Rollins’ resignation shines light on councillors’ concerns

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This article was published 23/01/2025 (227 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Mayor Scott Gillingham disputes the claim, made by a councillor who quit a key committee position, that bureaucrats leave politicians in the dark about details on key issues.

“I certainly don’t see it that way,” the mayor said one day after Sherri Rollins quit as chair of the property development committee, which gave her a seat on executive policy committee, considered the mayor’s inner circle.

“There’s not a blockage between the politicians on this side of the courtyard and the members of our public service,” he said. “Our councillors, EPC members for sure, have access to our (chief administrative officer), our directors, to get the information that they require.”

Rollins, who has represented Fort Rouge—East Fort Garry since 2018, wrote a short letter to the mayor Tuesday advising him of her resignation.

She told reporters she was compelled to resign because of repeated instances related to the withholding of information by the administration, along with her frustration with delays over hiring a police chief and city chief administrative officer.

On Wednesday, Rollins said she had no comment.

Coun. John Orlikow said he also has concerns about information being kept from councillors and he’s “not that interested” in returning to EPC.

“Some of the concerns councillor Rollins pointed out, I share. … EPC needs to do some changing in their modelling before I’d be willing to go back on,” he said.

Orlikow stepped down from the committee just before going on a three-month medical leave in 2023, and did not return.

There’s a lack of support for councillors who are “maybe not aligned with the mayor,” Orlikow said.

“The information flow is really harboured by a few people, I don’t believe even (by) EPC anymore, and the fact that the leadership to help other councillors is just not there.”

Coun. Brian Mayes told reporters this month he was forced to file a freedom of information request for a progress report on the federal Housing Accelerator Fund, suggesting it had been unfairly withheld from councillors who were expected to vote on it.

Mayes was booted from the executive policy committee in July after being on the committee under three different mayors over 11 years.

On Wednesday, he said Rollins’s decision to quit indicates he isn’t alone in his frustrations.

“This isn’t just me. I’ve come to realize that there’s some bigger issues here with communication and with the way this place is operating,” he said.

“It’s a big step for Sherri. Things would have to get pretty bad to resign, because I think everybody here wants to be on EPC, you want some more influence, better access to decision-making. To give that up, that’s pretty serious.”

As the mayor mulls Rollins’s replacement, he must abide by the requirement that at least one property and development committee member must come from a downtown ward, although it does not need to be the chair. Not one of the remaining committee members represents downtown.

“There will have to, most likely, be some shuffling of committee members as well,” Gillingham said.

Vivian Santos (Point Douglas), Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) and Rollins are the city’s three downtown councillors. Santos chairs the community services committee.

Mayes said he doubts Gillingham will ask him to rejoin EPC, but if he does, he’d consider it.

He suggested deputy mayor Markus Chambers might be tapped.

“The guy backed the mayor when he ran — and that was not the popular thing to do back in 2022,” he said. “When the mayor took me out, I recommended that he put in Markus.”

Chambers said he’d “work diligently” if appointed to the role, and while he sympathizes with Rollins’s concerns, he said he receives the information he needs to do his job.

“For most other matters that come before council, they come through a process of community committees, standing policy committees, (executive policy committee), so there’s lots of opportunities to get engaged and read the reports that come out by the public service,” he said.

— with files from Joyanne Pursaga

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca