Workload worries play role as markets board loses almost half of its members
Four Ottawa Markets board members, including two of the three executive members, quit before city hall transferred the ByWard and Parkdale markets to the new arm’s-length organization.
Vice-chairman Dennis Jackson, treasurer Chantal Gingras and two other board members, Ian Fraser and Kathleen Macmillan, resigned after they were selected with five others last July to serve on the first Ottawa Markets board.
“We’re not taking this lightly,” board chairman Peter Hume said on Thursday. “The priorities are to make the transition and to make the transition cleanly and smoothly, and we did that.”
Ottawa Markets launched on Jan. 1.
Hume said some members thought it was just a governance board, but it quickly became clear for Jackson and Gingras the board would have busy months ahead in setting up a municipal service corporation.
“It became a tremendous amount of time and energy, and one they didn’t anticipate with all their other activities,” Hume said.
Gingras, the president of an insolvency firm who resigned from the markets board in September, said she was elected to be chairwoman of her national professional association in August, which called for another large commitment. Gingras said her decision to leave the markets board was for professional reasons, choosing to prioritize the professional association.
Jackson, Fraser and Macmillan resigned in November. Hume said he believes Fraser and Macmillan were concerned about a “reputational risk” that came with the markets venture.
Fraser said the workload became a concern, especially since he’s also a busy board member with Invest Ottawa.
“Not a risk issue at all,” Fraser said. “From my perspective, I was happy to take that on.”
Jackson and Macmillan couldn’t be reached for comment.
Hume acknowledged there were some “huge” risks that came with needing to make quick decisions using spotty financial information.
The city recruited board members with no real idea of what they could expect.
“It will become a governance board hopefully in the very near future, but until that time the board is going to have to be a little more active than they probably thought they would be,” Hume said, adding that he understands why the four board members resigned.
“These are very sincere people doing what they thought was right for the corporation,” he said. “The reasons were fair and valid.”
The board hopes to hand off all the operations to the executive director, Jeff Darwin, but it might take until around May, when the board brings its strategic plan to city council.
Hume isn’t worried as much today about the risks, now that the organization has an executive director and property management company for the central ByWard Market building and parking and retail building on Clarence Street.
The remaining board members will need to recruit replacements and have them approved by city council. Hume said he plans to discuss with Mayor Jim Watson what the city wants to do, particularly about appointing new executive members.
In a separate interview, Watson, who was briefed on the matter this week, said he understands the Ottawa Markets board members are volunteers who have to take into consideration their professional jobs. Watson said he accepts there will be “growing pains” transitioning to Ottawa Markets.