Former councillor writes check for $2,115.24 to end credit card dispute
Winnipeg Free Press
Tuesday, January 17th, 2006
By Bartley Kives
GARTH Steek has written the city a cheque for $2,115.24, ending a seven-month-old dispute over charges on his city credit card.
The former River Heights councillor has repaid the city for personal gas, retail and restaurant bills rung up during his final months in office in 2004, said Coun. Jae Eadie, chair of the secretariat, the council committee that governs rules and regulations.
Steek had been the subject of a probe since July, when he could not account for almost $9,000 in credit-card spending.
At the time, he said all his expenses were legitimate and that he left the receipts on his desk the day he left city hall.
The former councillor has since provided documentation for almost $7,000 of that spending and agreed to pay back the rest after meeting with city solicitor Mark O'Neil.
The Steek affair officially ended yesterday when the secretariat formally approved the agreement.
"We've closed the file on the Garth Steek case," Eadie.
The personal expenses on Steek's credit card included a $226.86 bill from Sunglass Hut, $81.32 to retrieve a vehicle from Dr. Hook Towing, $7.27 at Decanters restaurant and almost $1,200 at the Esso station at Corydon Avenue and Waterloo Street.
The city is satisfied all the other bills were legitimate. City clerk Richard Kachur said he was happy to see the matter resolved for good.
"I spent a lot of time on this file," Kachur said
Steek could not be reached for comment. The former councillor resigned his seat in 2004 to run for mayor and finished fifth in the race won by Sam Katz.
Last week, Steek pleaded guilty in court to failing to file an audited financial return for his run for mayor in 2004. He was fined $1,155.
Steek is now president of the Manitoba Home Builders Association.
bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca