College board trustees from the Brantford, Ont., space can pay again the $50,000 they spent throughout an art-buying journey in Italy final July, together with for deluxe lodge rooms, a limo experience and $1,600 gourmand dinner.
CBC Hamilton obtained particulars of how taxpayer cash was spent, by way of a freedom-of-information request to the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District College Board (BHNCDSB) this week.
Chair Rick Petrella and trustees Dan Dignard, Invoice Chopp and Mark Watson travelled to northern Italy between July 8 and 15 to purchase $100,000 value of customized artwork for 2 new excessive colleges.
Their journey itinerary exhibits they flew spherical journey from Toronto to Munich. No rationalization has been offered for why they started and ended their journey within the German metropolis — driving by way of Austria to get to northern Italy, highway toll receipts present.
A BHNCDSB spokesperson stated in an e-mail that the trustees have agreed to repay all of the journey bills and the board has no additional remark.
Petrella apologized in October.
“We want to reiterate to everybody that this [trip] was undertaken in good religion, with good intentions and for the promotion of our Catholicity, however errors have been made,” Petrella stated in an announcement.
Rick Petrella, chair of the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District College Board, has apologized for the journey, and he and the three different trustees have promised to pay again the bills. (Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District College Board)
The expense reviews and receipts present the $50,000 included:
$28,206 for round-trip flights to Munich with the worth per ticket according to flying enterprise class. $15,973 for lodge rooms in Munich and Italy with some nights spent in “superior” and “deluxe” rooms. $2,422 for meals, together with a $1,600 dinner at a gourmand restaurant within the mountains of Italy. $2,135 for a Volvo SUV rental. $654 for taxi companies, together with a limousine experience from Toronto’s Pearson Worldwide Airport to Brantford.
Trustees had voted to alter their very own spending guidelines weeks earlier than the journey to cowl upgraded aircraft seats and lodge rooms, valet parking and alcohol, in addition to lifting caps on reimbursements for meals.
Ontario evaluations different trustee journeys
This fall, after native media reported on the journey and the province ordered a governance evaluate, Petrella apologized and promised it would not occur once more.
He stated in an announcement the board can be on the lookout for donors to cowl the price of the artwork, whereas he and the opposite trustees would pay again the journey prices.
Final week, trustees additionally walked again adjustments to their expense coverage, including extra restrictions and oversight.
“We hope these preliminary concrete steps will set us on the trail to restoring your belief and confidence in us,” Petrella stated within the assertion.
The province can be investigating a public faculty board in London, Ont., after officers spent practically $40,000 on a three-day retreat in Toronto in August.
And CBC London revealed Thursday that one other faculty board within the space paid $36,000 for 3 trustees to attend a convention in Hawaii earlier this 12 months.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Training instructed CBC London will probably be “analyzing discretionary bills throughout the board,” and expects all faculty boards to make use of public cash for pupil achievement.
