THUNDER BAY – City efforts to move transport truck traffic onto provincial highways, and away from West Arthur and Dawson roads, are facing further delays. City council voted to create a Designated Truck Route in January 2019, but has yet to implement it.
A vote to establish details of the route with a new by-law now may not take place until March 23. At a Monday meeting, council directed city administration to bring the by-law back for consideration by that date.
Coun. Mark Bentz, chairing the meeting, explained the delay is necessary as the city awaits legal advice. That presumably relates to a ruling by the city’s Integrity Commissioner, Brian Tario, finding Coun. Brian Hamilton was in conflict of interest when he helped vote down a proposed version of the by-law in June.
Tario found a question by Hamilton about how the new route would affect his business, the Bean Fiend café, showed he had a pecuniary interest in the matter and should have recused himself. But in November, council asked Tario to seek legal advice on his ruling to ensure it’s based in law.
That process is apparently taking some time, with the March deadline coming four months after council's request.
