The city fought to keep these Red Hill emails secret. Here’s what they say

Previously secret emails, letters and notes - recently ordered released to a judicial inquiry - provide a new window on behind-the-scenes turmoil at city hall triggered by a buried safety study of the Red Hill Valley Parkway.

Council requested a judge-led inquiry in 2019 after the discovery of a long-hidden report showing poor friction on the collision-prone parkway - a finding that appeared to contradict years of public assurances that the road was safe even in the face of deadly crashes and complaints from police and citizens.

Thousands of documents collected for the inquiry, as well as ongoing witness testimony, have already revealed city hall went into crisis management mode months before the Tradewind Scientific report was made public.

But until recently the city resisted handing over all documents requested by the inquiry, arguing some correspondence was legally privileged" and should remain confidential. In a special hearing late last month, retired judge Frank Marrocco ruled the city must turn over the majority of contested documents.

Among the revelations in the newly released emails, letters and meeting notes:

• Behind-the-scenes political anger from councillors apparently calling for heads to roll" or a criminal probe;

• Lawyers initially discussed using legal exemptions to withhold the conclusion and recommendations in the now-infamous Tradewind report;

• City officials repeatedly discussed how to treat the retired top engineer at the heart of the slippery parkway mystery, Gary Moore. Irate councillors were advised not to speak to him.

Marrocco ruled the city waived privilege over such documents when it asked for a judicial inquiry. Some councillors specifically cited the need for transparency in choosing the costly judge-led investigation - which is now on track to approach $28 million.

Ironically, at least some of those rising costs are attributed to the tug of war over document transparency, which in turn forced the rescheduling of some witness testimony.

Hamilton has justified its efforts to withhold the legally privileged" documents over concerns for taxpayer liability - a decision it said was strongly supported" by the city's insurer. In June, Hamilton faced 23 separate lawsuits worth more than $19 million related to the parkway controversy.

Most of the newly released documents are from the period just before or after the city's rediscovery of the Tradewind report in September 2018. It's not always clear why the documents would be considered legally sensitive.

Many are emails or letters from lawyers, including several from municipal law expert David Boghosian, who was retained to help the city deal with The Spec's freedom-of-information request and to avoid further litigation pitfalls.

Most of the documents can now be viewed as footnotes in inquiry summary documents at RHVPI.ca.

Some highlights of the previously secret documents reviewed by The Spectator so far:

• Lawyer David Boghosian provided a confidential opinion letter" to the city meant to guide its decisions about releasing various Red Hill reports and potential lawsuit risk.

His opinion downplayed the lawsuit risk associated with the Tradewind report, but warned the city had not implemented all past suggested parkway safety improvements despite serious findings" related to wet-weather road conditions dating back to 2015.

He also noted the city's experimental use of stone mastic asphalt" (SMA) to build the Red Hill, at least in hindsight, may have been inappropriate."

• The city released notes and summaries of conversations with CIMA road safety consultant Brian Malone about parkway safety, including an apparent suggestion the Red Hill was slipperier when wet than other roads" and that its unique SMA construction may have led to problematic micro-ponding" of water.

• Emails and meeting notes indicate anxious" city staffers and lawyers repeatedly discussed The Spec's request for Red Hill friction tests made under provincial Freedom of Information Act legislation.

By law, the city was required to release the Tradewind report - but it appears city lawyers believed early on that legal exemptions could allow Hamilton to withhold the critical report conclusion and recommendations. Two months later, council decided instead to release the entire report to the public - along with an apology.

• Meeting notes taken by city staffers suggest some councillors were calling for heads to roll" after learning about the hidden report. Still, the city has never publicly blamed any subsequent firings on the Red Hill scandal. A newly released email from Mayor Fred Eisenberger also appears to suggest some councillors wanted a forensic audit suggesting criminality."

• Notes of closed-door meetings with councillors repeatedly note questions about - or anger toward - former engineering director Gary Moore.

Moore received the Tradewind report in 2014 but did not share it with council or other city staffers. Via the inquiry, he recently testified he believed the report made no sense" and did not represent a road safety issue.

Shortly after the report was made public in February 2019, Eisenberger emailed city human resources leaders asking for a swift resolution on the status of the continued working relationship" with Moore.

The engineering director retired in 2018 but remained on contract with the city's light-rail transit team through 2019. Moore never addressed council directly about his role in the scandal and newly released emails indicate councillors were told not to contact him directly.

An email from former risk management head John McLennan, which was already part of the public inquiry record, suggests city officials felt they needed to have Gary on our side" in the face of pending lawsuits.

Matthew Van Dongen is a transportation and environment reporter at The Spectator. mvandongen@thespec.com