Kelly Latendresse has tendered a document as part of Tuesday night’s meeting agenda, one where she shares with us her exhaustive review of the town’s customer service policy, a rather generous term to apply to the rather arbitrary nature by which town employees and many elected officials give the public the municipal stiff arm when anyone has the temerity to ask a question.
Finally, at least, thanks to Latendresse, we have a desk identified as the one where the buck stops, and that would be the one occupied by CAO Gloria Raybone. Before this, everyone just sort of looked at everyone else when asked who it was that made the final call on these things. At least now, we have an identifiable in-office postal code.
For a while there, it was tough to figure who exactly Ms. Latendresse was in terms of title and responsibility. I know that she’s a member of Renfrew’s senior administrative staff, that much is clear. But every time I see her, she’s wearing a different hat. And sitting in a different chair.
If this was baseball, and these were the Blue Jays, she’d be the ultimate utility infielder and positional generalist. Can’t hit worth a lick, but a great glove.
A betting line could be opened up for tonight’s meeting to see which of the many possible hats she’ll be wearing this evening.
I believe she’s the Head Librarian at the core, but she’s recently completed a gig as the acting Chief Administration Officer, holding that position until the hiring of Gloria Raybone as the permanent CAO. At the last council meeting I attended, she was on the other side of the mayor, over by where the Clerk sits, in the absence of Carolynn Errett. She needs only to sit in for the mayor at some meeting to have successfully occupied every position at the head table. Really, the only place I’ve never seen her is the library.
Apparently, and according to Ms. Latendresse, the Town of Renfrew will fall all over itself to respond to any question posed by one of its citizens within a short time frame of two days.
That is unless it considers your question to be impolite, vexatious, rude, degrading, political or otherwise inappropriate. Or more importantly, inconvenient, which, from my experience, is just about every single time.
And it’s the CAO that determines the whether or not something is classified as appropriate. Which is funny in a way, because I actually asked that question of who made the call, or decision, regarding appropriateness.
She didn’t get back to me. Apparently I’m too political. Or vexatious. Certainly inconvenient.
This is so typical, to put all this time and effort into an after-the-fact policy statement that seeks to legitimize her past decisions as official guard dog of Renfrew Administration. I’m surprised the report wasn’t co-authored by Carolynn Errett, the Clerk, another person who can’t find the return button on her email management system. It may well be that there was cooperation on the effort, but maybe the latter individual didn’t want the spotlight on her and instead let the librarian take any potential heat arising from this “report.”
It was Ms. Latendresse who told us at one meeting that if one quarter of Renfrew’s population made an information request at the same time, the business of the Town of Renfrew would grind to a halt. How 2000+ people would file complaints or seek information simultaneously is a bit of a stretch to me, but maybe Renfrew administration is doing that poor of a job where this level of dissatisfaction can be explained or expected. But not even I believe that.
I’m not claiming they do a poor job, per se, I’m saying that they’re no more open or transparent than a bowling ball. At least that’s my impression of the one’s that I’ve dealt with, and that’s especially the former Acting CAO, the Clerk, and boy o’ boy, the mayor.
Filing a Freedom of Information request is just a leap of faith with these people, as there’s no guarantee that it’ll be granted, and if it is, that it’ll turn up anything, or not be redacted in key areas. Complaining to any kind of integrity commissioner is pointless because they can just ignore the findings of such a person in any event. Plus, the integrity commissioner is basically a contract employee anyway, so it’s not exactly an arms-length accountability process, and certainly not one that passes any sort of credible conflict of interest test.
So, my thanks to Ms. Latendresse for setting us all straight. I feel that now, moving forward, I can finally and truly appreciate the town’s communication response policy, and modify my commentary accordingly.
Except for the fact that anyone can write anything and then go ahead and do whatever the hell they want anyways. Tossing a bunch of words into the wind means nothing. Anyone can do that. Just look at one of your exhausting number of bylaws. Look at the Municipal Act.
Words, laid down by people, and presented as the Holy Grail, or tablets from on-high, sent down by the Almighty as legitimacy for things already done, or about to be done.
I’ve been around a long time. Moses was in my kindergarten class. God was on my hockey team growing up. We’d throw snowballs at Noah on the way home from school.
So it’s not exactly the first time I’ve seen this kind of legitimacy “after-the-fact,” utilized in an exercise of self-justification.
The policy of openness and transparency is a sham, a charade, a circus trick in need of serious updating and a mature, introspective commitment to mission.
When the document articulating that vision comes out, then I’ll get excited.
COVER PHOTO: Photo by Icons8 Team on Unsplash
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