WINNIPEG — The head of Winnipeg’s business community is asking Mayor Brian Bowman to apologize to Winnipeg Jets owner Mark Chipman in his handling of the CentreVenture development downtown.
WATCH: Chamber of Commerce president Dave Angus criticizes Mayor Brian Bowman
“I think the mayor should apologize for this situation and should take responsibility for fixing it,” chamber of commerce president Dave Angus says.
“This has been a debacle and this is not how we do things in Winnipeg,” Angus told the Morning News on Global Winnipeg Thursday morning. “We do things collaboratively. We work together in the best interest of our citizens in an environment of trust and respect and confidence, and that has not been the tone through this process.”
Bowman has criticized downtown development agency CentreVenture’s handling of the redevelopment of the Winnipeg convention centre and its approach to the redevelopment of the former Carlton Inn site at 220 Carlton St., which it owns. Bowman has complained about a lack of transparency and secrecy around plans with True North Sports and Entertainment to create a major development on the site, saying there must be an open call for proposals for the site. True North owns the Jets and the MTS Centre and is a Winnipeg promoter.
READ MORE: Timeline: Conditional offer with TNSE for 220 Carlton
Mark Chipman, head of True North, fired back at a rare event where he spoke to the media Wednesday. The proposed development has been put on hold, Chipman said, accusing the mayor of creating an environment of mistrust.
“We’ve been living for the past two weeks having been accused of doing something wrong,” Chipman said at a news conference.
READ MORE: True North fires back at mayor over controversial Carlton Inn site
Bowman told CJOB News on Thursday morning that he has no issue with True North and hasn’t criticized its role in the Carlton Street plans. He also repeated that he hasn’t been given access to the agreement between True North and CentreVenture.
“At no time have I made any effort to discredit True North or Mark Chipman,” Bowman said.
Angus told Global News Bowman hasn’t taken time to learn what CentreVenture does and understand its processes, and Chipman had to respond to Bowman’s allegations.
“He is a very proud man and he deserves to be, and he has not been treated well through this process,” Angus said. “This is a game-changer project for the city. This is one that we have to find a way to make happen, and it is being led by an organization that has a history of game changers in Winnipeg.”
READ MORE: CentreVenture forced to back down on True North development deal
Angus is also upset about how downtown development agency CentreVenture has been characterized and pointed to the organization as the reason for a revitalization in Winnipeg’s core over the past 15 years. The volunteers on the CentreVenture board are there because they believe in the city, Angus said.
“They deserve better through this process,” he said.
Angus wants the mayor and council to take more time to understand what CentreVenture is, what it does and why it operates that way.
“I have huge concerns. The reality is the business community … (needs) to trust the system, and you need to make sure that your interests are being protected,” he said. “My concern is we’re shaking the confidence of the business community.”
READ MORE: Winnipeg mayor slams “not cool” hotel development plan
University of Winnipeg urban affairs Prof. Jino Distasio agreed that investors may be discouraged by the dispute between the mayor, CentreVenture and True North Sports and Entertainment.
WATCH: Winnipeg urban affairs expert talks about True North’s proposed development
“Winnipeg came out of a period of very significant challenge with respect to attracting development into the downtown. The last 10 years, we’ve turned that around, and now investors are looking at Winnipeg as being a great place. This kind of sends a mixed signal right now that maybe development is going to be looked at in a different way,” Distasio said on the Morning News Thursday.
“I think developers are going to take a bit of a pause, just like Mr. Chipman is, to rethink how we support development in this community. Everybody wants it done right, but I think in the end, this is a project that from the getgo was a solid project.”
Many people involved in downtown development knew this project was in the works, though they might not have known about the inclusion of 220 Carlton St., Distasio said.
The project, which was to include residential and retail space, a public plaza and a hotel, is exactly what Winnipeg’s downtown needs, he said.
“The type of development we want to see in downtown now is mixed use. We want to see multiple users experiencing that space coming downtown, really enjoying the place, and having that gathering part is critical now for downtown.”
WATCH: Head of True North fires back at Winnipeg mayor (raw video from Wednesday news conference)
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