Video -Cleveland Accuses Councillors of Bullying, Raises Questions About Closed Door Discussions Following Tumultuous Council Meeting

Pete Fisher
15 hours ago
• Categories: City Hall, Local

Cobourg mayor says he will continue pushing for answers about financial concerns, past council decisions and recommendations he says the public has a right to know about

With municipal election voting set to open in just four days, Mayor Lucas Cleveland emerged from a contentious Cobourg council meeting Tuesday night accusing fellow councillors of bullying, questioning how amendments to motions were discussed before the meeting and demanding answers about decisions made during the previous term of council.

In an interview following the October 13 meeting, Cleveland rejected the suggestion that the proceedings amounted to a “gong show,” describing instead what he called a pattern of behaviour he says he has experienced throughout his four years as mayor.

“What was on full display is the actual bullying that’s going on,” Cleveland said.

The mayor alleged that councillors had discussed proposed amendments to motions before the meeting, raising questions about whether those discussions complied with the rules governing municipal council business.

“Tonight we learned about the fact that all of council are passing around amendments, discussing that,” he said. “Is that not a violation?”

Cleveland suggested that exchanging emails among a majority of council members about future council business could potentially constitute an improperly conducted closed-door meeting.

“I’m not making an accusation tonight,” he said, while adding that it was clear from the public record that other councillors had seen the proposed amendments before he had.

Cleveland said he had placed his own motions on the public record on Friday to give councillors an opportunity to prepare for the meeting.

The mayor’s allegations have not been independently established, and the circumstances surrounding the preparation and circulation of the amendments would need to be examined before any conclusion could be reached about whether municipal meeting rules were breached.

Questions surrounding Tracy Vaughan

A significant portion of the meeting centred on Tracy Vaughan, the Town of Cobourg’s chief administrative officer, and questions about recommendations made during the previous term of council.

Cleveland maintained that he was attempting to give Vaughan an opportunity to explain her professional recommendations and clarify what had happened to them, rather than subject her to inappropriate questioning.

He said Vaughan had been provided with his questions beforehand and was comfortable answering them.

“When I asked her directly, do you have any issues with the questions after being accused of bullying? She said, ‘No, I’m happy to answer. You can quote me. I’m happy to answer any questions,’” Cleveland said.

He alleged that four councillors who had served during the previous term repeatedly raised points of order while Vaughan was speaking.

“It seemed that Tracy didn’t have a problem speaking about what happened,” he said. “It seemed that the four members of council previous had a problem with Tracy Vaughan speaking honestly about what happened in the last term of council.”

Cleveland said the questions were intended to establish whether recommendations had been brought to council previously and, if so, what action had been taken.

He expressed concern that the public could be left without a clear understanding of what had occurred if Vaughan was unable to discuss the recommendations.

“It’s not appropriate that CEO Vaughan is not allowed to speak about those recommendations,” he said.

Cleveland also emphasized his respect for the CAO, saying she had remained in her position despite what he described as recommendations not being followed during the previous council term.

“The amount of respect I have for Miss Vaughan is incredible,” he said. “She’s held out for six years in this town. Despite her recommendations not being followed in last term of council, she held on.”

He said he and Vaughan had worked together over the past four years to address problems within the municipality.

The mayor’s account of the meeting and the handling of Vaughan’s recommendations represents his interpretation of events. The underlying recommendations, the circumstances in which they were made and the decisions taken in response remain central to the questions he wants answered.

Police financial concerns raise broader questions

Cleveland repeatedly returned to financial issues involving the Cobourg Police Service, arguing that the public needs a clearer timeline of when concerns were identified, who knew about them and what action followed.

He said he became aware of financial issues involving the Town of Cobourg in November 2024, when he said he obtained confirmation of the problems.

“Since November 2024, I have been trying to get that information out into the public,” he said.

Cleveland contrasted the situation with the arrival of Police Chief Chris Leather, who took over the service in June.

He praised Leather’s handling of the financial concerns and said the chief’s approach demonstrated what transparency should look like.

“Transparency isn’t a word, it’s an action,” Cleveland said. “Transparency requires action.”

He added that he was “proud and incredibly impressed” with Leather, saying transparency meant identifying a problem and taking immediate and necessary steps to address it.

But Cleveland questioned why action had apparently taken so long.

“Why did we have to wait till Mr. Leather showed up to do the right thing?” he asked.

The mayor also questioned when the Police Services Board first became aware of financial problems and whether previous municipal officials had received information or recommendations that should have prompted earlier action.

He said he wanted councillors who had served during the previous term to identify where and when such concerns had been brought before council.

“I invite Deputy Mayor Beatty or Councillor Bureau to bring me the meeting where they told us about any of that,” Cleveland said.

“I invite them to show me where they told me that the concerns were so great that an incoming chief with 30 years of professional experience” needed to address them, he added.

Cleveland also referred to what he described as $9.65 million in business-centred profits applied beyond what council had approved for the police board, questioning how that money was accounted for and overseen.

