Category: In the News
The vision is simple: save 2 Million dollars in borrowing costs.
Thank you all for a heartwarming and hopeful pop up protest! The vision is simple:
Union Bay landowners will *save **two million dollars *in borrowing costs for our Water Treatment Plant!
How?
By setting up a service agreement with the Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) would mean the RD would take over administration and the collection of taxes kept separately, and then Union Bay would qualify for infrastructure grants and municipal financing. Currently, as an Improvement District, UBID does not qualify for grants or reduced financing costs to cover an estimated $4 million dollars.
“In essence, that move would save 700 households $2 million because that’s what the borrowing costs would be to borrow $4 million at your regular interest rate over 25 years,” trustee Susanna Kaljur said.
In August 2017 Facilitator Jim Mattison wrote a $55,000 report for Union Bay titled: “Clean and Safe Water for Union Bay” It is a detailed history of our water and has several recommendations on page 26 and 26:
4. “When an Improvement district is faced with changing technology and massive expansion, it may be time for the community to seriously consider coming under the wing of a regional district.”
It is time to save money for landowners and set up a service agreement with CVRD, we can do this if we have two candidates to run and win on this platform. It is worth 2 million dollars divided among less than 700 households!
https://union-bay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/UBID-KIP-Final-Report-2017-August.pdf
Here is my Go Fund Me to help with my legal costs: https://www.gofundme.com/support-kaljur?member=&utm_source=sendgrid&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=contacts-v2-invite-to-donate
Second Union Bay protest highlights residents’ discontent with UBID board
The protest was organized by a group called Supporters of Susanna
UBID trustee Susanna Kaljur stands on the side of the highway outside the Union Bay Improvement District office. Approximately 35 people showed up to the Thursday afternoon protest. Photo by Jolene Rudisuela
A second protest was held in front of the Union Bay Improvement District office on Thursday, with residents lined up along the highway, holding signs and voicing their concerns about their local governing board.
A similar protest was held two weeks prior, with residents showing their disapproval of the cancellation of board meetings, as well as their closure to the public. Many also showed their support for trustee Susanna Kaljur who had been temporarily suspended from the board.
READ MORE: UBID board suspends trustee
RELATED: Union Bay trustee files lawsuit against UBID board chair
A Thursday’s protest, Kaljur stood on the side of the highway, alongside approximately 35 residents, holding a sign emblazoned with the words, “We want clean water now”.
Though she has been reinstated to the board, she said she is angered by the cancelled February and March meetings as there are currently many important issues that need a functioning board to progress.
Kaljur said her hope for the protest was to raise awareness about some of the issues and to get two like-minded candidates to run for the two board positions available in the upcoming election.
“We have a lot of things at play like the water treatment plant – our tenders are up right as we speak,” she said. “With two people and myself, we regain the majority and we will get [a service agreement] initiated with the Comox Valley Regional District so that we can proceed with our treatment plant and all the other infrastructure that needs to be done.”
Kaljur explained that entering into a service agreement with the CVRD would mean the regional district would take over the administration and the collection of the taxes, and Union Bay would also then qualify for infrastructure grants and municipal financing. Currently, as an improvement district, UBID does not qualify for these grants to cover the estimated $4 million cost of a water treatment plant.
“In essence, that move would save 700 households $2 million because that’s what the borrowing costs would be to borrow $4 million at your regular interest rate over 25 years,” she said.
Kaljur also discussed her unlawful suspension from the board, the closing of UBID meetings to the public in January and the changed election date. At the in-camera January meeting, which Kaljur was not a part of, the election date was moved five days before the Annual General Meeting, a move Kaljur worries will prevent landowners from making an informed decision while voting.
This is a sentiment that some of the protesters shared as well.
“My concern is that we won’t have a financial report and we won’t know about the new water treatment plant before the election,” said one landowner.
Another landowner expressed her concern for the ongoing boil water advisory and the lack of information that has come from the board.
“It’s pretty upsetting that we don’t get representation,” she said. “I’ve been here for only a year and a half and I’m just shocked. We’re being kept in the dark.”
The election is scheduled for April 20 with the advanced poll on April 9. The AGM is scheduled for April 25.
Kaljur’s term as trustee is finished in April 2020 and she says she is not planning on running for another term.
Approximately 35 Union Bay landowners stood along the highway Thursday to protest the closing of UBID meetings to the public, the cancellation of February and March meetings and the rescheduling of the election date. Photo by Jolene Rudisuela
Approximately 35 Union Bay landowners stood along the highway Thursday to protest the closing of UBID meetings to the public, the cancellation of February and March meetings and the rescheduling of the election date. Photo by Jolene Rudisuela
Susanna Kaljur vs Ted Haraldson, John Doe #1, John Doe #2, John Doe #3 and John Doe #4 – in the Supreme Court of British Columbia
Union Bay Improvement District will be mailing out apology letter contrary to Haraldson’s claim “that’s why there is a newspaper”.
