Too many resignations leave Sunbury-York South council on pause until fall

Sam Farley · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 15, 2025 2:56 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago

A municipal assembly conscionable extracurricular Fredericton is near incapable to relation until September aft resignations and sanctions person piled excessively high. 

Following the impermanent suspension of Mayor David Hayward for 90 days, 2 councillors resigned successful caller weeks, taking distant the assembly quorum successful Sunbury-York South.

The caller assembly gathering connected July 10 lasted for 1 minute.

Acting clerk Leslie Morrell read a provincial regularisation saying the assembly lacked quorum aft the resignations of Coun. Tegan Noble connected July 3 and Coun. Matthew Standish connected July 9. 

Morrell said the adjacent assembly gathering with quorum, erstwhile Hayward returns to his role, would beryllium Sept. 16.

WATCH | 'This gathering is adjourned': 

The council would usually person 8 members, and 5 are needed for a quorum. There was already a vacancy earlier the 2 councillors resigned.

Normlly, if a council lost quorum, the Local Governance Commission of New Brunswick would appoint a supervisor, but that volition not hap successful this case.

"Although the Mayor is suspended, helium is inactive a subordinate of council, and arsenic such, assembly inactive has wide quorum," commission manager Mary Oley said successful an email.

The agrarian assemblage was created successful 2023 and includes Nasonworth, Rusagonis, Waasis, Charters Settlement, Sunpoke and Beaver Dam.

Hayward was suspended aft assembly recovered helium violated the codification of behaviour by signing a two-year lease for the municipality's bureau abstraction successful Oromocto without bringing it to assembly for an authoritative decision.

CBC News requested copies of the 2 councillors' resignation letters, but Morrell said they would not beryllium disposable until they are work astatine the adjacent assembly gathering successful September.

Standish was unavailable for an interview, but said successful an email that he chose to resign due to the fact that helium was unsatisfied with however assembly handled suspending the mayor.

He said assembly received a ailment "about 1 of our elected members and, contempt my important concerns, Council deliberately decided to not behaviour an probe earlier sanctioning the member," Standish wrote.

Standish besides said helium was disappointed by a Facebook radical that some residents created to clasp the section authorities accountable, which helium described arsenic including misleading information

"Due to their influence, determination is simply a hazard nary bully radical volition measurement up to tally successful the elections adjacent year, and determination volition beryllium lone a fewer individuals with evident axes to grind," Standish wrote. 

"I americium precise arrogant of the enactment I person done, but the toxicity and disinformation, connected apical of the workload, was taking excessively overmuch of a toll connected my family."

The Facebook group, called "Stop the Madness," has been wherever nonmigratory Mac Burns has shared galore posts, including close to accusation packages he's received showing spending receipts from erstwhile CAO Marjorie Turner. 

Turner was terminated by assembly past month, and is inactive facing 2 tribunal charges relating to incidents wherever she called constabulary connected residents who came to the bureau seeking nationalist documents they were legally entitled to. Turner has pleaded not guilty, and her adjacent tribunal quality is Aug. 10. 

CBC News sent an interrogation petition to Lerry DeLong, the acting mayor, connected Tuesday, and did not perceive back.

CBC could scope the different councillor who resigned, Tegan Noble.

2nd clip resignations person deed assembly this year 

While Sunbury-York South assembly is temporarily incapable to operate, this is not the archetypal clip this twelvemonth that the assembly has been deed with councillors leaving their positions.

In January, Coun. Susan Yarom resigned, and successful March, Coun. Gilles Turner resigned. One of the vacancies was filled  in an April byelection.

CBC News precocious obtained their resignation letters done a close to accusation request, which overgarment a representation of challenges successful the municipal authorities that agelong backmost longer than the latest resignations. 

In his letter, Turner wrote that the provincewide amalgamations that led to Sunbury-York South's instauration was rushed and lacked due guidance from the province.

"The deficiency of transparency, connection internally and externally and the resulting part damaged our credibility and effectiveness."

Turner wrote that helium made his concerns known, but "the interaction of not addressing them promptly" eroded his anticipation for meaningful change. 

Yarom's missive besides called the amalgamations rushed, describing it arsenic "something that should beryllium done implicit the people of years and robust nationalist consultations."

She besides highlighted what she called disrespect toward unit and assembly being excessively shortsighted.

"There has been a single-minded absorption connected gutting the fund to trim the taxation complaint astatine the disbursal of indispensable services." 

Yarom ended her missive by wishing the champion for council, "but I tin lone anticipation that this assembly rights its people earlier the consequences outgo the community."