Latest news with #RickPetrella
Hamilton Spectator
24-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Some Brant Catholic trustees have repaid travel expenses after controversial Italy trip to buy art
Three of four Brant Catholic trustees say they have settled their share of Italy travel expenses, and the school board has cancelled part of the controversial art commission , but it may take longer to regain public trust. The Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board trustees flew business class, ate at a Michelin-starred restaurant and stayed in 'deluxe' and 'superior' category hotel rooms to commission art from an Italian sculptor for two new schools. In the process, they racked up more than $50,000 in travel expenses, initially on the taxpayers' dime. 'I, along with Rick Petrella and Dan Dignard, have repaid in full,' trustee Bill Chopp told The Spectator in an email Thursday. Chopp also shared a letter addressed to the board and copied to the minister of education (among others) where he said he 'voluntarily committed' to reimbursing his $12,666 share 'as a demonstration of personal responsibility and accountability.' He claimed he was 'assured' the 'pre-arranged' trip was 'budget compliant' when invited, and that the art purchases 'aligned with board goals.' Later, Chopp saw the overall cost 'exceeded what I understood to be within the trustee budget allocation,' and began a biweekly repayment schedule, he wrote. The four trustees initially agreed to a repayment plan which would have seen them all settled up by August 2028. But after a governance review, Education Minister Paul Calandra pushed the deadline to May 23. It remains to be seen whether the fourth trustee, Mark Watson, will pay the full amount by Friday. As of the April report from reviewer Aaron Shull , he had repaid $1,216 of the $12,370 he agreed to. He did not respond when The Spectator asked about the rest this week. Meanwhile, the board has negotiated the art purchase down from just over $72,000 to the already-paid deposit of $37,700, education director Michael McDonald said at a board meeting Monday. It has instructed the artist only to finish already-started pieces, and cancel any remaining ones. It could not say which of the five commissions it will end up with. The board is working to reduce the fee further, and still hopes private donors and Catholic and diocesan organizations will step in to help foot the bill, McDonald's report said. No donations have been received to date. 'Only time will tell' if the board is 'truly' moving forward in the best interest of students, according to Carlo Fortino. The acting local unit president for the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association previously called for the trustees' resignation over the trip. In a statement Thursday, he said the repayment alone is 'the bare minimum' and 'does not erase the damage done.' 'It does not absolve them of the decisions they made, nor does it restore the integrity of leadership that our school communities deserve,' the statement said. Fortino hopes the trustees have learned 'a critical lesson about priorities, public service, and the trust placed in them,' and vowed to 'continue to monitor' their decisions and actions closely in the months ahead. Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady — who pushed for the ministry to investigate the board — said she's 'keeping a close eye' on repayments. If they're not made in full, 'justice will not have been served. And I will be raising the issue in the legislature and with the minister of education,' she told The Spectator Thursday. Of the five commissioned artworks, the board will only get whichever ones the artist has already started.
Hamilton Spectator
23-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Three of four Brant Catholic trustees have repayed travel expenses after controversial Italy trip
Three of four Brant Catholic trustees say they have settled their share of Italy travel expenses, and the school board has cancelled part of the controversial art commission , but it may take longer to regain public trust. The Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board trustees flew business class, ate at a Michelin-starred restaurant and stayed in 'deluxe' and 'superior' category hotel rooms to commission art from an Italian sculptor for two new schools. In the process, they racked up more than $50,000 in travel expenses, initially on the taxpayers' dime. 'I, along with Rick Petrella and Dan Dignard, have repaid in full,' trustee Bill Chopp told The Spectator in an email Thursday. Chopp also shared a letter addressed to the board and copied to the minister of education (among others) where he said he 'voluntarily committed' to reimbursing his $12,666 share 'as a demonstration of personal responsibility and accountability.' He claimed he was 'assured' the 'pre-arranged' trip was 'budget compliant' when invited, and that the art purchases 'aligned with board goals.' Later, Chopp saw the overall cost 'exceeded what I understood to be within the trustee budget allocation,' and began a biweekly repayment schedule, he wrote. The four trustees initially agreed to a repayment plan which would have seen them all settled up by August 2028. But after a governance review, Education Minister Paul Calandra pushed the deadline to May 23. It remains to be seen whether the fourth trustee, Mark Watson, will pay the full amount by Friday. As of the April report from reviewer Aaron Shull , he had repaid $1,216 of the $12,370 he agreed to. He did not respond when The Spectator asked about the rest this week. Meanwhile, the board has negotiated the art purchase down from just over $72,000 to the already-paid deposit of $37,700, education director Michael McDonald said at a board meeting Monday. It has instructed the artist only to finish already-started pieces, and cancel any remaining ones. It could not say which of the five commissions it will end up with. The board is working to reduce the fee further, and still hopes private donors and Catholic and diocesan organizations will step in to help foot the bill, McDonald's report said. No donations have been received to date. 'Only time will tell' if the board is 'truly' moving forward in the best interest of students, according to Carlo Fortino. The acting local unit president for the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association previously called for the trustees' resignation over the trip. In a statement Thursday, he said the repayment alone is 'the bare minimum' and 'does not erase the damage done.' 'It does not absolve them of the decisions they made, nor does it restore the integrity of leadership that our school communities deserve,' the statement said. Fortino hopes the trustees have learned 'a critical lesson about priorities, public service, and the trust placed in them,' and vowed to 'continue to monitor' their decisions and actions closely in the months ahead. Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady — who pushed for the ministry to investigate the board — said she's 'keeping a close eye' on repayments. If they're not made in full, 'justice will not have been served. And I will be raising the issue in the legislature and with the minister of education,' she told The Spectator Thursday. Of the five commissioned artworks, the board will only get whichever ones the artist has already started.
Hamilton Spectator
20-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Brant Catholic board reduces Italy art debt to $37,700
The onus is on individual Brant Catholic trustees to pay back expenses after a much-criticized trip to Italy. A contentious overseas art-buying journey by four trustees cost nearly $190,000 — including post-travel fallout — and prompted a ministerial governance review. Education Minister Paul Calandra gave the board until May 23 to respond to the 18 recommendations in an ensuing report, which it has. In the same time frame, he also asked trustees Rick Petrella, Mark Watson, Dan Dignard and Bill Chopp to repay the Italy travel expenses they each claimed, while the board was to try to recoup the nearly $70,000 spent on the art and artifacts. The individual trustees were 'provided with the information necessary for them to make the repayment within the 30-day time period,' according to the agenda for a Tuesday night board meeting. It's unclear if all four trustees will repay their full debt — around $12,000 each — by the end of this week. The board has managed to reduce the art debt to $37,700 by 'negotiating with the sculptor,' and continues to try to further reduce the bill, the agenda said. While no donors have committed to funding the art, trustees will 'attempt' to get donations from 'private donors, Catholic organizations and diocesan organizations' by Sept. 1.
