Rideau Lakes council’s October 6 meeting ended in turmoil Monday night after nearly two hours of heated exchanges over seven Integrity Commissioner (IC) reports — four involving Mayor Arie Hoogenboom and three tied to current and former councillors.
The meeting began routinely, with council voting to move the IC reports to the top of the agenda so Councillor Jeff Banks could leave early for a medical appointment.
What followed was a tense and emotional session that saw councillors trading barbs, residents shouting from the gallery, and staff ultimately walking out.
The meeting was abruptly shut down by CAO Shellee Fournier, who cited toxicity in the workplace.
Deputy Mayor Deborah Hutchings took over as chair for the four reports involving Mayor Hoogenboom.
The integrity commissioner found he had twice breached confidentiality rules and made an inappropriate “Old Spice” remark toward Hutchings, who has a severe fragrance allergy.
Hoogenboom told council that his joke was “inappropriate,” and that he made a personal apology to Hutchings and was prepared to accept a recommended penalty.
Council, however, went further than the IC’s recommendations — voting to increase two of the mayor’s suspensions from three and seven days to 90 days each, totalling 180 days without pay.
The tension deepened when discussion turned to Hoogenboom’s external appointments, including his seats on the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville council and the Police Services Board.
Paula Banks urged the township to remove him from those positions, saying he had made misleading public statements.
Others questioned whether council even has the authority to do so. The issue was deferred pending legal advice.
Councillor Marcia Maxwell was handed a total of 120 days suspension without pay across two reports after council voted to increase the penalties recommended by the IC.
Deliberations over Councillor Ron Pollard’s report were still underway when the meeting abruptly ended without a final vote.
Former councillor Joan Delaney was also found to have breached the code of conduct but received no penalty since she is no longer in office.
Tensions in the chamber boiled over twice, with one man shouting at council to be “ashamed” and a Rideau Lakes Grassroots member later storming out in frustration.
Moments later, Fournier signaled to staff, unplugged her laptop, and declared the meeting adjourned.
As the livestream continued, Hutchings called 911 claiming she had been verbally attacked, while Hoogenboom urged her to hang up.
The remaining agenda items will carry over to the next regular council meeting.