CSI: Stouffville
This week, we reported on the crime-scene style walls in Mayor Justin Altmann’s bathroom. Now photos of those walls have surfaced, and some of the people pictured on them are appalled
A wall of pictures and cryptic messages that the mayor of Whitchurch-Stouffville posted on the wall of his office washroom has been revealed, but dozens of those whose faces are on display — local residents, former employees and politicians — say they are disturbed and, in some cases, concerned for their safety.
It also has left them wondering what it all means.
“It’s absolutely creepy,” said Samantha Farrow, a longtime resident. “I was horrified when I saw my picture. I couldn’t believe my picture was on the bathroom wall in the mayor’s office,” said Farrow, who said she runs her family business in town and has no personal dealings with the mayor.
“The fact that he put so much effort into finding my picture on Facebook, printing it out and putting it on the wall is really unsettling.”
The collection of photos, which covers three walls of Mayor Justin Altmann’s washroom, sparked a probe by an integrity commissioner after a town employee came across the wall in March. The probe is still underway.
The pictures on the washroom wall are believed to have been posted there as early as January. At that time, Metroland Media-York Region reporter Ali Raza saw the walls and shot pictures of the display. The posted photos include current and former councillors, town employees, business people and even a Toronto Star reporter, who has sometimes covered Whitchurch-Stouffville.
Many of the photos are connected by hand-drawn arrows and interspersed with signs reading “hired” or “you’re fired.” Some people, such as former CAO Marc Pourvahidi, who was dismissed last fall with a sizable payout, appear multiple times.
Altmann did not respond to numerous requests for comment, from multiple Star reporters over many days. He has, however, told the Star’s sister publication, Metroland MediaYork Region, that the wall is a “mind map” or “timeline.”
In an interview with Metroland Media-York Region reporter Simon Martin, Altmann said having others discover the walls of photos is the best thing that could have happened.
“I broke down crying,” he told Martin. “I am so happy that I get to tell my story now. I am so happy the integrity commissioner will get to investigate me because I have had no means to tell my story.
“There is nothing criminal on the wall. The wall is normal . . . There’s nothing vexatious. There’s nothing nasty. There’s nothing mean.”
But those who found their faces plastered on the wall don’t agree that it is normal.
“I’m highly disturbed by this,” said Darlene Shaw, who runs a project management company and has lived in the town of 45,000 her entire life. “This is not a mind map. This is not innocent. This is strategic and meticulous.
“As a woman, to have your photograph in the bathroom, is so demeaning,” said Shaw, a volunteer in town and on several committees.
“How do I deal with this man now? I’m a fairly independent woman, but now I feel like I have to be more cautious.” York Region Chair and CEO Wayne Emmerson, who preceded Altmann as mayor of Whitchurch-Stouffville, said he was shocked to see his photo included on the wall.
The pair ran against each other in the 2010 mayoral election, which saw “some heated discussion” before Alt- mann was defeated, Emmerson said. But since the end of his term in 2014, Emmerson has moved out of Stouffville and does not involve himself in town politics except to take calls from current councillors asking about past projects, he said. The two do interact at York Regional council, where Altmann also holds a seat as mayor of his town.
“I never did anything to disrespect Mayor Altmann. I did not campaign against him. I left that all up to the citizens,” Emmerson said.
Alec Cloke, owner and operator of the local business, United Soils, whose dispute over a fill pit sparked an ongoing controversy in the town last year, had a fair share of the wall dedicated to him.
“The existence of the mural is beyond creepy,” he said, adding that he has gone to the police on behalf of Shaw and Farrow, who work with him and his local charity, Tiny Seedlings. The picture of his lawyer, Toronto-based William Chalmers, appears six times.
The York Regional Police did not respond to questions about whether or not the wall has led to complaints or an investigation.
Ian Hilton, a local resident whose photo is on the wall, along with a photo of his wife, former town councillor Sue Hilton, described the photo walls as “horrifying.”
“Some people have described the (recent staff exodus) as the implementation of a hit list against staff,” Hilton said. “This photograph business is, in my mind, simply an extension of that — the enemies list.”
In his interview with Martin, Altmann said the photo walls were meant to help him determine why so many town officials have been resigning and who may have released in-camera council documents.
The mayor said his “mind map” showed back-stabbing and other bad behaviour within the town hall. “I have been lied to. I have been manipulated. I have had harassment against me since Day 1 in this office,” he said.
On Thursday, Altmann took out a full-page advertisement in the Stouffville Sun-Tribune newspaper, which referenced, but did not com- ment on, the Star’s July 3 story about his walls of photos.
“We have seen politicians who let their egos consume them. They appear to think the role is all about themselves and forget about the importance of the residents,” Altmann wrote in the ad.
“I am the sum of past generations, and the future investment for our town. I believe we need to walk the path to the future together,” he wrote in another part of the ad.
Photos of all six councillors appear on Altmann’s walls. Councillor Iain Lovatt said he “immediately” asked Altmann about the photos when he heard about them.
“He told me it was a mind map of his thoughts for varying situations he’s been dealing with since taking office. I took him at his word.”
Despite the disturbing display of photos, several residents have voiced their continued support for Altmann on social media.
“I believe this flow chart and ‘Mind Map’ is exactly that . . . a clear chart to help the mayor remain focused on those who, every day, are trying to stab him in the back, and those he can rely on to help him look after the interests of the town and the people of Stouffville,” wrote Mike Burns in a July 5 Facebook post. “Keep the faith Mr. Mayor. Most of the folks around these parts are on your side.”
But Daniel Lublin, a partner in the law firm Whitten & Lublin, said the wall could become a legal headache for the town.
“This could be considered a form of harassment,” Lublin said. “I think current employees could view it as the mayor is out to get them or is prejudiced against them,” he said, adding “they may have grounds for legal action.”
Lublin said if a similar wall was found in a corporate setting, it “would be a cause for dismissal.”
Shaw says she loves the town, but doesn’t know how she, and the town, will move forward from this.
“I don’t think this can be fixed,” she said. “Unless he comes out and apologizes, but that hasn’t happened.
“I just want to know how I fit in to this mind map.”