Heated Hampstead council meeting ends with police removing former mayor

Former Hampstead mayor William Steinberg was removed by police during a heated council meeting after clashing with Mayor Jeremy Levi over spending and transparency.

The mayor and former mayor of Hampstead went toe to toe during Monday’s council meeting, hurling accusations of misappropriating public funds at each other in a heated exchange that ended with the latter being expelled by Montreal police (SPVM).

According to the SPVM, the town of Hamstead requested police assistance in expelling a 77-year-old man who was behaving “inappropriately or disruptively” during the meeting.

The confrontation lasted about 15 minutes, during which both men continuously interrupted each other.

“The police intervened to remove this man. There was nothing criminal and no arrest was made,” said SPVM spokesperson Julien Lévesque.

Former mayor William Steinberg called his removal “disgraceful” and said that he was looking for answers.

During the exchange, Steinberg confronted Mayor Jeremy Levi about a 40.5 per cent salary increase for councillors, totalling $207,738, and questioned expensive travel and hotel stays, including a $900-a-night stay at the Dallas Omni hotel.

“I want to be clear, I’m not saying they did anything illegal. You elect people, they can pretty much do what they want, and it’s too bad you elected them. So, 40 per cent salary increase, of course, it’s outrageous,” said Steinberg in a recent interview.

He said his wife was also kicked out of the meeting when she later “called [Levi] on a lie.

“I mean, this is not transparent. This is not honest,” said Steinberg.

Steinberg was mayor of Hampstead for 16 years until he lost to Levi in 2021.

Levi defended the salary increase, saying that Steinberg “erroneously” advised the council that the mayor’s salary has to be three times that of a councillor.

“We looked into that and that was never the case. It’s factually incorrect. I looked at the amount of work that council puts in. You know better than anybody else the amount of work that gets involved with council,” Levi told Steinberg during the exchange.

“So, we thought it was perfectly acceptable for $38,000 for a councillor to have as their salary, which is very in line with other councillors throughout the city. I don’t see why they would be required to pay it back.”

As for the Dallas hotel stay, Levi said the conference took place at the Omni, and the rate was $480 U.S. a night.

Levi then noted he looked into Steinberg’s expense reimbursements during his mandate and found the former mayor claimed over $16,000 compared to $200 so far under his own term.

Steinberg argued that Levi misrepresented his expenses by focusing only on reimbursements, some of which were purchases made on behalf of the town.

Many of the allegations Steinberg has made against Levi and the rest of the council are found in his blog, where he also mentions a January 2024 report by the Commission municipale du Québec (CMQ) into the improper use of credit cards by municipal employees and “inadequate control of the expenses incurred.”

According to the former mayor, he obtained the financial information through numerous access to information requests.

Levi has repeatedly defended Hampstead’s director general, Richard Sun, claiming he did not engage in any wrongdoing and that the council has no grounds to suspect foul play or improper conduct.

In a statement to CTV News, Levi’s office said that several of the expenses cited in the blog post were incurred during the pandemic when traditional town-wide holiday gatherings were not feasible.

“Council instead authorized smaller, department-specific meals in local restaurants to recognize staff efforts—an approach aligned with the town’s intent to maintain employee morale and support local businesses, in accordance with public health guidelines,” Hampstead spokesperson Sarah-Eve Longtin said.

Additionally, she said that only a single adjustment of 29 per cent for a salary increase was approved in July 2022.

In terms of the CMQ report, Longtin said the town has taken concrete action in response to the CMQ’s recommendations, including the implementation of a strengthened policy framework governing the use of town credit cards.

“Internal procedures regarding expense approval, documentation, and accountability have been reinforced through revised protocols and staff training,” she added.

Steinberg said that he plans on publishing a new blog post within the next few days.

“I have no plans to run. I want this council replaced by honest, ethical people who care about Hampstead,” he said.