‘The culture at city hall needs to change’: Ottawa city councillor decries dysfunction

First in a series of tweets and then in a statement on Tuesday, Capital Ward Coun. Shawn Menard voiced the frustration he’s felt at city hall over his first 10 months on the job.

In his tweets Tuesday morning, Menard says the mayor “despises him” for wanting to make policy changes and “openly goes after you personally trying to label you as a hypocrite.”

He goes on to list other issues he says he has faced, such as being barred from serving on committees — the mayor has final say, with recommendations, on who serves on what committee — and one-upmanship that has led to a “toxic environment.”

In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, Menard says he believes behaviour at city hall needs to change.

“We have witnessed allegations of sexual harassment, admissions of inappropriate gestures during elections, intimidating behaviour towards residents and very personal insinuations,” Menard said in the statement.

“This structure needs to be challenged and I believe it’s something worth fighting for.”

According to Menard, his tweets on Tuesday stem from an interaction on Twitter on Monday when he voiced his opinion on the city’s introduction of a bylaw to ban election signs on public property.

When asked for comment about the tweets, Mayor Jim Watson said in a statement that he recognizes that members of council have the right to express their opinion and looks forward to “working collaboratively with each of them to move the city forward.”