City failed to read the room before ditching Sals

If ever there were a moment to rethink how governments award contracts, this would be it.

Under normal circumstances, governments should absolutely award contracts based on merit. Not simply the lowest bid, but the best overall proposal — one that balances price, quality, reliability and experience. That’s how you protect taxpayers and ensure public services are delivered properly.

But these are not normal circumstances. Not even close.

At a time when the United States is openly targeting Canada’s economy with punishing tariffs and an increasingly hostile “America First” agenda under President Donald Trump, it’s no longer good enough for governments to hide behind process and pretend the broader economic context doesn’t exist. It does. And it matters.

Which makes the City of Winnipeg’s decision to hand a food services contract at two municipal golf courses to Aramark — a U.S.-owned multinational — instead of a long-standing local company, not just disappointing, but misguided.

For 16 years, Salisbury House — a Winnipeg institution that’s been around for nearly a century — provided food services at Kildonan Park and Windsor Park golf courses. Golfers could grab a Nip, a hotdog, and a beer from a company that’s woven into the fabric of this city.

Then, without much warning, Sals was out and a U.S. corporate giant was in.

Salisbury House reapplied when the city issued a request for proposal for a new four-year contract. And despite its track record, local ownership, and established presence, it lost out to Aramark Canada — the domestic arm of a massive U.S.-based corporation headquartered in Philadelphia.

City officials insist the process was fair and transparent. Coun. Evan Duncan called the outcome “unfortunate,” but defended the integrity of the RFP system.

That’s all well and good. But it misses the point entirely.

A fair process doesn’t automatically produce the right outcome — especially when the criteria used to judge that process are outdated or incomplete. And right now, they are.

When a key trading partner is actively undermining your economy, governments have an obligation to respond — not just with speeches and news releases, but with concrete actions. One of the most obvious tools at their disposal is procurement.

Who governments choose to do business with matters. It always has. But in moments like this, it should matter even more.

There’s a strong case to be made that right now, Canadian governments — municipal, provincial and federal — should be explicitly weighting contracts in favour of Canadian-owned and operated businesses. Not blindly, not recklessly, but deliberately and carefully.

Every dollar spent on a local company tends to stay local longer. It supports local jobs, local suppliers, and local communities.

Salisbury House isn’t just any business. It’s a 95-year-old Winnipeg company that employs Manitobans, supports local breweries, and has a proven track record of delivering affordable food services at these golf courses.

Was the difference in bids so significant that it justified walking away from a long-standing local partner? Did the scoring system give any weight at all to local economic impact? And if it didn’t, why not?

Because if “shop local” is more than just a slogan, then those values need to be reflected in decisions like this.

Otherwise, it rings hollow.

To be clear, this isn’t about vilifying Aramark Canada. It employs thousands of Canadians, including more than 200 in Manitoba. It operates legally, competitively, and, by all accounts, successfully.

But it is ultimately owned by a U.S. parent company. And at a time when that country is taking direct aim at Canadian industries, that fact shouldn’t be brushed aside as irrelevant.

That’s what makes this decision feel so tone deaf. Governments at all levels have been urging Canadians to buy local, support local, and stand behind Canadian businesses in the face of external economic pressure.

But when it came time to act on that principle, the city blinked.

Even some elected officials seem uneasy about the outcome. Coun. Jeff Browaty is asking whether the decision can be reversed. Others, including Couns. Russ Wyatt and Brian Mayes, have weighed in. There’s clearly political discomfort — and for good reason.

Because this isn’t just about golf course concessions. It’s about whether governments are willing to align their actions with their rhetoric.

No one is suggesting Winnipeg should tear up its procurement rules or hand out contracts based solely on geography. That would be irresponsible.

But those rules aren’t carved in stone. They can be updated, refined and modernized to reflect current realities.

And right now, the reality is this: Canada is facing economic pressure from a country that used to be its most reliable partner.

If that doesn’t justify giving extra weight to local businesses — especially ones with a proven track record — it’s hard to imagine what would.

Process matters. Transparency matters. But so does judgment.

And in this case, the City of Winnipeg showed plenty of the former, and not nearly enough of the latter.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca