At Monday's council meeting, Coun. Wayne Thomson congratulated fellow Coun. Carolynn Ioannoni for her continued support to save pediatrics at the Greater Niagara General Hospital.

However, he felt differently when it came to Mayor Ted Salci's efforts, saying he failed to show leadership throughout the evening meeting, which brought out a few hundred people, compared to an estimated 5,000 who attended a similar meeting in Fort Erie.

According to Thomson, Salci steered away from the focus of the issue, which he said was that a central hospital is better suited in Niagara Falls, not St. Catharines.

"In no area of your comments did you mention that the site is of serious interest to this community and to this council," said Thomson during an open meeting in council chambers.

Salci sat silently and did not comment on Thomson's remarks.

Thompson went on to add that the moderation of the meeting was particularly appalling. Residents were given three minutes to make comments or ask questions of Dr. Jack Kitts, the man tasked with reviewing the NHS's restructuring plan, which includes moving many core services from other hospitals into a new St. Catharines site.

Many local physicians who attended the meeting were cut off mid-sentence, with their microphones turned off and a moderator asking them to return to their seats.

"I was extremely disappointed," said Thomson. "These are doctors who are concerned about the hospital. It was embarrassing."

Ioannoni was also displeased with the outcome of Friday's meeting, saying Kitts' "mind was already made up" over the hospital plan before visiting Niagara Falls. She is calling on the province to speak up about the hospital changes.

"Where is the ministry?" said Ioannoni. "We've been told to step back and stop complaining. We can't step back. We can't stop complaining, because when we do we'll all be driving our kids ... to St. Catharines for an emergency."