at least more often than not. A good leader, regardless of their title or position, should always be aware it exists. Assuming competence and awareness of the environment, it has to be then that the toxic work environment is being allowed to fester. The alternative is that those who lead, that should know, don’t actually know the environment exists, and that becomes a question of competence. Therein lies the answer. Were/are the senior administrators aware of the issue and what are they doing about it? It is my position that the Council, like a board of directors, is an oversight body that governs and holds accountable those whose job it is to address such issues. If the issue is actually originating at the ‘top’, then the ‘top’ must be held accountable, whatever that means for the circumstances at the time. Hiring and/or retaining is the best way to stop the revolving door of staff, regardless of their position. With the recent hire of the latest CAO, hopefully the toxic environment will be dealt with. Unearthing the root causes of the toxic culture is the job of the CAO, that’s what they get paid for. As mayor and a member of council, I’d hold the CAO accountable for doing their job. If it turns out yet another CAO has been hired that can’t address this issue properly, sadly I don’t know that there would be any other alternative but to embark on the search for another. If this worst case happens, as mayor, I’d make sure the next hire isn’t hired the way the rest have been.

Amherstburg Vote 2022

Ask And Your Wish Might Be Granted

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Amherstburg’s River Lights were to end January 3, 2022 but on December 31, 2021, at 2:26 p.m., am800 reported, Amherstburg’s River Lights To Stay On Until the end of January:

“Manager of Tourism and Culture Anne Rota says the town received several calls from the community requesting the displays be left on.

‘January is typically a long and cold and dark month and we thought if it can help just one person with that seasonal affective disorder. We want people to come out, enjoy the fresh air and walks are safe and healthy and River Lights does just that.’

Richard Peddie tweeted similar comments the day before:

Richard Peddie tweet about extending river lights

As reported on the burg watch, Mayor Aldo DiCarlo Lone Decision-maker of River Lights Extension.

Anne Rota did not respond to these questions:
how many calls did you/thetown receive from the community requesting the displays be left on?
in what way do you think the extension could “help just one person with that seasonal affective disorder?”
what would the extension cost?

Amherstburg’s CAO and 2 officials were dismissed, mayor confirms

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CBC reports,Three officials from the Town of Amherstburg, including its former chief administrative officer (CAO), were officially dismissed, according to the mayor.

As of Thursday, former CAO John Miceli, director of planning and development service Nicole Rubuli, and director of corporate services Cheryl Horrobin were no longer employed by the southwestern Ontario town, according to Mayor Aldo DiCarlo.

Redacted Windsor Policing Contract

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Mayor DiCarlo advised me Windsor’s response would be made public.

The red annotation in the redacted version of the contract on the town’s site is obvious:

**Schedule 1 – The full response to the Request for Proposals by the Windsor Police Service is being redacted from the public version as it is subject to a confidentiality clause. MFIPPA exemption 8.(1) Law Enforcement may apply.**

Section 8(1) is a discretionary exemption:

8 (1) A head may refuse to disclose a record if the disclosure could reasonably be expected to,

(c) reveal investigative techniques and procedures currently in use or likely to be used in law enforcement;

(e) endanger the life or physical safety of a law enforcement officer or any other person;

(g) interfere with the gathering of or reveal law enforcement intelligence information respecting organizations or persons;

(l) facilitate the commission of an unlawful act or hamper the control of crime.

The confidentiality clause was referenced in the June 2018 Ombudsman Report into council’s and the JPAC’s in camera meetings to discuss the policing RFP.

The Ombudsman concluded:

64    While I appreciate the municipality’s concerns about complying with this confidentiality clause, at the time of the committee’s meetings, there was no closed meeting exception that generally allowed a municipality to proceed in camera to protect the confidential information of a third party. However, new exceptions to the Municipal Act’s closed meeting requirements came into force on January 1, 2018, including exceptions related to information supplied in confidence. It is possible this matter may have fallen under one of the new exceptions, but they were not yet in force when the committee met. (emphasis added).

An FOI Appeal regarding Windsor’s refusal to disclose is ongoing.