“Where’s that accountability?” he asked.

The mayor’s comments raise questions about the relationship between the police service, its board and municipal oversight. Determining what happened requires a clear accounting of the relevant financial decisions, the information provided to officials and the actions taken at the time.

‘The truth is going to come out’

With the municipal election approaching, Cleveland rejected the suggestion that his actions were primarily about campaigning.

He said his concerns extended beyond whether he would be re-elected.

“This is not about electioneering,” he said. “This is about getting the truth out there.”

Addressing Deputy Mayor Nicole Beatty and councillors Adam Bureau, Randy Barber and Aaron Burchat, Cleveland said the questions surrounding the previous term would remain important regardless of the election outcome.

“It doesn’t matter if I win the election or not,” he said. “The truth is going to come out about what happened in the last term of council and what you chose to do or not do about it.”

Cleveland argued that the public deserved to understand the sequence of events, the reasons decisions were made and whether recommendations were acted upon.

“I can’t draw every conclusion for the people of Cobourg,” he said. “It’s really important that we understand the timelines. It’s really important that we understand the reasons why.”

He said identifying responsibility for any wrongdoing was not his immediate concern.

“From a personal integrity standpoint, the only thing I care about is making sure the truth gets out there to a community that I’ve fallen in love with,” he said.

Cleveland said he originally ran for mayor in 2022 intending to serve only one term, but decided to seek re-election because of the problems he said he discovered while in office.

“I’m running again to fix the problems,” he said.

He also argued that municipal employees who come forward to do their jobs should not be prevented from doing so because of past decisions.

“People like Miss Vaughan, people like Mr. Leather who come in to do a job should not be hamstrung from doing the job they’re required because of mistakes in the past,” he said.

Closed-session report and questions about disclosure

Cleveland also questioned whether the public would have learned about the matters under discussion had he not pushed to have a closed-session report brought forward.

He asked whether the meeting would have taken place, and whether the Cobourg Police Service would have issued a public statement, if the report had not been permitted to come into the public record.

“Had I not threatened to go public with that closed-session report, would it have ever even seen the light of day?” he asked.

“Sometimes truth has to be squeezed out and pushed out. It shouldn’t work like that, but that’s what everyone’s seeing.”

Cleveland said the meeting was an opportunity to establish what happened, rather than simply protect individuals from scrutiny.

He was asked whether the irregularities involving the police service could lead to further investigations involving the Town of Cobourg.

Cleveland said that, if further irregularities came to light, he would report them to the appropriate authorities.

“I would immediately and without equivocation report them to the necessary administration and to the government of Ontario, including Municipal Affairs and Housing,” he said.

He added that he believed some reporting had already taken place, referring to the September meeting at which the closed-session report was discussed.

However, Cleveland cautioned against speculating about whether police would become involved in any further examination of the town’s affairs.

“I can’t speculate on that,” he said.

He said the priority should be establishing the facts before drawing conclusions.

Four councillors and the question of political continuity

Cleveland broadened his criticism beyond the immediate meeting, arguing that the composition of council over successive elections had allowed a recurring majority of councillors to remain in power.

He urged residents to examine the makeup of Cobourg council dating back to 2000 and consider how often councillors from one term carried over into the next.

Cleveland said the 2014 election was an exception in which four new members were elected, while majorities from previous terms had otherwise generally remained.

His argument was that councillors who had served during the previous term should be prepared to answer questions about decisions made while they were in office.

He repeatedly challenged the suggestion that his questions amounted to bullying, saying he had provided Vaughan with the questions beforehand and was trying to allow her to explain her professional work.

“I was asking kindly, politely, with the right tone,” he said.

Cleveland added that he was not looking to put anyone on the spot but was trying to fulfil his responsibility to represent Cobourg residents.

“What I’ve seen since November 2024 is a reluctance to put the truth out there,” he said.

Accountability remains the central issue

Asked what repercussions would be appropriate if the outstanding information eventually became public, Cleveland said that determining consequences was not his responsibility.

Instead, he said, his priority was to establish what happened and ensure that the public had access to the facts.

He maintained that the public should be able to understand how municipal decisions were made, what recommendations were provided and whether those recommendations were followed.

“The truth isn’t debatable,” Cleveland said. “The truth can’t be deflected away.”

He added that until the facts were established, he believed the community’s attention should remain focused on the underlying questions about accountability and public money.

The interview ended with Cleveland again defending his decision to question Vaughan and challenging the other members of council to explain why they had objected to her answering.

As voting in the municipal election approaches, the dispute has placed questions about financial oversight, council conduct, transparency and the handling of past recommendations squarely before Cobourg residents.

The central questions remain: What concerns were raised during the previous term? Who received that information? What recommendations were made, and what action followed?

Those questions require answers grounded in records, documented decisions and the accounts of those directly involved—not simply competing allegations from the political figures at the centre of the dispute.