Council BooksCentre WellingtonOntarioSign inSubscribe
Not the full picture. Built from public records, which leave things out.Read by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date. Check the sources, and tell us if you spot a mistake. What this site can't tell you
Read by hand. We read Centre Wellington's own documents for this site in October 2026; the Sources page lists which ones. The comparisons with other places still come from the Province's yearly reports.

Council

Who decides, and how you can hold them to account

Centre Wellington is run by an elected council of 7 people. They set the budget, approve big purchases and hire the senior staff who run the town day to day.

Current council

  • MayorShawn Watters
  • Councillor, Ward 1Lisa MacDonald
  • Councillor, Ward 2Kimberley Jefferson
  • Councillor, Ward 3Barbara Lustgarten-Evoy
  • Councillor, Ward 4Jennifer Adams
  • Councillor, Ward 5Bronwynne Wilton
  • Councillor, Ward 6Denis Craddock

Names and official email addresses from the town's council page. None of the members lists a public social media account there.

How open is Centre Wellington?

What a resident can find online without asking, as of October 5, 2026.

  • Yes
    Budgets posted online

    One page lists the budget books for 2014 to 2026. The 2026 book says it is the Township's first budget under strong mayor powers, and that it was deemed adopted in December 2025. Source

  • Yes
    Audited financial statements

    Statements for 2010 to 2025 are on one page. The 2025 statements carry a clean opinion ("present fairly") from KPMG LLP dated June 23, 2026. The 2024 statements carry a clean opinion from KPMG LLP dated July 4, 2025. Source

  • Unknown
    Council pay and expenses (s. 284)

    We did not find the yearly statement of council pay and expenses on the Township's pages that we read. It may be in a council agenda on the meeting portal, which we did not read (see the next item). We did not fill in the pay table. Source

  • Unknown
    Meeting agendas and minutes

    Agendas and minutes are on a CivicWeb portal. That portal's robots.txt file says no automated visitor may read any page, so we did not read it. We have read no minutes, no conflict declarations, no closed session counts and no procurement results from council meetings. We did not check whether meeting videos are posted. Source

  • Yes
    Integrity Commissioner reports

    Five reports are posted on the Integrity Commissioner page, with the complaint form and the Code of Conduct. Source

  • Unknown
    Tender results

    The Township's Bids and Tenders page sends readers to a separate bidding portal. We did not read it. Source

  • Partly
    2022 candidates' financial statements

    The Township has a page of the 2022 candidates' submitted statements. One candidate's entry says "No Financial Statement Provided". We did not open the statements. Source

Where the town speaks for itself

Centre Wellington's official channels, as linked from its own website. Council members may also post on their own pages; we link only to official municipal channels.

Ask for the records

Anyone can ask the town for its records under Ontario's Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA). You do not have to say why. Here is how it works, and the wording for the records that would answer the questions on this site.

  1. Send the request in writing to the town clerk (the freedom of information coordinator), on the town’s form or in a letter, with the $5 application fee.
  2. Describe the records, not the answer you want. Dates, departments and the kind of record (a list, invoices, emails) make a request quicker and cheaper.
  3. The town has 45 business days to answer (the law changed in 2026; older guides say 30 days). It can charge for search time and copies, but must send an estimate first if the fees will be over $25.
  4. Some parts can be held back, such as legal advice or personal information about other people. The town must say which part of the law it relied on.
  5. If you are refused, or the fees seem too high, you can appeal to the Information and Privacy Commissioner within 30 business days of the town’s decision.

The town's request form (on its Forms page) · The law · Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario

  • Integrity Commissioner invoices, 2023 to 2025

    The budget books do not say what the five Integrity Commissioner reports cost. The 2025 Legislative Services operations line was $36,490 against a budget of $11,200. Related question: What did the Integrity Commissioner find on the five complaints about council members since 2023, and what did the work cost?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the total amount the Township paid to its Integrity Commissioner in each of 2023, 2024 and 2025, broken down by matter (for example, Code of Conduct Complaints 2024-01, 2024-02 and 2024-03 and MCIA Applications 2023-01, 2023-02, 2024-01 and 2024-02), with the dates of the invoices. Names of complainants may be removed.

  • Land Sale Reserve ledger, 2024 to 2026

    The 2026 budget book shows the Land Sale Reserve at $(3,865,460) on January 1, 2026 and $(5,437,060) at the end of 2026, with nothing going in, and gives no explanation. Related question: Why did the Township's reserves fall by a fifth in 2025, and why do several go below zero in its 2026 plan?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request a ledger of every transfer into and out of the Township's Land Sale Reserve from January 1, 2024 to the date of this request, showing for each transfer the date, amount, the purchase or sale it relates to, and the council report or by-law that approved it, and any staff report that explains how the reserve is to be refilled.

  • Mayor's golf tournament revenue and expenses, 2024 and 2025

    The Township's books show $41,155 of revenue and the same amount of spending on the tournament line in 2025, while its web page says the event raised over $24,000 for a charity. Related question: How does the Mayor's golf tournament run through the Township's books, and who paid into it?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the statement of revenue and expenses for each Mayor's Golf Tournament, showing each sponsorship and registration amount received (sponsor names of businesses only), each expense, and the amount paid to the charity, with the council report or direction that authorized the Township to run the event.

The wording is a starting point, not legal advice. Narrow the dates if the town says a request is too broad or too costly.

How to raise a concern

From the gentlest step to the most serious. Start at the top.

  1. Integrity Commissioner

    Council appointed the law firm Aird & Berlis LLP as its Integrity Commissioner in February 2023 (By-law 2023-14). The Township posts five reports on complaints about council members, from November 16, 2023 to March 28, 2025. We read all five. Each one found that the member had not broken the rules.

  2. Closed meeting investigator: Ontario Ombudsman

    The Township says that since January 1, 2021 all closed meeting investigations are done by the Ontario Ombudsman. We did not look for Ombudsman reports about the Township.

  3. Joint Compliance Audit Committee (election finances)

    The Township's election pages list a Joint Compliance Audit Committee. We did not open the page.