A day before feedback from public consultations on the Lansdowne Partnership Plan will be released, one councillor is claiming city staff withheld crucial information that could have significantly impacted how council viewed the proposal.
Yesterday, Capital Ward Coun. Clive Doucet questioned why an unfavourable analysis of the Lansdowne Plan written by George Dark of Urban Strategies Inc., and delivered to the city on July 16, was not made public until recently, along with letters from the Canadian Football League.
Doucet suggested the proposal to redevelop the park was a backroom deal involving Mayor Larry O’Brien and a handful of councillors.
“It’s wrong. We should have had those documents (instead of) getting it two weeks after you’ve had months and months of public debate founded on a lack of information,” said Doucet.
“Information necessary to the public debate has been denied us consistently over a long period of time.”
Mayor Larry O’Brien shrugged off Doucet’s assertions on non-transparency as being false.
“I am confident that our city manager and staff have negotiated a deal that is in the very best interests of both the taxpayer and the Lansdowne site,” he said. “It’s time to return this neglected part of our city to its former glory.”
Orleans Coun. Bob Monette insisted the negotiations on Lansdowne have been completely “above-board” and no private deals and meetings happened prior to the proposal being made public.
“I sat down after the proposal was put in place … I wanted to know more about the proposal. I find it astonishing that Coun. Doucet would not have asked for a meeting with the city manager or the mayor, when it’s in his own ward,” said Monette.
“I think Clive Doucet is starting to look more and more like Inspector Clouseau of the Glebe.
I’m starting to envision him walking down the halls at night, with a magnifying glass to see what he can uncover.”
