Plans to put a “megamall” in the Port Lands appear dead, but
questions linger about how the proposal sprang to life in the first
place.
Much of the public opposition to the attractions-based waterfront vision championed by Councillor Doug Ford was rooted in concerns about its origin, which has never been fully explained.
The city’s lobbyist registration records reveal that real estate consultant Tony Grossi, acting for Australian shopping centre giant Westfield Group, met May 12 with Doug Ford; Mayor Rob Ford’s chief of staff, Amir Remtulla; and Councillor Michael Thompson.
The topic is listed as “Preliminary discussions regarding Toronto Port Land’s and City’s vision for waterfront revitalization and Client’s view of its development potential.”
Grossi, a former chief operating officer of Cadillac Fairview, a Canadian mall owner with holdings that include the Eaton Centre, then met again with Doug Ford alone on July 12, the records suggest.
Thompson, the city’s economic development chair and a close ally of the Fords, couldn’t say who initiated the meeting. He recalled it as Grossi wanting to introduce Westfield to the mayor’s office and “talking to folks in terms of what the city was going to do with the waterfront.”
“They have an office in Los Angeles and said they were scouting out building opportunities in Canada . . . and said, as I recall, ‘We have a lot of American retailers looking at Canada as viable.’”
Thompson said he had to leave the meeting early. He had no knowledge of the follow-up meeting between Grossi and Doug Ford.
Asked why Councillor Ford was at the first meeting, Thompson laughed and said: “Doug can be wherever he wants — he’s the mayor’s brother — quite truthfully.”
Neither Doug Ford nor Remtulla answered inquiries from the Star about the meetings. Approached at a conference Wednesday, Grossi refused to discuss the meetings with the Star’s Dana Flavelle.
Few knew an alternate Port Lands plan was brewing until Aug. 30, when Doug Ford outlined a detailed vision on CBC Radio, saying it had been presented to about 15 people and “everyone’s jaw just dropped.”
That presentation apparently happened at the office of the city’s Toronto Port Lands Co., which normally does leasing and soil remediation but spent $25,000 for the video and other work on the now-shelved plan.
Asked Wednesday who initiated that work when council only last year approved Waterfront Toronto’s plan, TPLC CEO Michael Kraljevic would only say “it came from our board.”
The board is chaired by Mike Williams, the city’s general manager of economic development. Williams could not be reached Wednesday.
Origin
Source: Toronto Star
Much of the public opposition to the attractions-based waterfront vision championed by Councillor Doug Ford was rooted in concerns about its origin, which has never been fully explained.
The city’s lobbyist registration records reveal that real estate consultant Tony Grossi, acting for Australian shopping centre giant Westfield Group, met May 12 with Doug Ford; Mayor Rob Ford’s chief of staff, Amir Remtulla; and Councillor Michael Thompson.
The topic is listed as “Preliminary discussions regarding Toronto Port Land’s and City’s vision for waterfront revitalization and Client’s view of its development potential.”
Grossi, a former chief operating officer of Cadillac Fairview, a Canadian mall owner with holdings that include the Eaton Centre, then met again with Doug Ford alone on July 12, the records suggest.
Thompson, the city’s economic development chair and a close ally of the Fords, couldn’t say who initiated the meeting. He recalled it as Grossi wanting to introduce Westfield to the mayor’s office and “talking to folks in terms of what the city was going to do with the waterfront.”
“They have an office in Los Angeles and said they were scouting out building opportunities in Canada . . . and said, as I recall, ‘We have a lot of American retailers looking at Canada as viable.’”
Thompson said he had to leave the meeting early. He had no knowledge of the follow-up meeting between Grossi and Doug Ford.
Asked why Councillor Ford was at the first meeting, Thompson laughed and said: “Doug can be wherever he wants — he’s the mayor’s brother — quite truthfully.”
Neither Doug Ford nor Remtulla answered inquiries from the Star about the meetings. Approached at a conference Wednesday, Grossi refused to discuss the meetings with the Star’s Dana Flavelle.
Few knew an alternate Port Lands plan was brewing until Aug. 30, when Doug Ford outlined a detailed vision on CBC Radio, saying it had been presented to about 15 people and “everyone’s jaw just dropped.”
That presentation apparently happened at the office of the city’s Toronto Port Lands Co., which normally does leasing and soil remediation but spent $25,000 for the video and other work on the now-shelved plan.
Asked Wednesday who initiated that work when council only last year approved Waterfront Toronto’s plan, TPLC CEO Michael Kraljevic would only say “it came from our board.”
The board is chaired by Mike Williams, the city’s general manager of economic development. Williams could not be reached Wednesday.
Origin
Source: Toronto Star
No comments:
Post a Comment