Max LeMarchant, a Mayoralty candidate in this year’s Cobourg Municipal Election has sent a letter to the Town addressed to CAO Vaughn and Director of Finance Adam Giddings. This letter read it here asks a series of detailed questions seeking information that emanated from the recent closed meeting report that was disclosed earlier this week.

Quoting from the first three paragraphs Mr LeMarchant lays out his line of enquiries.

“I am writing regarding the Financial Update presented to Council in closed session on November 26, 2024, which the Town has now made publicly available following the September 23, 2026 Council meeting.
Having reviewed the report, the subsequent May 2025 Financial Sustainability Plan and other publicly available financial information, I believe Cobourg residents deserve a clear accounting of the financial issues identified, the corrective actions subsequently taken, and the Town’s present financial position.
The November 2024 report identified significant concerns involving unfinanced capital, cash flow, Development Charge funds, obligatory reserves, debt financing, financial reporting, compliance with Town policies and required provincial and federal reporting.
Some of these issues clearly developed over many years and under previous Councils and administrations. My purpose in writing is therefore not to prejudge responsibility, but to establish the facts: what happened, when it was identified, what Council and senior administration knew, what has been corrected, and what remains outstanding.“

The fifteen questions that Mr. LeMarchant asks are listed below, each one is broken down into many sub-questions – again the letter must be read to understand the depth of these questions and  previous inadequate responses to the released report made by those who supported the release of the report.

Questions:

1. Unfinanced capital
2. Current cash position
3. Development Charge funds
4. Approximately $6.3 million in Development Charge transfers
5. Missing Development Charge annual reports
6. OCIF and Canada Community Building Fund reporting
7. Obligatory reserve funds
8. $1$1.87 million adjustment
9. Debt financing and Council-approved policy
10. Auditor warnings
11. Senior administration’s knowledge and response
12. Council’s knowledge
13. November 26, 2024 closed-session report
14. Corrective-action status
15. Outstanding audited financial statements

The bottom line is simple If the present Mayor knew of the problems that came from previous year’s financials and previous Councils’ inaction why is the public just hearing about them forty days before the election day. 

These questions are a grown-up’s response to a serious problem that has existed for many years, if Mr. LeMarchant had not asked these questions would any of the other candidates have done so. They haven’t done anything so far other than accuse people of hiding the truth. It is obvious that the truth will only come out if these fifteen questions are answered in full.