Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi walks in Calgary on Sept. 16, 2015.Chris Bolin/The Globe and Mail
Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi says a debt owing to the city over a defamation lawsuit has been settled.
Nenshi said enough funds have been raised to pay back a $300,000 legal bill covered by the city in the suit levelled at Nenshi by Shane Homes developer Cal Wenzel.
Wenzel sued in 2013, claiming Nenshi had defamed him when he compared the developer to a character in the Godfather movies during a radio interview.
The pair settled the lawsuit out of court in December 2015, Nenshi apologized, and the city paid for the costs because of a policy in place regarding legal proceedings related to city personnel.
At the time, Nenshi said he always wanted to pay the costs out of his own pocket but is glad for the support in repaying the amount.
Nenshi said he followed the advice of an ethics advisor and was not involved in the fundraising, and has only now learned the names of the donors.
"I am very humbled that so many people came forward with small gifts and large and from what I've heard," he said. "I've been able to hear a little bit of what the donors said, is that they felt this was really important to preserve democracy."
A third party committee was created to gather funds to cover the costs after the mayor ultimately retracted his comments.