621 days later, NCC handed LeBreton developers 48-hour deadline to sign arena deal
Kelly Egan, Ottawa Citizen
Updated: October 10, 2018
There is an unwelcome — indefensible, actually — cone of silence over the progress of planning for LeBreton Flats, possibly the biggest city-building exercise some of us will ever live through.
(Rivalled only by the communications Kremlin around LRT, or Long Rumoured Train, where the only real news is “not this year, stupid.”)
So we’ll parse any LeBreton update we can find.
In a response to a request under access laws, the National Capital Commission has released an interesting letter sent to the RendezVous LeBreton Group — with Trinity Development Group boss John Ruddy and Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk — as principals.
The timing here is important. RendezVous was announced as the preferred proponent on April 28, 2016. The letter from the NCC is written 621 days later.
In-between, the Crown corporation and private partnership were negotiating the terms of an agreement in principle for a massive $4-billion project. So, it was signed, sealed, delivered by January 2018, surely? Oh, bless your sunny optimism.
In a letter dated Jan. 8, NCC chief executive Mark Kristmanson wrote to both parties giving them a 48-hour deadline to sign and return the “term sheet” that would be the basis for the final agreement, still being worked on.
“I respectively request that you please return three (3) executed copies of the Term Sheet by no later than 12 noon on Wednesday, January 10, 2018 (the “Deadline”). We note that we have already received a counterpart of the Term Sheet signed by Mr. Ruddy on behalf of Trinity Development Group Inc.”
The word Deadline, indeed, was in bold.
He goes on to explain that Jan. 10 is a drop-dead date because the full board of the NCC was meeting on Jan. 24 and 25 and, according to its internal bylaws, commissioners had to be given materials several days in advance of the staff briefing. Not only that, but the “memorandum of understanding” to work out these very terms had run out on Dec. 31, 2017.
But, after nearly two years of discussion, a couple of weeks here or there didn’t matter? Kristmanson made it plain this was not a gentle suggestion but a demand.
“If, however, RLG does not return a fully executed copy of the Term Sheet prior to the Deadline, the briefing materials will serve to advise the Board that the NCC was unable to reach agreement with RLG on the key business issues that would be necessary to pursue any further engagement with RLG in connection with the redevelopment of LeBreton Flats, and to consider, evaluate and pursue next steps in the procurement process.”
If there was any doubt, the closing paragraph of the three-page letter underlines the point with the final clause “but if RLG is not prepared to execute and deliver the Term Sheet by the Deadline, I am equally prepared to recommend alternative options to our Board for consideration.”
Taken in isolation, the letter might be dismissed as nothing. The parties did sign, after all. (Indeed, the NCC is calling the letter “routine communication.”)
So what’s the big deal? Well, fill in the picture a little bit.
In January 2017, Senators president and CEO Cyril Leeder — the team’s longest-serving, best-liked executive — was suddenly let go, with the club in early negotiations with the NCC. He is replaced by Tom Anselmi, who arrives with the big rep from Toronto’s Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, including steering the building of the Air Canada Centre.
With LeBreton in the pipeline, a perfect match? Not really. On Feb. 9, 2018, not two weeks after the NCC announced an agreement in principle with RLG, Anselmi is let go, only 13 months into the job. Now comes June, and the Senators hire as chief operating officer Nicolas Ruszkowski, a former hospital vice-president and nice guy who has never worked for a professional sports franchise.
And, finally, to complete our trip down memory lane: On Sept. 12, the Senators invited a number of media to talk about their on-ice rebuild. Melnyk made himself scarce but did answer one question from senior editor Christina Spencer about LeBreton.
“Things change every day,” he said. “We do have concerns that we’ve expressed. These are very, very, very serious concerns. I don’t want to overstate or understate, but they are mission-critical that we resolve them.”
We know some things are happening. The city of Ottawa has received applications for both official plan and zoning amendments for LeBreton and planners are now reviewing them before a public release.
But think of it: Sept. 12, the date of Melnyk’s last update on L’Affaire LeBreton, is more than 28 months after RLG was chosen as the preferred proponent. How can this not be locked, loaded and ready to launch?
To contact Kelly Egan, please call 613-726-5896 or email
kegan@postmedia.com.
Twitter.com/kellyegancolumn
https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/co...ign-arena-deal
Prev
Linear Mode
