When an opponent starts misrepresenting the facts, it’s a sign of being desperate. We’re happy though to clarify a few questions for voters.
Before October 21, voters need to ask themselves: if a candidate is misrepresenting the truth, will they be able to represent me on Council?
1. Did John recuse himself from voting on the sprawl subsidy? Is John conflicted when issues about developers come before Council?
No. John voted on this issue. The Minutes of Council are here. It’s item 6.6 on the Agenda. The vote was 13-2, and John voted in favour of reducing the subsidy in half.
John isn’t a developer. He isn’t conflicted, and he votes on these issues.
2. Is John in the pocket of developers?
The record shows this isn’t true. If it was true, John wouldn’t have voted in favour of Plan It Calgary. If it was true, John wouldn’t have supported the Mustard Seed development in the Beltline.
3. Does John support secondary suites?
Yes. In fact, John has supported secondary suites every time an application has come before Council.
He also brought forward in July 2013 an emergency notice of motion before Council regarding secondary suites. You can see the Minutes from that meeting here.
4. Does John represent Ward 8 if he recuses himself from votes?
John recused himself from 18 votes out of approximately 3,669 in the last term. So 0.49%.
He did it because he received the legal opinion from the Law Department at the City of Calgary. You can see it here. Calgary needs members of Council who respect the Municipal Government Act and understand that they should not vote when there is a conflict of interest.
John had a conflict because he began the process to build a secondary suite himself. It was to be over his garage. You can see a picture of the plan here. He was soliciting feedback from his neighbours and realized he did not have the support of his neighbours to proceed.
5. Will John still have a conflict of interest regarding secondary suites during the next term?
No. John now won’t be proceeding with building the secondary suite. He no longer has a conflict and looks forward to voting on this issue during the next election.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Over the last 4 years I have had the pleasure of working with John on a variety of community projects. From helping to free up land for community gardens, helping to stickhandle through the bureaucracy of City Hall to the leadership he showed on the King Edward School Arts incubator project, I have always been impressed by the dedication and passion for community that Councillor John Mar has shown.
John has been a strong representative of Ward 8 and he has earned my trust and respect. His leadership on a variety of urban issues along with his strong voice in favour of secondary suites has been impressive.
The flood was devastating to large parts of the city. I can tell you from first hand experience that John rose to the challenge. From delivering cots to community associations at all hours of the night to brining people and organizations together through several sleepless nights, his efforts were impressive.
I believe his collaborative approach on council is one that has resulted in many important initiatives being moved ahead.
I have been dismayed by the false narrative that has been created in this campaign. As someone who has had the opportunity to work hand in hand with John for all 6 years of his time at City Hall, I have seen the leadership that he has brought to Council and I offer him my full, unreserved endorsement.
– Marc Doll, Community Leader
