CAO emerges from 'great' seminar with council facing renewed criticism over Sterling Lyon Parkway

Winnipeg's embattled chief administrative officer emerged from a councilseminarretaining the support of Mayor Brian Bowman but facing more criticism from opposition councillors.

CAO Doug McNeilspent more than an hour on Monday answering questions about what he knew about a plan to extend Sterling Lyon Parkway to the west to link up with a future southern extension of the William Clement Parkway.

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Last week,council has placed the projecton hold due to opposition from area residents who were angered the proposed route which would result in property expropriations was not one of three potential alignments presented to the public in January 2016.

In October, chief administrative officer Doug McNeil said he was surprised by the new route, which he claimed was never reviewed by senior administrators.

But a confidential briefing note obtained by CBC News through a freedom-of-information request revealedMcNeil was informed about the route in November 2016, when former Winnipeg public works director Lester Deanetold him about the need to expropriate properties and advised the city go public with the information or risk breeding mistrust among property owners living south of Wilkes Avenue.

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In the wake of this discrepancy, Charleswood-Tuxedo-Whyte Ridge Coun. Marty Morantzannounced last week he plans to call for an internal audit into the project, while McNeilagreed to answer questions from city councillors.

The CAO emerged from that meeting claiming the briefing was productive.

"The information session today was great," said McNeil, who reiterated his contention former public works chair Deane, who he fired this May, should have spelled out the fact the Sterling Lyon Parkway route had changed.

Deane's briefing note included attachments that showed the route has changed, but McNeil said he did not read those attachments nor would he, in his role as chief administrative officer.

CAO emerges from 'great' seminar with council facing renewed criticism over Sterling Lyon Parkway

7 years ago

Duration 1:49

CAO Doug McNeil spent more than an hour on Monday answering questions about what he knew about a plan to extend Sterling Lyon Parkway to the west to link up with a future southern extension of the William Clement Parkway.

"I think he was forthcoming with answers," said Mayor Bowman, who left the briefing early to attend another event. "We heard what we generally understood in the past."

Other members of council were less satisfied with the answers they received.

North KildonanCoun. Jeff Browaty said he remains concerned McNeil received a draft report from former public works director Deane in late 2016 but did not make it public for nearly a year.

Browatysaid the CAO's office is holding up many files and surmised public works officials may have gone ahead with Sterling Lyon Parkway work in the absence of direction from the top.

Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt, meanwhile, called for McNeilto apologize to public works officials especially engineers who were blamed for what McNeil called mistakes on the Sterling Lyon Parkway file. Deane'sbriefing note should have made the CAO aware, Wyatt said.

"He, for all intents and purposes, threw them under the bus politically, when all the information was in the file," Wyatt said.

South Winnipeg-St. Norbert Coun. Janice Lukesalso said it's possible McNeil, an engineer,may have violated his professional code of ethics by criticizing other engineers.

Both blamedMcNeil for diminishing morale within the public works department, which has lost three transportation engineers this year alone.

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McNeilacknowledged there is a degree of a confidence problem within the public service.

"I would say in certain areaswhere we've had issuesrecently, the confidencemightbeshaken abit," he said, adding he still has confidence in the public service, himself.

McNeil will face a performance review next year, the mayor said.

Wyatt, who sits on the review committee, has called for McNeil to be dismissed several times, while Lukessaid she lost confidence in the CAO when a $20-million city lawsuit over its water-treatment plant fell apart.

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In addition to criticizing McNeil,Wyatt and Lukes also expressed skepticismBowman was not made aware of the Sterling Lyon Parkway extension route.

"The mayor's office and CAO's office are linked in step literally all the time. I'd be very surprised ifsomehow, some way, the mayor's office was not briefed on this matter," Wyatt said.

Bowman said he too has outstanding questions about what role Lukes may have played in developing the Sterling Lyon Parkway extension route when she served as council's public works chair.

"I know that [the] former chair has relationships with certain developers. I'd like to know to what extent there may have been dialogue on this route," Bowman said.

"Wow," Lukeslaughed when she heard the mayor's statement following the seminar."The mayor who said he had so many questions, didn't ask one question."