How council uses its power · Town money, debt and taxes · Housing

Three CAOs, One Term

Full title: Three CAOs, One Term · Written by John Farrugia

First publishedNovember 4, 2026

Last updatedNovember 4, 2026

Records checked up toOctober 31, 2026

Full report10 pages, with every source

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Summary (about 3 min)

Full report (about 23 min)

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This report explains how the town's top staff job, the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), changed hands three times since the 2022 election, what the interim CAO's two contracts say, and how his housing was paid for.

What happened

Since the 2022 election the town has had three CAOs, and no permanent one since February 2025. Fred Tranquilli resigned in March 2023. Trisha McKibbin, hired in August 2023, was relieved of her duties on February 13, 2025, the day Council met in private for her annual review. Rob Browning has been interim CAO since February 18, 2025.
No reason has been published for either departure, and the report does not suggest one.
Mr. Browning's first offer letter is dated February 11, 2025, and he accepted it on February 12, the day before Council's private meeting. The Mayor has said he signed for the town on February 18, the night Council passed the by-law appointing him.
His current contract, released under a freedom-of-information request, has him working up to 30 hours a week, with the option to work from home. He reports to the Mayor, who approves his expenses, his time off and, in advance, his housing costs.
His first contract paid a $2,000 monthly housing allowance. In 2025 the town instead paid $2,125 a month to its own housing corporation. The Mayor told Council the extra $125 was his own decision and should have come to Council.

Why it matters to you

The CAO runs the town's staff and answers to Council as a whole. The record does not show Council approving the terms of the current contract, which puts the Mayor in charge of approving the CAO's costs, and the result of the audit of the CAO's housing expenses has not been made public. The report does not show any rule being broken; it gives a possible innocent explanation for each open question.

Words with a dotted underline: tap them to see what they mean.

What the evidence shows

Shown in recordsTown documents, minutes or other official records show this.Reported, not provenSaid in the news, by a person, or claimed in court. Not proven by records.Still unansweredA question the records do not answer yet.

Shown in recordsThe town has had three CAOs since the 2022 election and no permanent CAO since February 2025. page 4
Shown in recordsMs. McKibbin was relieved of her duties on February 13, 2025, the day Council met in closed session for her annual review. No reason has been published. page 4
Shown in recordsMr. Browning's first offer letter is dated February 11, 2025, and he accepted it on February 12, the day before that meeting. By-law 27-25 appointed him on February 18, 2025. page 5
Shown in recordsHis second contract (dated November 7, 2025) is for up to 30 hours a week with the option to work from home. He reports to the Mayor, who approves his expenses, time off and, in advance, his housing costs. It adds a retiring allowance if he is let go without cause. page 5
Shown in recordsThe Mayor signed the second contract on November 10, 2025, three weeks after ordering an MNP audit of the CAO's housing expenses (Mayoral Decision 2025-06). page 7
Shown in recordsThe town paid the Caradoc Housing Corporation $2,125 a month from June to September 2025 ($8,500 in all), one payment labelled 'CAO RENT'. On October 6, 2025 the Mayor said the extra $125 over the $2,000 allowance was his own decision and should have come to Council. page 6
Shown in recordsThe payment listings show 21 repayments to the CAO from March 2025 to September 2026, $21,082.19 in all, without saying what they were for. page 6
Shown in recordsThe 2025 salary list shows Ms. McKibbin paid $143,415.25 for a year in which she worked about six weeks. The lists show no payment of $100,000 or more to Mr. Tranquilli after he left. page 4
Shown in recordsThe town paid Waterhouse Executive Search $44,070 in 2025. Neither payment is labelled as a CAO search, and no town CAO search was found. page 7
Reported, not provenThe Mayor told local radio in 2025 that extending the interim contract 'allows the next council to pick their CAO' (machine transcript). page 4
Still unansweredNo by-law or public resolution approving the second contract's terms was found, and the audit's result has not been made public. page 7
Still unansweredBy-law 39-26 lets the CAO hire or remove any officer during the election period, while the Municipal Act requires Council to appoint officers such as the Treasurer. A new Treasurer is being hired. page 7

Key numbers

CAOs since the 2022 election3 page 4

Housing allowance in the first contract$2,000 a month page 5

Paid to the housing corporation for the CAO's rent, June to September 2025$8,500 page 6

Repayments to the CAO, March 2025 to September 2026$21,082.19 page 6

Hours a week in the current contractUp to 30 page 5

Paid to a recruitment firm in 2025$44,070 page 7

Still unanswered

Which Council decision, if any, approved the terms of the interim CAO's current contract.
What the MNP audit of the CAO's housing expenses, ordered in October 2025, found.
What the 21 repayments to the CAO ($21,082.19) were for, and the total paid for his housing.
What Ms. McKibbin's 2025 pay of $143,415.25 covers, and whether any severance was paid to former CAOs.
Whether there will be a search for a permanent CAO before the interim contract ends on December 2, 2026.

What's in the full report

In short page 2
Words used in this report page 3
1. The CAO page 4
2. The Treasurer page 6
3. Recruitment firms page 7
4. Questions the record leaves open page 7
5. What happens next page 8
References - clickable links page 8
Updates and corrections page 10

Words used in this report

CAO: Chief Administrative Officer, the town's top employee. Council hires the CAO, and the CAO runs the staff.
Interim and acting CAO: An interim CAO is hired for a set period while there is no permanent CAO. An acting CAO is a staff member filling in for a short time.
By-law and resolution: A by-law is a formal town law. A resolution is a decision Council makes by vote.
Closed session: Part of a Council meeting held in private. The law allows it for some subjects, such as matters about an identifiable employee.
Strong-mayor powers: Provincial rules, in force in Strathroy-Caradoc from May 1, 2025, that give the Mayor some powers on his own, used through written Mayoral Decisions.
Salary list: The Ontario Public Sector Salary Disclosure (the 'Sunshine List'): everyone a public employer paid $100,000 or more in a year. It counts what was paid in that calendar year, not a yearly salary rate.
Payment listings: The lists of town payments attached to Council agendas.
Machine captions: Text made automatically by computer from meeting video or radio audio. They can contain errors and were not checked by ear.
Possible innocent explanation: A reasonable, harmless reason that could explain something that looks odd. It is not a finding: Council Watch doesn't know whether it is the true reason. It is there so a gap in the record isn't read as proof of wrongdoing.

Updates and corrections

Every change to this report is listed here. An Update adds new information. A Correction fixes a mistake. A Minor change is wording, layout or branding only.

Original publication November 4, 2026
First published on November 4, 2026. Questions were sent to the Clerk on November 1, 2026; answers will be added as dated updates.

This page is a short guide to the full report. If they ever seem to differ, the full report is the record. Questions or corrections: [email protected].