By lobbing “baseless suggestions” regarding his colleagues on city council, Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc is creating “more division” in council chambers and distracting from city council’s work.
So described Ward 7 Coun. Natalie Labbée in response to Leduc implying that she and four of her colleagues, including Mayor Paul Lefebvre, sold their integrity for campaign donations.
Earlier this week, the city’s elected officials approved a resolution to rezone a portion of the Elm Place mall in Downtown Sudbury, owned by Vista Hospitality, to allow 7,020 square meters of unused space to be used as warehousing and self-storage.
Leduc voted against the resolution during Monday’s planning committee meeting of city council, and flagged it for a fresh vote by city council as a whole the following day. In both cases, Leduc logged the only opposing vote, arguing it’s not a good location for a warehouse.
Afterward, Leduc pointed out to Sudbury.com that staff members from Vista Hospitality, plus one spouse of a staff member, contributed to the 2022 political campaigns of at least five members of city council, including Labbée, Ward 10 Coun. Fern Cormier, Ward 1 Coun. Mark Signoretti, Ward 5 Coun. Mike Parent and Mayor Paul Lefebvre. The donations were verified by Sudbury.com.
“I think it’s significant,” Leduc said, adding that while he’s not necessarily accusing them of having their political decisions swayed by campaign contributions, “there’s a possibility” and “there’s obviously some advanced discussions.”
All five city council members Leduc cited responded to Sudbury.com’s request for comment.
Parent quoted heavily from the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act to clarify they were well within their rights to receive campaign donations and that there was no need to file a pecuniary interest during this week’s votes.
The strongest-worded response came from Labbée.
"For Coun. Leduc to even make the suggestion of something questionable against us, as his peers on council, is disappointing,” she said.
“As a second-term councillor, Mr. Leduc should be well aware of the Conflict of Interest Act and how it relates to campaign expenses, especially when he himself has received contributions to his campaigns, some of which are currently before the courts."
(This is in reference to a community member flagging Leduc’s campaign finances for review, the city’s Election Compliance Audit Committee determining there were reasonable grounds to suspect he broke campaign finance rules, a third-party review coming to the same conclusion and the case proceeding to the courts. In response, Leduc filed a lawsuit against the complainant and the city seeking at least $450,000. None of this has been resolved through the courts.)
"As a council, we have much to be proud of, making strides in advancing our city, and there's more to come,” Labbée added. “All these baseless suggestions by Coun. Leduc seems to create more division amongst us and serve as a distraction to the good work we are trying to do for our city."
In his brief written response, Lefebvre affirmed his dedication to the Municipal Code of Conduct and Municipal Conflict of Interest Act.
“There are established processes for addressing concerns from council members, and I fully respect those mechanisms,” he said. “I will remain focused on the work that truly matters to our community.”
In a brief response to Sudbury.com, Cormier, the councillor from Ward 10, seconded Lefebvre’s sentiment.
For his part, Signoretti said he bases decisions on the information provided, not on whether someone might have given him a donation.
“I’m making my decision based on the information in front of me,” Signoretti told Sudbury.com. “A small donation from an individual is not going to sway my decision in one way or another, nor do I benefit in one way or the other in a decision of this magnitude.”
Signoretti added that Leduc’s comments to Sudbury.com were “unfortunate.”
“It could have been easily a conversation between colleagues, but I don’t have control over what someone else does or says,” he said.
“What I have control over is my reputation and what I believe, and when I can put my head on the pillow at night knowing that I made decisions based on facts and not on any other motivation.”
All civic election candidates submit financial statements, which are published on the city’s website and include campaign donations.
Leduc’s campaign finances include contributions from several people whose business interests might be affected by city council decisions.
This includes Mike Crupi of Road Surface Recycling, who donated $1,000. His company was hired to undertake an asphalt-recycling project on The Kingsway, which the city cancelled midway through in 2023 upon finding they were not meeting specifications. Leduc was outspoken in his support for the company, and during a public meeting urged residents to phone members of city council to “get them on side” to have Road Surface Recycling complete the project.
Other financial contributors to Leduc’s 2022 campaign include people connected to a few local contractors which bid on city projects, and Panoramic Properties, whose proposed redevelopment of the long-vacant Paris Street hospital property is slated to go through city council.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
