Article about planner ethics

[JNA]

HEADLINE: City planner who moonlights as developer reassigned after community complains of conflict
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/busines...081/story.html

HIGHLIGHT:

“The assignment of planning files is a management function and such files are assigned with the full acknowledgment of the principles and guidelines set out in the City of Ottawa’s Employee Code of Conduct,"

It’s not clear whether (Planner) was assigned to deal with the condo building because her bosses didn’t know what she was doing at 433 Dawson Ave. or because they didn’t consider it a conflict of interest.

Is the burden on the planner first instead of waiting for the community to question it ?

[jwhitty]

“There is the question, which I think is very important, that we have to be able to freely criticize a planner without concerns that our comments on files she’s handling will be held against us,” Cutler said. The association worried that it couldn’t oppose the zoning variances for Edwards’s own property without risking affecting her judgment on other projects in the neighbourhood.

I think that this is kind of ridiculous. Under the community association's reasoning, if a city planner owns property in a jurisdiction they cannot work in said jurisdiction, as the planner is going to be jaded into attempting to protect or enhance their own investment over the best interest of the jurisdiction. Would the planner even be able to exist within the jurisdiction? Basically, the implication becomes the notion that planners have no ethics, ever.

Having typed that, the planner should have probably initiated the ethics review in some fashion. Of course who is to say she didn't?

[mike gurnee]

A planner should never be a moon lighting developer in his/her jurisdiction. Also, there should be severe sanctions for creating such an atrocious structure.

[jwhitty]

A planner should never be a moon lighting developer in his/her jurisdiction. Also, there should be severe sanctions for creating such an atrocious structure.

This is too loose for me. What's a developer? Think about jurisdictions that require employees to have residence within the jurisdiction. Would a planner be able to buy their own house? They or their estate will eventually sell or transfer the property to another party. What about roommates? If you live somewhere there is some form of property management occurring. I think a blanket no discounts the nature of real property and exchange and use value of such property.

I should note that I recognize the wisdom of don't crap where you eat, or even better, don't even engage in the activity. The real case isn't as cloudy, and the planner isn't doing herself any favors.

[mike gurnee]

I would never even own rental property within my jurisdiction. Perhaps it is just me.