City council backs appointment of environmental advocate to port authority

scotto

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Posted with permission from the Hamilton Spectator
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City council backs appointment of environmental advocate to port authority board despite ban from agency’s property

Jim Howlett said he is “disappointed, but not too surprised” by the port’s position.


News Feb 28, 2018 by Matthew Van Dongen 
Hamilton Spectator


City council is backing the appointment of Jim Howlett to the Hamilton Port Authority board even though the agency says it has banned the environmental advocate from its property.

Council recently appointed Howlett to replace Sandy Shaw as the municipal delegate to the board of the federal arm's-length agency, which governs all shipping and port-related business in the industrial end of Hamilton harbour.

Howlett is a well-known environmental activist who has served on the Hamilton Conservation Authority board and as head of the Hamilton Beach Community Council. He is also known for reporting illegal fill-dumping in Sherman Inlet by the port authority's predecessor agency, the Hamilton Harbour Commissioners, prompting a federal cleanup order.

Some councillors were angered Wednesday to receive a confidential letter from the HPA Wednesday outlining concerns about Howlett and noting he can't attend board meetings because he is banned from port property over past "prohibited activities."

A clearly upset Coun. Sam Merulla called the letter "beyond comprehension" and insulting.

The letter was discussed in private and not made public by council. However, an image of the letter being waved around in the public session, captured by Joey Coleman's The Public Record camera and posted to Twitter, shows Howlett is "denied access" to port-controlled properties.

Reached by phone, Howlett said he is "disappointed, but not too surprised" by the port's position.

He acknowledged being periodically at loggerheads with port management over several decades of visits to Sherman Inlet and other areas of the industrial port to monitor and draw attention to environmental issues.

"I've probably challenged the port authority, and the harbour commissioners before them, more than anyone in the city," he said.

"But I'm a big boy. We're all adults … I would hope we can all work together in a collegial manner."

The visible portion of the port letter does not specify what "prohibited activities" Howlett was thought to have engaged in on port lands.

Howlett recalled Hamilton police had visited him in the past to relay HPA concerns about his visit to a particular harbour inlet controlled by the federal agency. Police suggested he not return to that spot, he said.

But Howlett expressed surprise at the idea he might be banned from all port lands, noting he did a Pier 21 walkabout on behalf of beach residents — and alongside senior port authority bureaucrats — last year to discuss windblown salt pile pollution.

"Nobody saw fit to bust me, or even mention anything to me," he said.

The Spectator asked to speak with a port authority official Wednesday night.

Spokesperson Larissa Fenn replied by email to say the HPA views the municipal appointment as "an opportunity for a collaborative relationship between our two organizations. We hope the position is filled with this mutual objective in mind."

Mayor Fred Eisenberger wouldn't discuss the contents of the confidential letter, but reiterated council stands by its appointment.

He said he would be contacting the port to reaffirm council's decision and he expects Howlett to be able to "fulfil his duties" and attend meetings.

mvandongen@thespec.com

905-526-3241 | [MENTION=650]matt[/MENTION]atthespec

mvandongen@thespec.com

905-526-3241 | [MENTION=650]matt[/MENTION]atthespec


https://www.thespec.com/news-story/...ity-board-despite-ban-from-agency-s-property/
 

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scotto

Administrator
Staff member
Feb 15, 2004
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The Beach Strip
#2
Appointment of environmental advocate to Hamilton Port Authority board creates strife

By Ken Mann
Reporter 900 CHML

There’s a new twist to the sometimes strained relationship between Hamilton city council and the Hamilton Port Authority.

The latest drama involves the city’s appointment of long-time environmental advocate Jim Howlett as its representative on the authority’s board of directors.

That, in turn, has prompted a letter from the port authority to city council indicating that Howlett is “denied access” to its properties because he has engaged in “prohibited activities.”

The letter also indicates that prohibition may “get in the way of the city being effectively represented on the board.”

The confidential letter was presented to city council in closed session on Wednesday night, but a copy was waved in the air during open session by Ward 4 Coun. Sam Merulla.

It was posted to Twitter after being captured on camera by Joey Coleman’s the Public Record.

City council is standing by its appointment of Howlett with Merulla suggesting that the HPA is “crossing the line” by questioning council’s judgment.

Howlett says “you can’t have healthy governance without a divergence of views” adding that he hopes “to hand an olive branch across the harbour, not a thorn bush.”

The port authority is a federal arm’s-length agency, which governs all shipping and port-related business in the industrial end of Hamilton harbour.

Read more;
https://globalnews.ca/news/4056414/...hamilton-port-authority-board-creates-strife/
 
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