The division within Hamilton’s city council over a proposed project to convert a Stoney Creek parking lot into an affordable housing project continues to show its face.
The issue was first struck down during a council meeting in the spring following a narrow vote of seven to eight.
However, when the subject returned to council in April, Mayor Andrea Horwath used her strong mayoral powers to push it through.
On Wednesday, the issue reared its head again and nearly resulted in a councilor being forced from the chamber.
“The optics of this are horrendous,” Matt Francis, the councillor for Ward 5 said.
READ MORE: Stoney Creek parking lot set to become affordable housing after Horwath uses strong mayor powers
A report presented to council indicates that Graham Cubitt, the director of projects and development for Indwell, a local charity that has created several affordable housing projects within Hamilton, violated lobbying rules with other city officials.
READ MORE: Opinions split ahead of final council vote on Stoney Creek parking lot
“The mayor met with an unregistered lobbyist with a financial interest,” Francis said. “Afterwards she reversed course, council made its decision. She met with an unregistered lobbyist or had communications with an unregistered and then a decision was made to reverse course and push forward on those parking lots.”
However, the Mayor opposed this notion and called Francis out during the meeting as “muckraking,” a term used for the practice of deliberately seeking out and publishing scandalous information.
“I find it very disturbing that my integrity is being impugned by this member of council,” Horwath said.
Francis was forced to apologize or be ordered out, but is demanding the council consider this issue again in two weeks.
“It’s unfortunate that this councillor decides that muckraking is the way he wants to operate,” Horwath added, saying “but it was very clear that notwithstanding his accusations, that I’ve done nothing wrong and it was really clear in the report that that’s the case.”
The mayor says in a national housing crisis, councillors should be in favor of housing.
But in Stoney Creek, Francis has significant support from people who say they need the parking to get to nearby medical offices.
“I think we’re desperate for parking much more than we need housing. There’s a lot of areas that are not being used for housing that could easily be used,” he said.