City councillors and government officials are in a closed-door meeting Friday morning to discuss the future of transit funding for Hamilton.
Transportation Minister Steve Del Duca, Mayor Bob Bratina, local MPP Ted McMeekin and others are meeting to discuss future funding for light rail transit (LRT) or bus rapid transit (BRT) with Del Duca.
The closed-door meeting between the advisory group and the minister has drawn controversy for being private. Coun. Sam Merulla, a member of the group, has boycotted it, calling it "possibly illegal." And local NDP MPP Monique Taylor asked to be in the meeting and was denied.
Taylor, who represents Hamilton Mountain, and NDP MPP Paul Miller from Hamilton East-Stoney Creek stood outside the meeting Friday, saying a meeting on such a major issue should be public. Taylor plans to complain to the Ontario Ombudsman.
"I just think this is a really big issue before us in the city," she said. "The LRT has been talked about for many years. We know it's a major issue. We know it's a major infrastructure project and we all should be included."
McMeekin is Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. But his inclusion in the meeting is likely because he's a Hamilton Liberal MPP, Miller said, which means other Hamilton MPPs should be invited.
"Ted's in there because it sounds like it's a Liberal gig," Miller said. "They either want to raise the flag on what they're doing on their own or they don't want involvement from us and I find that rather insulting."
"Why wouldn't we be involved? What's the secret? Are they going to invest money in Hamilton or not?"
Council made a motion publicly to invite Del Duca to discuss transit funding with the city, said Merulla, a member of the advisory group. "That meeting is happening right now," he said.
"What are they talking about in there right now that can't be discussed in public? That's really the question."
Advisory group members Coun. Scott Duvall and Coun. Russ Powers are attending, as are Coun. Brad Clark of Ward 9 in Stoney Creek and Coun. Brian McHattie of Ward 1 in Hamilton's west end.
LRT in Hamilton is a proposed 13-kilometre line from McMaster University to Eastgate Square that would cost more than $800 million to build.
Bratina's office has said that this is merely an introductory meeting and the first of many. Coun. Brad Clark, a Ward 9 Stoney Creek councillor in the meeting, said the mayor and city officials often meeting privately with ministers.
The advisory group is not a formal committee of council.
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