Is the North Saanich District Council Dysfunctional?

 I remember early in its term, North Saanich Council was lumped in with Harrison Hot Springs and Kamloops as dysfunctional councils. I have been 'playing' with AI of late, and when I asked this question, Chat GPT replied with this (note the first-person reply!):

There’s credible evidence that many people believe the North Saanich council is exhibiting signs of dysfunction — though whether it is “dysfunctional” overall depends on how one defines that term. I’ll lay out some of the issues raised, what people are saying, and then give a rough assessment.

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Issues & Complaints

Here are several recurring criticisms and conflicts involving North Saanich council:

1. Pickleball court controversy
• The council closed the Wain Park courts due to noise complaints, then later rejected motions to reopen them with sound mitigation, despite community pushback. Saanich News+3Times Colonist+3Chek News+3
• Some residents accuse the council of favouring a few complainants over the broader public interest. NS News+1
• There have been legal threats from community groups arguing the decision process lacked sufficient public input. Saanich News+1
2. Transparency, process, and public engagement concerns
• A planning consultant (Modus) resigned, citing a misalignment between what the public had expressed in engagement exercises, and the direction that council / advisor committees appeared to want. Times Colonist
• Critics (letters, etc.) have alleged that the council is operating with less openness, using private conversations, or restricting which voices are heard. Peninsula News Review+2Saanich News+2
3. Housing target issues
• North Saanich is at risk of missing provincially mandated housing targets; in one case, the first year target was 60 units, and only 6 net-new units were delivered. Vic News+1
• The province has expressed concern over “insufficient detail” in the district’s plans, and the council rejected some attempts to discuss or debate the minister’s letter on the subject. Times Colonist+1
4. Staff turnover, governance concerns
• The Chief Administrative Officer resigned, and there was a large severance/offer to leave ($300,000) amid what was called “ongoing turmoil” related to the official community plan (OCP). Times Colonist+2Times Colonist+2
• Other senior staff associated with the planning process also left. Times Colonist
5. Concerns over respect, civility, and decision-making
• There have been claims of “autocratic” decision-making, emails/public meeting conduct that some feel marginalize councillors or members of the public. Saanich News+1
• A former councillor resigned after an incident in which he called the mayor “Mr. Hitler,” which he said followed frustrations about how meetings and decisions were being handled. CFJC Today Kamloops

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What This Suggests

Based on what’s reported, some patterns emerge:

• Polarization & conflict over key issues (housing, community planning, recreation amenities).
• Process complaints are common: people saying they aren’t being heard, that committee or consultation work is undermined or redirected, that decisions have been made without apparent openness.
• High stakes: legal, financial, reputational — e.g. lawsuits threatened, large sums spent or offered, consultant contracts broken.
• Tension between premium public expectations and “rural character” / resistance to change. Many residents seem to prefer little densification; others want more housing. The council seems to be in a difficult spot balancing these.

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So, is it “Dysfunctional”?

If by “dysfunctional” one means:

• difficulty in making binding or broadly accepted decisions;
• breakdowns in communication;
• lack of trust from parts of the public;
• inability to meet external obligations (e.g. housing targets);
• frequent conflict or procedural irregularities —

then yes, there are real signs that parts of the council are functioning poorly, especially around public engagement, process, and balancing competing priorities.

However, it’s not obvious the council is wholly nonfunctional. It is still making decisions, still engaging in planning (though contentiously), still has governance structures in place, etc.

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Assessment

North Saanich council appears to be in a state of strained governance. It is facing growing pains: conflicts over development vs rural identity, procedural transparency, and public trust are undermining its ability to act smoothly. Some of its failings are in fulfilling provincially mandated targets (housing), and in handling contentious community issues without alienation.

It’s not an outlier — many municipalities in B.C. are dealing with very similar tensions (see reports on increasing municipality-level dysfunction across the province).