Kingston Regional Sports and Entertainment Centre

Typically this segment is all about sport and the people and places that make it great, and at times not so great. However something is going on in our community that while connected to sport is more about our future and the future of our children.

Late last week City Councilor Vicki Schmolka wrote a motion for City Council to consider canceling the LVEC which is currently under construction in the north block. The motion was seconded by Councilor Bill Glover. The motion is to be tabled on Tuesday evening.

Councilors Schmolka, Glover and the other member of Council who are of like mind will tell you that they have the best interests of the taxpayers in mind with this ill-advised and dangerous ploy. They say that due to a $4 million dollar over-run, (a figure that could be financed over 20 years) the project should be scraped. They are telling us that it’s in the communities’ best interest. There could be nothing further from the truth for the taxpayers of Kingston and these councilors are disingenuous in what they say.

Over the weekend I have had many conversations with people connected to the project…I have talked to people on both sides of the issues. The cold hard facts are that if the project is cancelled the City of Kingston (you the taxpayer) will have to pay anywhere from $20 to $25 Million in penalties and expenses for canceling the deal. Then there will be the lawsuits…not lawsuit but lawsuits. Firstly, Ellis Don will not doubt sue the City for an amount in my opinion that would be a minimum of $40 million. Then there are the skilled people who have moved to our community to work on the project. They will all no doubt sue the city for lost opportunity and the fact that they have in good faith taken themselves out of the job market. Let’s peg that total number at $5 million. So we are being asked to turn a $48 million project that includes a $4 million dollar over-run into a $65 to $70 million dollar Hendon Hole. I have talked to three judges this weekend and while they would not comment on the specifics of this issue, they all said that issues like these will not see the light of a courtroom. The feeling is that the City would be forced to settle and pay all legal expenses. This money is due in full immediately and can not be financed over 20 years. Because of this our taxes will sky-rocket because you the taxpayer will be forced to pay the bill. There are no reserve funds for this.

Those are the hard numbers. But there will be a cost to the City that is much less tangible and far more hideous and that is the cost of our communities’ reputation. In the early 1970’s the City chased a developer with a vision and a plan by the name of William Terron out of town. What we were left with was a reputation of a City that was closed to development and new ideas as well as an empty space of land called Block D. It took a generation to correct this mistake. But Terron’s Marina City project never got off the drawing board before he was shown the door. The LVEC is under construction so to cancel it now would do far more damage to our reputation than what happened in the 1970’s. What developer and construction company would ever want to come here to do business if the threat that the rug could be pulled out from under them at any time. It’s like Lucy pulling the football from Charlie Brown. With the increase in taxes the City’s credit rating, therefore our ability to borrow money would be adversely affected not to mention the fact that the Provincial and Federal governments would not take us seriously when we ask for assistance on future projects.

So to you the taxpayer I say that Councilor’s Schmolka and Glover are not our saviors and do not have the best interest of the community at heart. They have personal political agendas that they want to see come to fruition. This issue was dealt with during last November’s election and they lost. It is amazing to me that they would have their political careers defined by an issue so early on as members of council. Where is their concern about the cost over-run on the Grand Theatre…or on the Ravensview project…or the Police Station? No, they do not have our best interests at heart, they have a score to settle with Mayor Harvey Rosen and they want us to pay for it in dollars and reputation. They want our children and their children to pay to settle a score for generations to come.

Let’s be a city where ideas come to flourish and is open for business. Not a community that has an economy that is based mainly on institutions for our prosperity. This very dangerous move has probably already cost us any chance to be short listed for the Memorial Cup which is inexcusable enough…don’t let them take our future from us as well.