At Monday night's Council meeting, Elliot Lake Mayor Dan Marchisella recommended changes to two committees to fill vacant spaces, created by Chris Patrie's removal.
His suggestion was adding Councillor Tom Turner as Chair of the Economic Development Committee along with Councillor Luc Cyr as a member.
He also recommended adding Turner as a member of the Finance and Administration Committee chaired by Councillor Norman Mann.
As mayor, Marchisella has the authority to recommend changes to the city's standing committee structure.
Patrie was forced to step away from his membership on city-sanctioned committees and affiliated boards and organizations in late 2019 as part of the Integrity Commissioner process he continues to deal with.
Patrie was the first speaker as soon as it was decided to receive the mayor's report.
"I totally disagree with this report," Patrie said. "I would like to have my standing committee and boards back."
"I have spoken to the Integrity Commissioner. This is not a conflict of interest for me to discuss this. I should be allowed to sit on standing committees," Patrie also said.
The mayor responded, "I don't believe these sanctions or recommendations from the Integrity Commissioner had anything to do with conflict of interest. It had to do with the code of conduct sanctions and part of that was disruption and actions during committee meetings."
"They're not two and the same and I'm not willing to discuss the conflict of interest. It is totally different and has been sent to the courts of Canada," Marchisella also said.
It was decided that, to enact the Mayor's committee rosters, council would need a motion to re-consider the action it took at its meeting back on Nov. 25, 2019 and is expected to take place at the next meeting of Council in mid-April.
"We're now essentially at the halfway point of this term of council," said Councillor Norman Mann. "This is something that I think needs to be dealt with at some point, no question. All I know is that it has been an extremely divisive process and I'm hoping that it ends in some way.
"I think it's time to put the past in the past and let's move forward," Mann also said.