Mayor concerned by $5M judgment awarded to developer

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This article was published 11/07/2023 (821 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham said there are multiple “concerning” elements in a court ruling that ordered the city to pay a local developer $5 million for project delays and blamed a city councillor for interfering with the process.

Last week, Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Justice Shauna McCarthy found former chief planner Braden Smith and senior city planner Michael Robinson liable for “misfeasance in public office,” ruling they deliberately delayed progress on the Fulton Grove development at the former Parker lands.

While Coun. John Orlikow (River Heights- Fort Garry) was not named as a defendant in the legal challenge, McCarthy wrote that he interfered with the approval process.

“The evidence is also clear, in my view, that the impetus and motivation for this deliberate interference with the plaintiffs’ applications were primarily the wishes and demands of the area councillor, and the desire of some public servants to accommodate those wishes,” wrote McCarthy.

The judgment finds the city “vicariously liable” for the delay.

Orlikow declined a request for comment on Tuesday, stating he’s still reviewing the decision.

During a Tuesday media availability, the mayor was asked to respond to the judge’s statements about the councillor.

“I did read the entire judgment, all 92 pages of it. What I read was concerning but I know that right now our legal department is reviewing the ruling. And because it’s still a legal matter, beyond that I’m not going to really say anything further. But (in) what I read… there (were) several things that were concerning,” said Gillingham.

The mayor confirmed he has spoken to Orlikow since the ruling was released but did not share details about their conversation.

“What’s important, also, was Coun. Orlikow was not a defendant in the case, so he didn’t have… his opportunity… to speak to the case either. Beyond that, the legal team is looking at this and we’ll get a recommendation from our staff, as far as next steps,” said Gillingham.

When asked if the city will take any action to address the findings or alter any procedures on how councillors communicate with city staff on developments, the mayor said he will wait to allow a staff review of the judgment and possible recommendations that could follow.

The court decision relates to a long-standing allegation from Andrew Marquess, owner of Gem Equities, that some city officials abused their public positions to stall progress on his Fulton Grove development, which will add 1,918 housing units on 47 acres of south Winnipeg land surrounded by CN Railway Rivers line and the southwest rapid transitway.

The legal decision notes Gem Equities submitted a draft secondary plan to develop Parker lands in spring 2014. Council did not give final approval to the proposal until November 2020, after the developer obtained a court order that required council to consider the project.

The judge concluded Smith directed city planners to slow down the development approval process, and replaced one planner on the project who refused to do so. The judge also found Robinson delayed the project from being considered by a city council committee.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter

Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.

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