Rocky View County Council has voted to move forward with an attempt to disqualify a fellow councillor.

Samanntha Wright, councillor for division 8 (Bearspaw), is accused of violating the pecuniary interest rules of the Municipal Government Act.

Section 172 of the Act relates to the disclosure of pecuniary (monetary) interests and under the rules, councillors are not supposed to be involved in discussions or decisions that may impact them financially.

Rocky View County (RVC) council believes Wright violated the rules when she participated in public hearings, discussions, and votes in relation to a property immediately adjacent to land owned by Wright and her husband.

On January 8, 2019, a conceptual scheme and land-use re-designation for the Bearspaw Heights development was up for council discussion. It's alleged Wright was involved in those discussions, and again when further discussions and a vote on land subdivision for the property was held on September 24, 2019.

In a news release, RVC states it believes Wright should have recused herself from all discussions and decisions on the matter as there is a clear indication of pecuniary interest due to the adjacency of the property.

Should a councillor violate Section 172 of the MGA, they are automatically disqualified and are required to resign.

However, Wright refused to resign, saying she did her due diligence, and claims she does not have a pecuniary interest in the matter.

"I do not own my neighbour's property, and I do not stand to gain or lose anything from a decision on that land any more than those in the surrounding community. Meaning my decision is one that impacts the majority of our community, and is therefore a common interest, which is not grounds for pecuniary interest," says Wright.

At the Jan. 14 RVC council meeting, Wright read out a letter from her lawyers that stated there is no evidence that she had a financial interest in the matter and that she did nothing wrong or inappropriate.

"Just because Councillor Wright's land is close to neighbouring lands does not mean she automatically has a pecuniary interest. Such inferences cannot be drawn without some evidence to support them," read Wright.

"We advise Rocky View County Council that our client intends to continue to do her best to represent the people who elected her in 2017 and to vigorously defend any court application which is brought against her and will be seeking costs against Rocky View County in defending said application," Wright read aloud before urging the rest of Council not to move ahead with the motion. 

Six of the nine RVC councillors voted in favour of applying to the Court of Queen's Bench to have Wright removed. Those opposed were councillors Wright, Crystal Kissel, and Kevin Hanson.

There is no timeline for when the Court of Queen's Bench may rule on the matter.

In the meantime, Wright will continue to serve as a councillor for Rocky View County.