The Town of Canmore is facing two complaints filed against it with the Office of Information and Privacy Commissioner in relation to how it responded to requests for records related to lands in the Peaks of Grassi subdivision.
A request for records was filed with the municipality on Feb. 5 this year and initial estimates on what was being searched for indicated the request would result in 400 paper and electronic documents and 3,282 emails. The estimated time the municipality expected it would take to fulfill the request was 246 hours of staff time, with 131 of those hours subject to a fee of $3,550.
Municipal Clerk Cheryl Hyde managed all requests under the Freedom of Information and Privacy Protection legislation and reported to council this month that it was felt the request could not be completed in the 30 calendar days stipulated in the act. The person or persons who filed the request were notified of a 30-day extension, which is permitted by the act.
“At the request of the applicant, records other than email records were provided at the 30 day mark, on March 7,” Hyde wrote in a council report. “The remaining records were provided on April 7, which was day 60. Total time needed to process the request was 125 hours, with 65 of those hours eligible for a fee of $1,753.”
The Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner notified the municipality that a complaint was filed by the applicant on Feb. 26 requesting an investigation into the need for a time extension to provide the records, the calculation of fees and an “unwillingness to respond to the request in installments.”
Hyde indicated administration provided all documentation required for the investigation on May 19 and the expected completion of the investigation is by the end of August.
The second complaint filed by the applicant for the documents was on March 22 and requested an investigation into the municipality’s release of the contents of the request for records to the Rocky Mountain Outlook.
In March, the Outlook reported on the request for documents made to the community and the 200 hours or 28 working days needed for a staff member to fulfill the request.
The request submitted to the municipality requests records and information for records between the mayor, council and all levels of town administration relating to the urban reserve lands in the Peaks of Grassi subdivision regarding traffic impacts, parking analysis, site investigations and geotechnical assessments related to the rock outcrop, steep creek analysis, impact on Quarry Lake park, environmental issues, municipal services and the lift station between Oct. 22, 2013 and Feb. 4, 2016.
All communications to, from and between the municipality (mayor, councillors and administration) and the developers of the property (Lawrence Hill, Dan Madlung and Pierre Doyon), Bow Valley Builders and Developers Association, Canmore Community Housing Corporation, Three Sisters Mountain Village and QuantumPlace were also requested.
Town staff at no time provided the Outlook with information relating to the identity of the person or persons who made the request, as that information is protected under FOIPP.
According to the recent report to council, the complaint made to the commissioner’s office regarding what public records were being requested from the municipality being made public is expected to be complete mid-September.