DiCarlo Disappointed With Voter Turnout

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According to am800, there were about 700 fewer voters than four years ago, something DiCarlo wasn’t happy to see.

“Really in the grand scheme of things that’s my only disappointment. I take my voting seriously, obviously and it would have been nice to get a bigger turnout.”

Other municipalities, including some in Essex County, embraced the more progressive online or phone voting method whereas Amherstburg maintained its traditional polling method that yielded predictable results.

Similarly, the result of the decision to issue a policing RFP and not obtain an OPP costing as promised should have been obvious – that the OPP were excluded.

It is difficult to rationalize decisions that cost the taxpayer more than the other options that were dismissed.

The time to examine the effect of decisions is when they are made. Surely, information was available relative to cost, cause and effect of policing and polling.

Police Promotions Probed At Human Rights Hearing

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The Windsor Star reported Windsor Police Staff Sgt. Christine Bissonnette continued to lay out the parameters of her human rights’ complaint on Wednesday including allegations of gender bias, discrimination, ageism and harassment against senior ranks of the Windsor Police Service.

In response to the OCPC  investigation into Windsor Police, CBC News reported, “Complaints in the field [of policing] are inherent so I can’t say I’m surprised. The Town of Amherstburg​’s police force has had complaints. This is what happens in the business. We’d like to know what the complaints are and the details behind them,” DiCarlo said.

Regarding the same topic, the Windsor Star reported, “They are just complaints, Const. Shawn McCurdy, president of the Amherstburg Police Association, said Monday. “I bet if you went to every police service in the province, you’d find internal complaints.”

That’s right – discrimination, ageism, harassment, questionable hirings and promotions have occurred in Amherstburg, all of which are serious allegations. Shame on anyone who accepts them as the norm.

Town Business Should Be Transparent

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The River Town Times article on the recent Ombudsman Report mentioned Mayor Aldo DiCarlo said in the three-and-a-half years this council has been in office, it is only the second time that an Ombudsman’s report has found contraventions.

Letter to the editor RTT

Re: Ombudsman finds contravention in how JPAC, council handled meetings.

The article noted Mayor DiCarlo’s comment that during this council’s term, this is only the second contravention found by the Ombudsman.

Mayor DiCarlo referred to the early contravention and how town clerk Paula Parker’s absence resulted in uncertainty about in camera reasons. However, the Ombudsman noted the Chief Administrative Officer and the acting Clerk were present at the meeting.

In its first contravention, the Ombudsman concluded this Council was not permitted to discuss bank signing authorities in closed session at the meeting, and in doing so violated the Act.

The second contravention was of the Municipal Act, 2001 and the municipality’s procedure by-law when this council approved accounts payable over email in December 2014 and January 2015.

The third contravention, and current Ombudsman Report, noted council violated the Municipal Act in closing a meeting under the security of the property and the JPAC failed to comply with its terms of reference in closing several meetings using the security of the property exception.

Mayor DiCarlo made comparisons to the previous council’s violations.

The Ombudsman website lists ten Reports on Amherstburg: of the six during the previous council’s term, three were negative and of the four on this council, three were negative.

Experienced staff and council members should have known the meeting exceptions and in camera criteria, especially if previous Ombudsman recommendations were implemented.

How disappointing that transparency and accountability has to be legislated but can so easily be set aside to conduct business on behalf of ratepayers while excluding them.

Linda Saxon

Ombudsman Reports Of Councils Compared

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Mayor Aldo DiCarlo commented on the current council’s record in the Windsor Star article, Amherstburg contravened Municipal Act with closed meetings on policing.

The Ombudsman issued five Reports on the previous council; three were negative: council improperly voted twice and repeatedly contravened the Municipal Act and its own procedure by-law.

The Ombudsman issued five Reports during the current council’s term; one was for the previous council, three were negative: it violated the Municipal Act, contravened the Municipal Act and its procedure by-law and council violated the Municipal Act in closing a meeting under the security of the property exception. Additionally, the Joint Police Advisory Committee’s discussions about the police costing RFP on June 1, June 22, July 6, and December 7, 2017 did not fit within the “security of the property” closed meeting exception.

I don’t know how anyone could conclude this council is doing much better.