Bennett reflects on 2017 and the year ahead
Mayor Daryl Bennett says he wasn’t in conflict when he voted to allow a casino to be built 700 metres away from a property he owns – and if anyone thinks otherwise, they can take him to court.
“If someone feels they know something I’m unaware of, let’s go before a judge and sort it out,” he said. “I’d be very pleased to do that.”
Bennett talked about that recurring perception of conflict in a wide-ranging year-end interview this week.
He covered other topics too, such as whether he thinks councillors get along with one another (they all do, “superbly well”), whether he’ll run for mayor again in 2018 (“That doesn’t need to be decided until May of next year!”) and whether he has an appointment with Premier Kathleen Wynne to ask permission to extend The Parkway (he doesn’t).
But he dwells awhile on one issue: the casino under construction now on Crawford Dr. and the question of whether he had a pecuniary interest when he voted to allow it.
“The answer is no – definitely no!” he says. “And I have a fullfledged legal opinion that clearly establishes my point of view is correct.”
That opinion is expressed in a 15-page document written by Toronto lawyer John Mascarin, a specialist in municipal law and an expert in the Municipal Act.
Mascarin’s website says he serves as integrity commissioner for several Ontario municipalities.
Bennett says the lawyer walked the casino site, noted the location of the headquarters for the Liftlock Group on Rye St. (Bennett’s business) and concluded there was never a conflict.
The document would serve as his defense, the mayor said, if anyone took him to court.
So far there have been no applications to a judge for a determination of pecuniary interest, which would allow the Bennett’s lawyer to use the defense.
Yet there was a campaign in 2017 to question whether the mayor had a conflict.
An anonymous group called People for Peterborough wrote a 34-page report arguing the mayor could profit from having the casino near his property.
The report alleges his property value could increase if the casino is nearby, for instance.
It also alleges that Bennett should have excused himself from a closed meeting when councillors discussed locating the casino on Crawford Dr.
The report was delivered anonymously to The Examiner in a brown envelope last spring.
Next, the group ran a series of paid ads on Facebook and other websites outlining some of the allegations against the mayor.
Even though the group describes itself on its Twitter account as “a concerned group of citizens standing up for our community,” no local residents have been identified as members.
There’s no telling who they are from their email address, either: they use an encrypted account based in Switzerland.
“That’ s who we’ re fighting against: someone who has the benefit of hiding on the Internet,” Bennett said, adding that the allegations against him are “baseless.”
Meanwhile, the new Shorelines Casino Peterborough is under construction and is expected to open sometime next summer or fall. It’s going on a south-end property that was once zoned as industrial land.
Although council and municipal staff have long been concerned that Peterborough lacks industrial land, Bennett sees “ample opportunity” for the city to grow.
He says that when General Electric ceases manufacturing in September, for example, it will free 80 acres of industrial land for redevelopment.
If the lands are contaminated, Bennett predicts GE will pay for a cleanup; he doesn’t think the company would walk away without remediating its property.
“GE’s not built that way,” Bennett said. “They’re not inclined to walk away from a situation.”
But does he want to be mayor when that day comes? It’s still not clear whether Bennett – who is 69 – is interested in seeking office for another four years.
When asked whether he wants to be mayor into his mid-70s, he hesitates.
“Do I want to continue to make a difference in people’s lives?” he says. “Yes. Until I die.”