Fort Frances councillor questions legality of vote to sell Sunny Cove Camp

Fort Frances council is approving a set of terms regarding the sale of Sunny Cove Camp and the committee established to oversee it.

But a town councillor suggests the process should be halted.

Wendy Brunetta says proper procedures may not have been followed when council voted a second time on a report brought forward by administration.

“By providing the second motion, only a simple majority of council, four out of seven, was required,” says Brunetta.

“However, if it was correctly done, the motion to reconsider our original direction would have required a two-thirds majority or five out of seven.”

Brunetta also contends that administration did not follow council’s direction last July when it first supported a plan to rehabilitate the camp.

Before the second vote last November, administration reached out to the Kiwanis Club of Fort Frances, the camp’s former owners, which supported a sale and the proceeds going back to the club.

“It’s my position that these options were incorrectly brought forward by administration because it did not comply with council’s original direction to look into rehabilitating Sunny Cove Camp,” says Brunetta.

“Instead, administration took it upon themselves to look further at option four to sell Sunny Cove Camp, which was not the direction of council.”

Brunetta’s effort to introduce a motion on Monday to pause the camp sale was ruled as out of order by Mayor Andrew Hallikas, who indicated it could be presented as a notice of motion at another meeting.

Meantime, the search for a buyer for the camp is already underway.

The committee is accepting offers until June 15th before deciding what further action will be taken.

Council’s debate and decision to sell the camp came after a tender in 2025 to fix up Russell Hall, the facility’s main building, was rejected because it came in higher than budgeted.