December 9, 2019 Warden Penny Smith and Council Municipality of the District of Shelburne Shelburne, NS Re: Dec 9 presentation by Sable River Volunteer Fire Dept Board Warden Smith and Council, After many months of trying to make sense of the actions of the SRVFD Board (the Board) regarding finances, transparency and other issues, including attendance at many Board meetings, marathon mediation session, by-law revision working group meetings and many discussions with Councilors and senior staff, the Concerned Citizens of Sable River (Citizens) anticipated that there would be some clarity gained and that some level of trust within the community might be re-established regarding the behaviour of the Board. Sadly, this has not been the case. In reviewing the proposed December 9 presentation by the Board to Council, we observe continued obfuscation, mis-direction, mis-representation and misinformation being provided to Council and, through them, the Community at large. All-in-all, we believe that the Board has not approached the resolution we all seek with a good faith effort. These issues include, but may not be limited to: Letter from Norma Brown Since this letter was submitted by the Board as an attachment to thier presentation, we can only assume that the Board supports the allegations included therein. Ms. Brown is has not been a resident of Sable River for some years and could not have personal knowledge of most of the assertions she makes about the actions of Concerned Citizens. She asserts that she does not know Chief Sisk but insists that she knows how bad things "are being done to him". The letter seems mostly filled with spiteful hearsay, innuendo and slanderous language - it should be removed from the presentation and not considered in Council deliberations. If the letter's contents are to be considered at all, it should only be after staff has interviewed Ms. Brown to verify her accusations. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dec 9, 2019 - Concerned Citizens of Sable River Page 1 of 4
Schedule "B" Letter of Nov 10, 2019 SRVFB Board to MODS This letter is reflective of some of the outrageous positions held by the Board, which are part and parcel of the increasing conflict between the Board and Citizens. While thanking MODS for paying for the August mediation session, the Board questions whether the Citizens reflect the interests of Sable River residents and questions whether Citizens has the "legal ability" to reach an agreement with the Board. If these were viable positions, the Board would have refused to attend the mediation. Questioning the legitimacy of a process after willingly participating in it is disingenuous, at best. It is also operating in very bad faith. Two primary principles of the Mediation Agreement were; the submission to Citizens of notices, agendas and minutes for certain board meetings; and participation by the Board in negotiations to revise by-laws. Despite the Board's assertion that documents would be provided by November 15, not one page of required documents has been submitted to Citizens. More bad faith. The Board also arbitrarily ended participation in by-law discussions. The characterization of the reasons for ending by-law review are simply a bold face lie and are now the fourth separate and different reason given by the Board for the termination. To accuse the Citizens of "obstructing" the by-law process is outrageous. A more accurate account can be gained from former warden Sherm Embree, who served as working group chair. For the Board to consider the mediation complete and fully complied-with is arrogant at the extreme. More bad faith. The Board states that none of the issues extant here would exist of Citizens members had attended board meetings. In fact, several Citizens have attended every meeting of the Board in recent months and have served on previous boards and contributed thousands of hours serving as volunteers on community organizations in Sable River and elsewhere. Here again, the Board assails the motives of the Citizens, questions their legitimate purpose and describes them as a distraction. The Citizens are unanimously in favour of an effective, well-organized fire department and wholly support the stated mission of the Department. We also look forward to having a Board of Directors which responsibly provides adequate financial and other oversight and deals with members and residents in a clear and transparent fashion. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dec 9, 2019 - Concerned Citizens of Sable River Page 2 of 4
Schedule "C" Letter from Johan Grundy, Treasurer The balance prior to GICs being cashed was given on March 31, 2018 as $85,631.16 August 8, 2018 - $ 57,016.81 was the last confirmed balance (incl GICs ect.,) This was after two GIC’s were cashed out. The previous Treasurer resigned August 23, 2018 Adding to the Aug 8 balance was: - $20,000.00 Govt refund (Jaws Of Life ) - $64,000.00 claimed by Chief Sisk and his personal fundraising - $50,000.00 Insurance Claims (As reported by Treasurer Johan Grundy to MODS) Balance in May, 2019 should be: $191,016.81 These amounts do not include Operating or Capital Grants Provided By MODS, nor does this include any Fundraising By The Fire Department. Cube Van purchased By the Fire Department January, 2018. Woodworkers Home Hardware graciously offered to outfit the back of the Truck at no charge. March 10, 2018 Rally Point Retreat allowed the Fire Department use their workshop to build the cabinets for the back of the truck. (As per The Fire Department Face Book Page) Approximately 11 months later and as per The Treasurer’s report to MODS the final cost has not been determined as there are further alterations are to be done. What was the purchase cost of this vehicle? What is the cost to outfit this vehicle? What exactly is the maximum cost voted on by The Board? When will this Vehicle be complete? Vehicle, Repair & Maintenance, Equipment (there are questions concerning all of these). Grundy's Dec. 2, 2019 letter to MODS 5(a) shows repair and maintenance to vehicles with a section under notes that states that during the previous Treasurer tenure, the previous Treasurer resigned on August 23, 2018. These amounts are questionable as amounts for vehicle repair and maintenance do not reflect a full fiscal year. The Treasurer also states the vehicle entry of $10,072.00 is related to equipment. If this assertion is accurate, then the Notice To Reader provided by Belliveau Veinotte Inc. is not accurate, and therefore would need to be corrected. There are so many conflicting amounts for vehicle, repair, and maintenance and equipment, it is quite impossible to determine what is accurate without seeing proper supporting invoices for each of these categories. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dec 9, 2019 - Concerned Citizens of Sable River Page 3 of 4
Budget review of May 23, 2019 states the budget for fundraising costs to the Department was $500.00. As reported by The Fire Department to Belliveau Veinotte, in The Notice To Reader it was actually $13,963.00 , surpassing the projected budget by at least $13,000.00, or 2600%. This is cause for concern and the Fire department should be asked what circumstance created this, as there are no supporting documentation or receipts. Note: Prior to any consideration by MODS for financial obligation to SRVFD, the Board should be required to submit accurate financial reports and should be required to submit from Belliveau Veinotte a "notice to reader" based on accurate and verified financial documents. Regards, Concerned Citizens - Sable River ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dec 9, 2019 - Concerned Citizens of Sable River Page 4 of 4
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