Uncovering Burnaby: That time a councillor accused staff of ‘conspiracy’

Today, city councillors and municipal staff have—at least in the public’s view—a generally cordial relationship. But that hasn’t always been so.

In July 1926, the relationship was more combative, at least for some councillors.

On July 20 of that year, The Province published an article in which the municipal clerk rebuked a claim by then-councillor Gordon Moore.

Moore had apparently suggested that “there was a conspiracy” to prevent work authorized by council from being done.

“In regard to the remark that there is a conspiracy to obstruct the wishes of the council, I must strongly protest against the suggestion, if I am included in the accusation,” A. G. Moore, the municipal clerk at the time, said.

“I am clerk to the corporation of Burnaby, which represents the whole of the people of Burnaby, and I take it to be my duty to protect the best interests of the municipality. That has been my endeavour and will continue so long as I hold the position, whatever individual members of the council may say.”

The dispute arose from the municipality’s plans around waterworks construction in the Capitol Hill area, in which the municipal solicitor advised that the work couldn’t be carried out without a bylaw being passed by council.

It wasn’t Moore’s only parry with municipal staff—in fact, he appeared to have a passion for underground infrastructure.

Almost exactly a year later, on July 5, 1927, The Province reported that Reeve Charles Bell put an end to a meeting over another dispute.

“The reeve declared that, while willing to allow Councillor Gordon S. Moore to ask direct questions, he could not permit the councillor to make statements reflecting on the engineers in charge of West Burnaby sewerage scheme,” the paper reported.

With that, Bell declared the meeting adjourned and left the room—to which Moore moved that another councillor fill his chair and continue the meeting.

So what were Moore’s comments? The sewer work award had been split between two firms, and Moore had asked why one contract was $40,000 lower than the other, declaring that there “is something wrong somewhere.”

“Councillor Moore, I cannot allow you to continue making such statements. You are at liberty to ask the engineers a question, and I have no doubt that, as they are here, they will answer you,” Bell stated.

To that, Moore declared that he had “a right as a councillor to say what I have to say about this matter.”

With the reeve no longer in the room, council voted to approve a contract award for the sewer work, a vote that had been shot down by a tie vote with Bell’s participation.

Bell later declared the vote null, as he had adjourned the meeting already.

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