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Hay River mayor resigns Kristen Campbell Northern News Services Published Monday, March 5, 2012
Shortly after the Feb. 27 council meeting began, Schofield read a prepared statement aloud in council chambers stating that effective immediately, he would no longer hold the position of mayor. "I believe I have served the community very well during my term," he read. "However, it is in the best interest that I resign for valid reasons." He listed misappropriation of municipal expenditures, incompletion of council-directed tasks such as the recreation centre and negotiating and tendering contracts, breach of confidentiality within council and a lack of support by a majority of council as reasons for his departure. Following the statement, he quickly exited council chambers, leaving behind a stunned council and gallery. Schofield would not provide further comment regarding his resignation directly after the meeting. Council members looked at each other, quietly asking if the situation was true. Then deputy mayor Mike Maher said he had similar concerns as Schofield and would be resigning as deputy mayor, although he wished to remain on council. "I have no choice but to resign as deputy mayor," he said. In an interview Wednesday, Schofield explained the reasons for his resignation in more detail. "Nobody is stealing but money is being spent without the knowledge or approval of council," said Schofield. "It is something that has been going on for a while." Schofield noted that there is a power struggle between mayor, council and the town's senior administrative officer (SAO) and many contracts had been awarded and approved by administration without council's input, including a water and sewer contract awarded to a southern company, which is being appealed by Maskwa Engineering, and the awarding of a flower pot contract, which is being appealed by Patterson's Green Valley Gardens. "That was supposed to go to council," said Schofield. "These contracts need to be approved by council." SAO Michael Richardson said he believes Schofield's actions were incorrect and backhanded. "As far as the allegations against me or administration go, they are false and the truth will come out," said Richardson. "I will continue to work with my co-workers to do the work that we are expected to do for the community and to co-operate with MACA." He said he will be taking time to spend with his family and working at the inn that he and his wife Taralynn own. He will also be spending what he called lost time with his kids. But the decision to resign was not an easy one. Schofield said he had been weighing his options since before Christmas. Schofield met with Hay River MLAs Jane Groenewegen and Robert Bouchard on Tuesday, then sent a letter to Municipal and Community Affairs (MACA) Minister Robert McLeod. "He did send us a letter outlining some concerns," said McLeod. "Any concerns we get, we take very seriously and we can't just dismiss them." Representatives from MACA were in Hay River to address the issues on Friday. "We need to make sure everything is operating properly," said McLeod. "We need to make sure that the decisions council made are legal and to date." As news of Schofield's resignation spread across town, one Hay River resident expressed a mixed reaction to the development. Keith Dohey, an avid follower of local politics, said Feb. 27 that he was surprised by the news, especially when the current term would expire as of October. "I'm surprised in the sense that I figured if any mayor was unhappy with this little time left to his or her term they would serve it out. I'm sure Kelly had his reasons that make perfect sense to him. He probably thought long and hard about his decision, so all the best to him," said Dohey. "That being said, when you're elected to serve a term, the people who vote for you expect that you will serve the full term." Schofield was elected mayor in October 2009 with 577 votes. Maher was re-elected in 2009 and has been sitting on town council since 2000.
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