N.B. municipality spent $19K to investigate councillor over giant bird statue

A New Brunswick councillor says the release of an investigation into her efforts to bring a giant bird sculpture to the community is a “victory” — even though it led to sanctions.

A New Brunswick town councillor says the release of an investigation into her efforts to bring a giant bird sculpture to the community is a “victory” — even though it led to sanctions against her last fall.

Tantramar Coun. Debbie Wiggins-Colwell was among those who sought the public release of a third-party report that cost the municipality more than $19,000 and concluded she had violated municipal codes of conduct.

The investigation conducted last October found that Wiggins-Colwell disrupted the pecking order by restoring a giant sandpiper statue — known as Shep — to its perch without going through established procedures.

N.B.-based Montana Consulting group billed the municipality $19,167.11 for the investigation.

Wiggins-Colwell’s violations included failure to respect the decision-making process and follow policies, procedures and bylaws; inability to have respectful interactions with councillors, staff and the public; and improper use of influence and of municipal assets and services. As a result, Wiggins-Colwell agreed last November to attend training to better understand her roles and responsibilities as an elected official.

Wiggins-Colwell said in an interview that the report shows how minor her transgressions were and how “stupid” it was that the municipality spent that kind of money to cast her as a villain, even though she obtained Shep “for nothing.” The sculpture, which cost $9,300, was paid for by a non-profit organization, the Fundy Biosphere Region.

“If they were to just say at the beginning, ‘Look, (we can) have this put up for free and it will help tourism in the little village. I think that’s what we should go for.’ But nope, they didn’t want to do that,” she said.

Kara Becker, the former deputy mayor of Dorchester, N.B. — the village where Shep stands and that became part of Tantramar in January 2023 — called the $19,000 investigation “a grand inquisition” and an embarrassment for the municipality.