The Collingwood judicial inquiry team has released its first "foundation" document, which is a summary of the information contained in the more than 440,000 records collected for the first part of the inquiry set to start next week.
The document - including revelations of what looks to be more than $70,000 in bonuses paid to various individuals - includes more than 300 pages of point-form notes and links to documents such as emails, in-camera meeting minutes, contracts, and statements related to the events leading up to the 2012 Collus share sale.
A statement included several times in the document stresses that the materials have not been “tested for the truth of their contents,” and the contents could be supplemented, proven false, or discredited over the course of the inquiry.
The document is split into eight chapters, beginning with the town’s roles, responsibilities, and relationships in 2010.
In the first chapter, emails seem to show Paul Bonwick emailing his sister, then-mayor, Sandra Cooper, to provide advice for her role as mayor. Further documents appear to show then-councillor Ian Chadwick receiving payment from Bonwick’s company, Compenso Communications, for research work.
Other documents appear to show regular correspondence between Bonwick and Ed Houghton, who had roles as the president and CEO of Collus and interim CAO for the town of Collingwood.
Emails and notes also seem to suggest an existing relationship between Houghton and the president of PowerStream, Brian Bentz.
Further chapters show the various parties preparing for the sale and request for proposal (RFP) process, and Bonwick reaching out to PowerStream to obtain a contract as a consultant. In the process, documents suggest he informs the mayor and town clerk of his intention to work for PowerStream.
Leading up to his contract with PowerStream, Bonwick and Houghton appear to work together to write statements on behalf of then-mayor Sandra Cooper related to the pending sale of Collus.
In one case, it appears Bonwick sends an email to Bentz with a letter in Cooper’s name stating she was aware her brother submitted a proposal to PowerStream, and if PowerStream chooses to engage Compenso it should be unrelated to Bonwick’s relationship to Cooper.
In the email accompanying the attachment, Bonwick appears to write “as you can see by the letter I drafted, I wrote it with the thought of public disclosure if ever required.” The comment appears directed at the letter written in Cooper’s name.
Chapter seven of the document highlights funds paid related to the transaction. A table shows staff bonuses paid relating to the share sale, and claims Houghton received a $40,000 bonus related to the sale. The chart also suggests Pam Hogg received $15,000 and Cindy Shuttleworth (financial controller) received $15,000.
An email included in the foundation document appears to show Shuttleworth telling a friend the $15,000 bonus was a “secret.”
According to the foundation document, audit papers for Collus in 2012 also show bonuses allocated to Collus board members including Dean Muncaster ($30,000), David McFadden ($15,000), Doug Garbutt ($7,500), and Joan Pajunen ($7,500).
The foundation document indicates there were other payments, called “extraordinary deductions” made in 2011 to board members of a Strategic Partnership Task Team, including Dean Muncaster ($5,700), Sandra Cooper ($2,400), Rick Lloyd ($2,400), David McFadden ($1,800), Doug Garbutt ($2,400), Joan Pajunen ($300), and Mike Edwards ($300).
Cooper, Lloyd, and Edwards were members of Collingwood council at the time.
The remaining chapters cover the request for proposal process for the sale of Collus shares, bidding by four utility companies (Horizon Utilities, Veridian, Hydro One, and PowerStream), including concerns raised by some of the bidders about the process.
In an email to John Rockx from John Herhalt, both employees at KPMG the firm hired to complete a financial valuation of Collus power for the sale, Herhalt appears to state there “is no appetite” for the proposal by Hydro One, even if the “financial offer was better.”
The final chapter of the document pertains to the events following the sale, including a public consultation on how to spend the funds, and commercial relationships that followed.
In this chapter, the document states Pam Hogg (of Collus) asked KPMG’s John Rockx for a final copy of the calculation of value prepared for Collus Power Corp.
According to the document, Rockx supplied an electronic copy of the draft report and said KPMG did not issue a final report as it did not receive an executed representation letter from Collus Power.
A representation letter is written by a company’s external auditor and signed by senior company management to attest to the accuracy of financial statements submitted to the auditors for their analysis.
Lead inquiry counsel Kate McGrann said it is the counsel’s intention to have another foundation document available for part two of the hearing, which pertains to the spending of funds received in the Collus share sale.
The judicial inquiry hearings begin next week on April 15, and will take place at the town hall council chambers every business day until May 3, and again from May 13 to 24.
The full foundation document is posted online here.
