December 16, 2020 at 12:47 pm
As you may recall, I asked the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) for clarification on the use of outside legal counsel to handle municipal access to information requests (I was inspired to ask for this clarification by the discovery that my 2015 FOIPOP to the CBRM regardingRead More
December 9, 2020 at 12:51 pm
I learned a few things from the discussion of my 2015 FOIPOP application during last night’s CBRM council meeting. I learned that Jim Gogan of Breton Law Group handled my initial request in 2015 and is now handling the review. Regional solicitor Demetri Kachafanas revealed this in response to aRead More
November 18, 2020 at 2:24 pm
Last week I reported on the Nova Scotia Information and Privacy Commissioner’s damning critique of the CBRM’s response to my 2015 access to information request regarding the municipality’s decision to award an exclusive port promotion/development contract to Harbor Port Development Partners (HPDP). Commissioner Tricia Ralph faulted the municipality for withholdingRead More
September 18, 2019 at 1:58 pm
On Monday, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal dismissed the Cape Breton Regional Municipality’s bid to reverse a UARB ruling overturning a CBRM Council decision that green lighted the development of a 211-site, lakeside RV park in Big Pond Centre. That was a lot to pack into a single sentence,Read More
March 15, 2019 at 8:00 am
Thin Blue Island Researching this week’s stories on the Cape Breton Regional Police Service (CBRPS) I ran across a (lengthy) profile of the service which included this amazing paragraph: Although only a small Island, Cape Breton’s beauty, hospitality and culture has made it one of the top vacation destinations worldwide.Read More
February 27, 2019 at 12:53 pm
The CBRM has asked the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal to overturn the UARB’s decision in the case of a proposed Big Pond RV park. The papers were filed on February 21 but CBRM regional solicitor Demetri Kachafanas told the CBC it could be “months” before the case goes toRead More
December 19, 2018 at 12:06 pm
This Spectator has learned that Regional Solicitor Demetri Kachafanas threatened legal action against District 11 Councilor Kendra Coombes “and all Council” after a radio interview Coombes gave the CBC on 27 November 2018. The interview (which I can no longer find online) was about the four in camera meetings duringRead More
August 29, 2018 at 3:28 pm
Editor’s Note: John Whalley, the former Economic Development Manager of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM) is suing the CBRM for constructive dismissal. The case finally came to trial from 20-24 August 2018 and the Spectator was there. We’re presenting our coverage in a series of articles because the trialRead More