As has happened numerous times over the past several months, council voted 6-3 at its May 8 meeting against a motion to rescind a previously approved resolution, this time concerning the purchase of a pair of two-wheel drive trucks for the public works department.
The motion to rescind was brought forth by Coun. Duncan Wong, who argued at the time of the purchase that the city would be better off getting four-wheel drive vehicles, even if they were more expensive.
“In Thompson we have a lot of snow usually and to buy a two-wheel drive especially, I’m going to do a comparison about the weight,” said Wong. “The half-ton truck we’re talking about 5,000-plus pounds. The three-quarter ton truck we’re talking about 6,000-plus pounds, a thousand pounds more for people to get unstuck is pretty hard especially we do have a female employee working for the public works so they do drive the half-ton or three-quarter ton. Imagine if they got stuck it would cost so much time and effort to get it out.”
The motion to rescind was supported by councillors Ron Matechuk and Judy Kolada.
“As I stated at the original resolution, the value of that [four-wheel drive] vehicle at the end of its life for the City of Thompson will increase so that will offset somewhat,” said Matechuk. “At this point we can’t get bids on the vehicles we are done with, nobody’s interested, so if we had four-wheel drive perhaps people would just use them for such things as going out and getting wood and recreational things.”
Kolada said that although she normally follows the advice of city administration, Wong and Matechuk have knowledge in this area.
“Both Coun. Wong and Coun. Matechuk who are proponents of the four-wheel drive are business owners in construction,” she said. “They deal with trucks all the time. They have a lot of experience. I think in this case that possibly our councillors have more experience than our superintendent of public works because he did come to the job as a purchasing agent not as someone with construction experience so I have to support Coun. Wong and Coun. Matechuk in this.”
Public works director Wayne Koversky said past practice has been not to buy four-wheel drive vehicles unless they are needed for off-road work.
“Any equipment that we’ve had at 4-x-4 we got very little value when we sold,” Koversky said. “We had two 4-x-4 Suburbans that we sold and we got very little money for. They were a mechanical nightmare for our maintenance staff. Our mechanical department is unanimous in not having 4-x-4s in the fleet unless they’re dedicated to individual drivers because of the maintenance of them.”
“In regards to comments by Wayne Koversky, when he’s coming up with the plan to purchase these vehicles he’s having conversations with the technicians that are actually doing the work on these vehicles, the fleet that the City of Thompson operates and going off a recommendation by certified Red Seal trained technicians who I would take their advice,” said Coun. Dennis Foley, who was also one of several councillors to object to Wong’s comments on female employees.
“I find it very inappropriate that a member of council would make a comment in regards to a female operator not being able to handle driving the vehicle the same as a male driver,” he said. “There’s zero difference.”
“I take great disrespect that there’s a comment made about a female employee not being able to do the same work that a male would driving a two-wheel drive vehicle,” said deputy mayor Kathy Valentino.
“I also take exception to comments about females and their ability to operate equipment whether it’s a truck or not,” said Coun. Penny Byer.
Wong said he wasn’t doubting female employees’ ability to operate the vehicle but to push it free if it got stuck in deep snow.
“I’m just saying a male would have a hard time to push this 5,000-pound truck,” he said. “Imagine the female. She would have a harder time to push it out, that’s all.”
Mayor Dennis Fenske closed debate by saying that regardless of the merits of one truck or another, councillors have to respect the process by which the decision was made.
“We legally accepted and we legally awarded those tenders,” said the mayor. “To go back now and reverse that decision, as one councillor’s already said, would cost more than the change in trucks which is really not the issue. We have a process in place, council is fully aware of the process, council fully accepted and voted unanimously to move this forward and at the 11th hour Coun. Wong wants to rescind the resolution to a lawfully tendered process that this council went through and approved so I won’t be supporting the motion to rescind.”
Fenske, Valentino, Byer, Foley and councillors Colleen Smook and Blake Ellis voted against the motion to rescind.
