To the editor:
This latest episode in manoeuvring to come up with the financing for an event centre we don’t need is hopefully the last.
How desperate can the proponents be to equate the federal gas tax refund of $23M over 10 years to an up-front share of $36 million?
Included in the shaky financial plan is an assumed $36 million from the province, whose financial state is worse than Thunder Bay’s. Not only does the federal gas tax refund come up short, but it is taken from the real infrastructure needs of roads, sewers and water mains, which will require an increase in taxes and water/sewer rates.
Then there is the assumed private money for naming rights equalling $9.5 million. Is this going to be similarly stolen from the TBaytel dividend?
Is it going to be in addition to the Tbaytel dividend, requiring more debentures for Tbaytel? Tbaytel has already taken out a $10-million debenture at the same time giving the city $17 million, so why not repeat that exercise of stupidity?
Then there is Thunder Bay Hydro paying to move a substation that is apparently going to be phased out in 10 years, and that cost will be borne by its customers, basically money for nothing. How much has already been spent or is planned to be spent acquiring property and demolishing buildings for parking?
I can only hope that enough city councillors concur with Neebing Coun. Linda Rydholm, and stop this madness. When the citizens, in a survey a few years back, decided that replacing Fort William Gardens was a high priority I doubt they envisioned a $115-million (more likely $150 million by the time it is all done) arena with an unneeded and unnecessary convention centre tacked on.
If other cities, including Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, St. Catharine’s can replace their arenas for $40 million to $70 million, why are we being force-fed this single option without a competitive bidding process?
Even the traffic plan for the proposed centre is flawed; it has parking on Cumberland Street and also expects there to be four lanes of traffic moving along it.
So I hope enough councillors vote to put a halt to this at least until all of the questions in play have credible answers.
Doug Meyers,
Thunder Bay
