Mayor Neil Driscoll gave a strong statement of support for township CAO Manny Baron at the opening of the March 27 council meeting.
“At this time I would like to advise the residents of Mapleton that Manny Baron has council’s support as our chief executive officer for the municipality and we support him 110 per cent,” said the mayor, before moving on to other business on the agenda.
Lambton OPP filed a charge of breach of trust by a public officer against Baron on March 26.
The charge relates to Baron’s leasing of property he owned to the Town of Petrolia (he did not disclose his ownership) while he was CAO of the town.
In a March 27 telephone interview, Driscoll said the charge would not impact Baron’s employment status with the township.
Baron, who is set to appear in court in Sarnia on April 16, declined to comment beyond indicating he has engaged legal counsel when contacted by the Community News on March 27.
Roles change
Baron was initially appointed to the role of CAO/Clerk for Mapleton on Jan. 3.
At the March 27 meeting, council approved a recommendation in a staff report from Baron to separate the CAO and clerk roles. Council passed bylaws appointing deputy clerk Barb Schellenberger to the role of clerk, while Baron was appointed deputy clerk, in addition to his duties as CAO.
In his report, Baron noted that in the past, the role of the CAO was combined with the role of the clerk, supported by the deputy clerk.
“With the many legislative requirements today, there is a significant amount of time spent researching and preparing reports, doing follow up, ensuring the filing is done, etc. Mapleton, I believe, is at the cusp of a boom, which would help grow our residential and business centers,” Baron states in the report.
“Our industrial park could keep growing. In order to facilitate this and other initiatives, I believe the CAO should be focused on addressing the wastewater expansion, working with the builders, focusing on business expansion, etc.”
The report notes the suggestion has been put forward by staff several times, most recently in a service review completed last year.
It was also a suggestion from former CAO Brad McRoberts, Baron stated.
The report indicates Baron will continue to be the township’s “main human resources point of contact,” noting “we are having staffing issues and focus should be given to filling these important roles and bringing tenure to our organization.”
