Deputy Mayor Restoule Skips 3 Board of Health Meetings

Will this 6 month absence spark a new committee shuffle by Mayor Thorne-Rochon?

West Nipissing was without a voice on the North Bay Parry Sound Board of Health for 6 months in 2023. Because our municipality funds a large part of the North Bay Parry Sound Health Unit’s budget (nearly half a million dollars), we are entitled to one appointment on that board.

When appointing councillors last Fall, Mayor Thorne-Rochon tapped Deputy Mayor Jamie Restoule to represent West Nipissing’s interest on this crucial board.

However, between February and August of this year Restoule twice failed to attend the regularly scheduled board of health meetings.*

*In between the two missed regular meetings, Restoule also skipped the June subcommittee he also sits on for the Board of Health. Meeting minutes for the June 28th and April 26th meetings can be found here.

Not only did Restoule offer his regrets at 3 straight meetings spanning 6 months, but he or Mayor Kathleen Thorne-Rochon did not choose to send an alternate representative to maintain our municipality’s voice. 

As most residents have noticed, West Nipissing is disproportionately feeling the opioid crisis as well as the homelessness problem plaguing this district. 

These are both important items that were discussed at the meetings Restoule failed to attend. By giving up our municipal seat at the table for the better part of a year, Restoule may have sacrificed our chances at much needed funding and resources for West Nipissing. 

This obvious failure of professional duties will lead many to wonder if Restoule is fit for his appointment on this vital board. 

“I did recommend that Councillor Tessier be removed from the board (of Au Chateau) because there have been some concerns in regards to… the responsibilities of being a board member and representing an organization”. - Mayor Kathleen Thorne-Rochon in April while justifying the stipping of Councillor Tessier’s board role.

This is not the first time that board appointments become a controversial issue for this council. Earlier this year Mayor Thorne-Rochon abruptly kicked Councillor Tessier off of the board of Au Chateau (West Nipissing’s Long-Term Care Home) for what she described as “concerns in regards to her responsibility of being a board member”. 

Although Tessier never missed a board meeting and was elected as the chair by her peers because of her dedication to the role, she was removed. Restoule supported the mayor’s move at the time.

This new mayor has definitely set the bar for her expectation of municipal board appointees. It’s difficult to see how Restoule’s half year absenteeism from a board which we pay half a million dollars to meets that threshold. 

It will be interesting to see if Mayor Kathleen Thorne-Rochon offers the same standard to a council ally such as Restoule as she did to an obvious council opponent like she did with Tessier.