From: Peter Johnson <pjohnson@sms.bc.ca>
Sent: February 15, 2019 2:32 PM
To: Jason Gratl <jason@gratlandcompany.com>
Subject: Union Bay Improvement District
Mr. Gratl:
I am legal counsel to the Union Bay Improvement District.
I have been asked to advise you that in response to your letter dated February 12, 2019, addressed to members of the Board of Trustees, the attached letter has been posted to the Union Bay Improvement District website, and that a copy of the letter has been sent to your client.
The Improvement District does not have the resources available to mail a copy of this letter to each elector today. The Improvement District is prepared to mail a copy of the letter with the next water bills, which will be sent out at the beginning of March.
I trust this satisfies your client’s concerns regarding the decision to suspend her from office.
Peter Johnson*
*Peter D. Johnson Law Corporation
2nd Floor 837 Burdett Avenue | Victoria, BC V8W 1B3
Phone 250 380 7744 | Fax 250 380 3008
pjohnson@sms.bc.ca | www.sms.bc.ca
The contents of this electronic mail transmission are privileged and confidential and for the sole use of the designated recipient. If this message has been misdirected please delete it and advise our office.
Haraldson states: “that the change of dates for the election and nomination period was a “strictly administrational” (sic) change, in order to fix an error in the original posting and comply with Elections BC.
Haraldson quotes from the article below:
“Those election dates were set wrong the previous election, and that’s why we are [changing them],”
“The change didn’t [require] her to be there, or myself.”
What is the point of a Board?! The Administrator has no decision making power only the Board has the power to make decisions which affect Landowners such as dates for elections and AGM.
PROVINCE WON’T BE STEPPING IN TO UNION BAY DISAGREEMENTS
SHARE ON:
JAMES WOOD, STAFF FRIDAY, FEB. 15TH, 2019
The community of Union Bay is pictured in a Goat News file photo. Photo by James Wood/98.9 The Goat/Vista Radio
UNION BAY, B.C- The provincial government won’t be taking any action in Union Bay.
In recent days, four trustees of the district’s elected board have apologized to their fifth board member, Susanna Kaljur, who was “suspended” earlier in 2019. Kaljur had threatened legal action earlier this week over her suspension, and other actions taken by the board.
RELATED: https://www.mycomoxvalleynow.com/48594/union-bay-suspends-trustee-susanna-kaljur-indefinitely/
In a letter, the four trustees have said they were told by the province’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing that there are no provisions under the Local Government Act allowing the board to suspend an elected trustee from office.
“We acknowledge that the decision to suspend Trustee Kaljur is of no force or effect,” read the letter.
“We sincerely apologize to Trustee Kaljur for our actions in this manner and regret any inconvenience our decision may have caused her. We hope that as a Board, moving forward, we can work collectively and cooperatively to serve the interests of our residents.”
Kaljur had also threatened legal action against Haraldson specifically, due to what Gratl described as defamatory statements by Haraldson published by MyComoxValleyNow.com in an interview after Kaljur’s suspension.
In the wake of Kaljur’s first letter, the newsroom reached out to the municipal affairs ministry to get clarity what the board can do and what they can’t do.
Asked if the board had any legal authourity to remove or suspend another trustee board member, Municipal Affairs said the Local Government Act did not include specific provisions regarding the suspension of improvement district trustees.
They also said the province couldn’t provide legal advice to an improvement district, when asked if they planned to instruct the board to take different action or allow Kaljur to return.
They were unaware of any previous instances of improvement district trustees taking legal action against their fellow trustees.
In the wake of the apology, Kaljur has indicated that it was only one of the things she was looking for.
“There are a number of issues which the board has not addressed adequately, which may result in further legal action,” she said, in a written statement.
“Both the apology for suspension letter and the apology letter from Ted Haraldson for defamation against myself (which has not yet been received) must be sent by mail to every landowner as Union Bay has a large number of seniors who do not use computers.”
Kaljur is also questioning the validity of any decisions that were made at UBID board meetings during her suspension.
“The board meetings of January and February 2019 occurred without my knowledge or public notice, due to my being illegally suspended,” she said. “Now that the board has agreed this was illegal, this decision renders those meetings null and void which includes the highly irregular alteration of Union Bay’s election days and AGM.
“The simplest, fairest remedy is for the original election dates, open/close of nominations and the AGM revert back to the original dates voted on and passed at the 2018 AGM April 19, 2018.”
