To avoid the perception of a conflict of interest, engineering consulting firm Delcan has withdrawn from a transportation-impact study for the Lansdowne Partnership Plan.
City staff had recommended that engineering consultants Delcan and McCormick Rankin conduct the study together.
Since the city has standing offers with both firms and both are very well acquainted with Ottawa, this would have been the most economical and efficient option.
Since the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group hired Delcan to work with the city to develop a transportation strategy for the redevelopment proposal, there were concerns the firm would be in a conflict of interest if asked to conduct a transportation impact analysis of the project.
After nearly a dozen public delegations expressed that concern to a joint meeting of the transit and transportation committees, yesterday, Delcan vice-president Ron Jack withdrew the firm’s services.
“We just felt that everyone would have more comfort, from an optics perspective, if we weren’t involved,” said Jack. “It’s nothing to do with us. It’s just the circumstance. Let’s just remove that circumstance and allow this to move forward as smoothly as it can.”
City manager Kent Kirkpatrick will be choosing another firm to conduct the study.
