City of Elliot Lake puts finding a new mayor on pause

The City of Elliot Lake has been ordered to pause its selection of a new mayor while Chris Patrie appeals the judicial decision that ousted him from city hall.

Patrie was ordered removed from office for a period of two years on Jan. 9 for violating the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act during his previous term as a city councillor. 

The order was followed by a special city council meeting on Jan. 12, which saw a motion pass declaring the head of council seat vacant.

In the meantime, Coun. Andrew Wannan has been serving as the city’s acting mayor.

The Municipal Act requires the city to decide how to fill the vacant seat within 60 days, which they can fill either by appointment or byelection. 

Today, Justice Alexander Kurke awarded a motion declaring the city pause the 60-day period pending a final decision on Patrie’s upcoming appeal, for which a notice of appeal has been filed. All parties consented to the pause. 

During the court appearance, which was held virtually and which Patrie attended alongside his wife, the City of Elliot Lake was added as a party to the motion.

With Elliot Lake down a mayor, their lawyer, John Mascarin, said, “There’s a real vested interest in the city having an issue in this matter.” 

The issue dates back to Patrie’s time as a city councillor, according to the Jan. 9 decision by Judge Annalisa Rasaiah. 

Between November 2017 to April 2019, it’s alleged that Patrie “participated in, and /or influenced municipal decisions in which he had a financial interest.”

According to the document, he “attempted to dissuade fellow elected members from placing a $30-million taxpayer-funded recreational infrastructure project in the downtown core and lobbying for it to be located behind commercial real estate he had an interest in, namely a shopping plaza.”

The plaza was owned by a corporation he and his wife owned shares with at the time. They also owned a business in the plaza known as the Elliot Lake Trading Post. 

Patrie is also accused of pressuring city staff to prepare favourable reports for the location near the plaza “even though numerous professional reports had never considered it a viable option.”

Upon learning his actions were being investigated, it’s alleged he threatened one of the investigators with legal action and attempted to defund, terminate and demand a refund from the integrity commissioner.

The integrity commissioner, represented by lawyer Raivo Uukkivi, said Patrie specializes in “non-denial denial” and “is not credible.”

“Patrie obfuscates, pontificates and evades specific questions by disputing irrelevant details, raising justifications that do not amount to legal defences, and/or refers to events out of chronological order — all in the apparent hope that the legal issues will be sufficiently confused so that it will seem like there is an explanation for each of his actions.”

In his response, Patrie submitted that there “is no evidence to support the IC’s allegations that (he) had a pecuniary interest in a matter, and/or that he was present at council when the matter was discussed.”

He also denies having influenced the voting on any such matters, decisions, staff, others, or recommendations in contravention of the Municipal Act. 

The complaint under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act was heard Aug. 12-13, 2021, and a decision was rendered on Jan. 9, 2023. 

In the meantime, Patrie was narrowly elected over incumbent Dan Marchisella on Oct. 24, 2022, to become Elliot Lake’s new mayor. 

On election night, Patrie told ElliotLakeToday.com that he was no longer interested in pursuing the sports complex due to the pressure its $30-million cost would put on taxpayers.

Patrie’s lawyer, Brian Duxbury, told the court on Feb. 13 that he expects the appeal to take a full day, and that he has been informed it’s likely to be held in Sudbury during the week of April 10. 

Kurke said he’s uncertain as to whether the day’s proceedings will be heard in-person or virtually, and that he plans on meeting with all parties to hash out a plan.

“We as a court are desirous of going to in-person hearings,” he said, adding that he’d need more than a complaint about in-person being inconvenient to shift it to virtual.

“A day on Zoom is a very tiring day,” he said.

Click here for a behind the scenes video in which Village Media editor Carol Martin explains the legal ruling that led to Patrie’s ousting. 

Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.