Asked about the validity of actions taken by the district board in the last two months, during Kaljur’s suspension, the ministry supplied the following.
“In regards to decisions that were made by the UBID in the last two months, this is under the realm of legal advice and the province cannot provide this,” read the statement.
“The Ministry continues to be available to the improvement district to assist, where appropriate, as it works through its challenges.”
Asked to clarify what they meant, the ministry again stated that they or any other ministry cannot provide legal advice to improvement districts or local governments.
“Further, the ministry cannot comment on decisions that may be subject to legal action.”
Today was the deadline for the other demands in Kaljur’s letter, which included an apology from board chair Ted Haraldson.
“Until all these conditions are met I will not be accepting any apology and I will have no other recourse but proceed with my lawsuit,” said Kaljur.
The newsroom reached out to Haraldson for comment today but did not hear back. However, he did speak to the Comox Valley Record, saying that the board had complied with all the demands it deems reasonable.
The same apology letter from the board will not be sent to landowners in Union Bay by mail, according to Haraldson’s comments.
“The apology has gone out on our website, [which] goes to all the landowners,” said Haroldson, speaking to the paper.
“It has not been mailed out – it’s gone out on the website to all the landowners.”
Haraldson also told the paper that the change of dates for the election and nomination period was a “strictly administrational” change, in order to fix an error in the original posting and comply with Elections BC.
“Those election dates were set wrong the previous election, and that’s why we are [changing them],” he said, to the paper.
“The change didn’t [require] her to be there, or myself.”
The upcoming election and annual general meeting are the following.
March 5 – Call for nominations
April 2 – Nomination window closes
April 9 – Advance poll
April 20 – Election
April 25 – Annual general meeting
Haraldson also saw no reason for an apology, saying there was no defamation of character.
The next Union Bay board meeting will be held on Thursday, February 21st, at the Union Bay Hall.
Update on the Record article
The following was added to the article from yesterday.
https://www.comoxvalleyrecord.com/news/union-bay-improvement-district-board-apologizes-to-trustee/
Union Bay Improvement District board apologizes to trustee; deadline remains for other demands
When contacted by The Record, Haraldson said the board has complied with all the demands it deems reasonable.
The publicly posted apology will not be sent to landowners by mail.
“The apology has gone out on our website, [which] goes to all the landowners,” said Haroldson. “It has not been mailed out – it’s gone out on the website to all the landowners.”
When asked how those without computers are to receive the apology, Haroldson was curt.
“That’s why there’s a newspaper.”
According to Haraldson, the change of dates for the election and nomination period was to rectify an error in the original posting and was strictly administerial, in order to comply with Elections BC.
“Those election dates were set wrong the previous election, and that’s why we are [changing them],” he said. The change didn’t [require] her to be there, or myself.”
The dates for the upcoming election and annual general meeting are as follows:
March 5 – Call for nominations
April 2 – Nomination window closes
April 9 – Advance poll
April 20 – Election
April 25 – Annual general meeting
As for a personal apology regarding the allegations of defamation of character, Haraldson sees no reason for an apology.
“There is no defamation of character,” he said.
Union Bay Improvement District board apologizes to trustee; deadline remains for other demands
https://www.comoxvalleyrecord.com/news/union-bay-improvement-district-board-apologizes-to-trustee/
UBID board complies with one of the demands of a letter threatening legal action
- TERRY FARRELL
- Feb. 14, 2019 4:30 p.m.
- LOCAL NEWS
- NEWS
The Union Bay Improvement District board has complied with one of the demands of a letter sent by the lawyer of suspended trustee Susanna Kaljur.
On Jan. 10, UBID trustees Ted Haraldson, Rick Bitten, Glenn Loxam and Peter Jacques voted unanimously to suspend Kaljur from the board, for what they deemed as inappropriate behaviour.
RELATED: UBID board suspends trustee
Kaljur challenged the suspension, saying it had no legal standing.
The board received a letter from Kaljur’s legal counsel on Feb. 12, demanding a published apology signed by Haraldson, Bitten, Loxam and Jacques, with the threat of a lawsuit for non-compliance.
RELATED: Trustee threatens legal action against UBID board
There was a Feb. 15 deadline to meet the demands of the letter.
On Feb. 14, the UBID board posted a letter of apology on its website, signed by the four trustees who originally voted to suspend Kaljur.
“We have been advised by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing that there are no provisions under the Local Government Act allowing the Board to suspend an elected Trustee from office,” read the note, in part. “We acknowledge that the decision to suspend Trustee Kaljur is of no force or effect. We sincerely apologize to Trustee Kaljur for our actions in this manner and regret any inconvenience our decision may have caused her.
