A citizen member of the TTC board has abruptly resigned.
Maureen Adamson sent board chair Josh Colle her resignation by email on Monday, the Star has learned, after taking a job as Ontario’s deputy minister of tourism, culture, and sport.
Her resignation is effective immediately, said Colle. Her term was to end on Dec. 31, 2016, and Colle said he hoped to appoint a replacement as soon as possible.
In an interview, Adamson told the Star that she decided to leave the board so that she could devote herself to her role in the ministry, which she began on Apr. 11. Although she said a provincial official determined that her serving on the board while also being a deputy minister would pose no conflict of interest, Adamson was concerned about the perception of dual loyalties.
“I would rather be in a position to completely do my job as deputy 100 per cent, than to have to recuse myself from any matters that could be integral to the province,” she said.
Adamson, the former chief administrative officer for Women’s College Hospital, was one of four citizen members of the 11-member board; the seven other commissioners are city councillors. She was also one of only two women on the body, and her resignation leaves Councillor Shelley Carroll as the sole female member.
Adamson, who served as vice-chair of the transit agency from 2012 to early 2015, wasn’t initially recommended by the city’s civic appointments committee for reappointment to the board in May 2015. But councillors
added her name to the list after the Star reported on the lack of diversity in the committee’s initial picks, who were all men.
Asked Tuesday if she hoped a woman would take her place on the commission, Adamson said “100 per cent.”
“I think anyone who knows anything about good governance knows that skills are extremely important and gender balance and diversity are equally as important,” she said.
“Let’s face it, if you look at the composition of the board right now, it is largely middle aged white males and Shelley Carroll and myself. So there’s a gap.”
Citizen board members receive compensation of $5,000 a year, plus a $450 per diem for attending each board meeting.