Charlottetown's top bureaucrat fires another deputy CAO

The City of Charlottetown has terminated the employment of deputy chief administrative officer Tina Lococo, CBC News has learned.

Council members heard about the departure in an April 8 email from chief administrative officer Peter Kelly. 

"I'm writing to announce the termination of Tina Lococo, effective immediately," Kelly wrote in the email.

He said he had told Lococo her employment with the city would not continue, adding he was "not at liberty to discuss specifics" with members of council.

Kelly also advised council members in the email not to speak to the media about the dismissal.

But privately, several councillors expressed some level of shock or concern to CBC News at the fact Kelly has parted ways with another deputy who seemed well-qualified for the position, three years after the previous deputy CAO, Scott Messervey, was fired.

Messervey is a chartered accountant who had previously worked with the office of P.E.I.'s auditor general. 

According to her LinkedIn profile, Lococo has a law degree from Dalhousie University, and previously served as executive director of corporate services and solicitor with the town of Midland, Ont.

Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown told CBC News that under the Municipal Government Act, the hiring and firing of all staff falls within the purview of the city's CAO.

Under the same legislation, city council is responsible for decisions on hiring a CAO and terminating that person's employment if necessary.

On Tuesday, Brown directed CBC News to contact the city's communications team to arrange an interview with him. He later declined to provide an interview at all.

Kelly also declined an interview request, citing Lococo's departure as a human resources matter.

A number of Charlottetown councillors told CBC that on-staff expertise in accounting and legal matters — the kind of expertise Messervey and Lococo had — provides an additional level of oversight for city operations.

But none was prepared to speak on the record, citing investigations and sanctions levied by the majority of councillors against some of their counterparts in recent years.