“We hope that as a Board, moving forward, we can work collectively and cooperatively to serve the interests of our residents.” (see end of article for pdf of letter)
A second portion of the Feb. 12 letter threatened legal action against Haroldson specifically, for what Kaljur’s counsel deemed as defamatory comments “published in the Comox Valley Now(sic) online newspaper.”
Kaljur pointed out that the publicly posted apology was only one of the demands in the letter.
“There are a number of issues which the board has not addressed adequately, which may result in further legal action,” she said.
“Both the apology for suspension letter and the apology letter from Ted Haraldson for defamation against myself (which has not yet been received) must be sent by mail to every landowner as Union Bay has a large number of seniors who do not use computers.”
Kaljur is also questioning the validity of any decisions that were made at UBID board meetings during her illegal suspension.
“The board meetings of January and February 2019 occurred without my knowledge or public notice, due to my being illegally suspended,” she said. “Now that the board has agreed this was illegal, this decision renders those meetings null and void which includes the highly irregular alteration of Union Bay’s election days and AGM.
“The simplest, fairest remedy is for the original election dates, open/close of nominations and the AGM revert back to the original dates voted on and passed at the 2018 AGM April 19, 2018.”
The Feb. 15 deadline remains in place for all other demands in the letter.
“Until all these conditions are met I will not be accepting any apology and I will have no other recourse but proceed with my lawsuit,” said Kaljur.
Suspended Union Bay trustee threatens legal action against UBID board
Suspended Union Bay trustee threatens legal action against UBID board
Legal counsel for Susanna Kaljur contends suspension is baseless; demands apology
- TERRY FARRELL
- Feb. 13, 2019 4:30 p.m.
Suspended Union Bay Improvement District trustee Susanna Kaljur has threatened legal action against the other UBID trustees – Ted Haraldson, Rick Bitten, Glenn Loxam and Peter Jacques – claiming her suspension from the board has no legal standing.
She has also demanded a written apology from UBID chair Haraldson for “false and defamatory” statements published on the “Comox Valley Now” (sic) online newspaper.
A Feb. 12 letter to the trustees, sent by Jason Gratl, legal counsel for Kaljur, stated the Jan. 10 decision to suspend Kaljur indefinitely is baseless.
“There is no provision of the Local Government Act or regulations thereunder, or even a District Bylaw that allows for the removal of an elected trustee,” Gratl said in the letter.
The letter goes on to insist that each one of the aforementioned remaining trustees “publicly acknowledge that your purported removal is of no force and effect,” and demands that the acknowledgement be mailed to every elector in the Union Bay Improvement District. It offers a Feb. 15, 4 p.m. deadline for the acknowledgement, to avoid a lawsuit.
The second part of the letter deals with a quote Haraldson is alleged to have offered to the Comox Valley Now (sic) online publication.
The Feb. 12 letter addresses the following quotes: “As a trustee making these statements in a public blog about our employee is certainly cyber bullying” and that the “allegations can create … public safety concerns to UBID” and that “she’s endangering the public” by telling the public that a water turbidity threshold has been exceeded.
(See end of article for copy of the letter.)
According to the letter, “These statements are false and defamatory. Nothing Ms. Kaljur has said about any UBID employee amounts to cyber bullying. Trustee Kaljur has not created public safety issues. Trustee Kaljur has not endangered the public.”
Gratl then requests a written apology from Haraldson to Kaljur, with the same Feb. 15 (4 p.m.) deadline.
“Should you fail to make this apology, I am instructed to commence a lawsuit against you personally.”
Kaljur expects the board to comply with the demands listed within the letter.
“It is in the best interest of the landowners we serve, that the current Trustees; Ted Haraldson, Rick Bitten, Peter Jacques and Glenn Loxam, comply with these demands,” adding that she will follow through with a lawsuit should the contents of the letter be ignored. “I will be pursuing legal action against each trustee personally should they choose not to comply… My legal counsel Jason Gratl has made this very clear in the letter sent to the trustees.”
When Haraldson was contacted by The Record for comment, he said, in both instances, there has been no decision regarding any response to the requests.
“No decision at this time; that’s all I can really say right now.”
Kaljur is hopeful of a resolution, stating that, as an elected official, she has a responsibility to her constituents.
“I will continue to serve until April 2020 and to carry out my commitment to the electors,” she said. “I took an Oath of Office to be honest and uphold our bylaws, policies and the Local Government Act. I have done so and shall continue to do so.”
Defamation of Trustee Kaljur by the UBID Board majority, election meddling and the barring of landowners from Public Board Meetings face a legal challenge by Trustee Kaljur.
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