In her latest annual report on the City of Laval’s overall management and financial practices, municipal auditor-general France Lessard says the city’s plan to develop “active mobility” to encourage the use of bicycles and walking paths lacks organization and proper governance to ensure that is moves forward with success.
“In spite of the continuous development of bicycling and pedestrian networks over the past few years, reaching the plan’s goals should involve the adoption of an approach that is more structured in order to develop, improve and maintain the active transport infrastructures,” said Lessard, who presented the report to Laval city council last month.
More planning needed
Regarding the city’s policy in recent years for acquiring and building up a fleet of “light” vehicles (electric, hybrid and regular fuel-efficient), Lessard said the city’s needs require a revision in order to optimize planning.
“Even though a 10-year plan was put into place, no target was established for the maintenance of the fleet,” said Lessard, while adding that organization of activities for the management of the vehicles “could be optimized, identification of needs could be improved, and accountability could be improved.”
“This report bears witness to our ongoing willingness to contribution to a more rigorous and transparent municipal management focused on continuous improvement,” Lessard said regarding the purpose of her report.
Improve governance, she says
“The conclusions and recommendations we arrived at aim to support the members of the municipal council and the administration in their decision, in the interests of all the citizens of Laval,” she added.
Regarding the maintenance of the city’s water purification infrastructure, Lessard said improvements would also be necessary, most notably as regards data, planning and accountability. Her report recommended better governance methods at the city-owned Place Bell, as well as at the Cité de la culture et du sport de Laval (CCSL).
Efforts must continue, says Lessard
Following up on the city administration’s compliance with recommendations Lessard made in previous reports, she said that 83 per cent of the most recent recommendations were implemented, compared to 61 per cent the previous year.
“The administration is progressing in a satisfactory manner, but must keep up its efforts in order to bring its actions to a final stage,” said Lessard.
“The office of the auditor-general salutes the commitment of the administration and encourages it to keep going along this route,” she added.
On the city’s finances
In addition to her own report, the city’s auditor-general also worked collaboratively with an external auditor on a separate report, this one dealing with the consolidated finances of the city for the period ending December 31, 2024.
According to the auditor-general, an opinion “under reserve” was issued regarding the city’s financial situation. Regarding previous recommendations on the city’s finances, Lessard’s report stated, “The Bureau carried out the followup to previous recommendations for the financial audit and issued two new recommendations aimed at improving the accounting practices at the Financial Services for the exercise ending December 31, 2024.”
