Calgary taxpayers have forked more than a hundred thousand dollars in legal fees to defend Councillor Druh Farrel in a lawsuit from a Calgary businessman..And now, Mike Terringo is also asking for Farrell to be held in contempt of court for not producing required evidence to him..A total $51,000 of that was just for one morning session in court. The total so far is more than $158,000..Freedom of Information documents obtained by the Western Standard show the city has been billed $51,560.24 to Calgary law firm Bennett Jones LLP for one appearance on behalf of Farrell..That’s some of the money spent in Farrell’s defence of a lawsuit filed by Mike Terrigno who claimed the councillor had a “pecuniary interest” in a 2017 development he had proposed less then a block away from where she lives in Kensington.. Screen-Shot-2021-02-09-at-1.07.19-PMFreedom of information document shows costs of Farrell’s legal bills .The project ended up being defeated but Terrigno filed a lawsuit, alleging that the Ward 7 councillor manipulated the vote by discrediting the company. It asked for Farrell’s removal from office and $200,000 in damages. A second claim was filed within the same lawsuit accusing Farrell of defamation by allegedly calling Terrigno an Italian racial stereotype..The lawsuit had demanded Farrell be removed from council and be banned from running in the 2017 election. That motion was later dropped and was the basis of the sole Bennett Jones appearance..Terrigno Investments had applied to build a 10-storey building at the corner of Kensington Rd. and 10 St. N.W., on the site where the Osteria de Medici restaurant they owned once stood..Terrigno’s lawyers have also filed a contempt of court procedure claiming Farrell has withheld court-demanded evidence from emails between her and the Hillhurst Sunnyside Community Association..In an interview with the Western Standard, Terrigno said the court proceedings have been stalled by the COVID-19 pandemic but he expects to return to court within the next 60 days..The Western Standard has reached out to Farrell for comment but hasn’t heard back..It comes the same day after the Western Standard reported Terringo is suing Mayor Naheed Nenshi for $190,000, accusing him of describing him using Italian racial stereotypes..The lawsuit comes six years after Nenshi was ordered to pay close to $300,000 in city legal bills, after allegedly calling Calgary businessman Cal Wenzel a mobster..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com.TWITTER: Twitter.com/nobby7694
