High political IQ missing in mayor’s camp

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/02/2015 (3924 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In this world, there are various and sundry forms of smart.

There is book-smart, which refers to people who are well-studied and who retain large amounts of knowledge. There is street smart, a nod to people who gain expertise and knowledge through their personal experience.

And then there is political-smart. This describes a person who can navigate the uncertain, often absurd world of politics without suffering career-ending, self-inflicted wounds.

A person with a high political IQ has the intuition of a stock-market guru and the negotiation skills of a car salesman. And the quiet confidence to wield power without being obvious about it.

Right now, the political IQ of Mayor Brian Bowman, and Jason Fuith, his chief of staff, are up for debate. All because of Bowman’s improbable war of words with CentreVenture, the city’s downtown-development agency, and True North Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Winnipeg Jets and a big player in the downtown-development sector.

Bowman accused CentreVenture and True North of forging an illicit deal to develop 220 Carlton St., an empty lot located between the MTS Centre and an expanded RBC Convention Centre. CentreVenture, using city money, purchased the land in 2012 to lure a luxury hotel to the site. The hotel was key to helping the convention centre attract bigger conventions and to help generate tax revenue to pay for the expansion.

The mayor believes True North either jumped the queue or used its cachet to secure an option on the land. Furthermore, that details of this deal were deliberately kept from him.

Bowman’s assertions blew up in his face on Wednesday, when True North chairman Mark Chipman held a remarkable, ruthless news conference to defend his company. In less than an hour, Chipman surgically dismantled Bowman’s concerns, making the case it was the mayor who had been dishonest about how much he knew of the True North project.

When you look at the long history of this plot of land, it’s easy to see there was no patronage or favouritism. It is true Chipman first learned of the availability of the land while serving on the CentreVenture board, but all indications are he recused himself from any official business involving 220 Carlton.

More importantly, the chronology shows that by the time True North made a pitch for the land, it had been on the open market for nearly three years, during which time there were no viable offers. That land was a liability for CentreVenture, and the city provided the money to purchase it. Difficult to develop because of the price (more than $6 million) and because the city demanded it only be used for a hotel development.

The record shows despite their repeated claims, Bowman and Fuith got details of the project and True North’s plans several times, in several difference contexts. This makes it hard to understand what is driving Bowman to take such a risky tack with Chipman.

Why, for example, would Bowman not meet again with Chipman to discuss the project? Why would the mayor deny receiving details of the project and option, when officials from True North and CentreVenture have been able to prove conclusively those details were provided to Bowman and his staff?

All this brings us back to the topic of political IQ. Bowman has little political experience. That was, to be honest, a selling point for voters tired of the Sam Katz era of wink-and-a-nod politics. Fuith, an engineer, has even less political experience than his boss.

The rest of Bowman’s political staff includes some quality folks left over from the Katz years and new faces that come directly from his campaign team. Some of them have political experience, and some don’t.

Even Katz surrounded himself with veteran political operatives such as Brian Kelcey and Bonnie Staples-Lyon. And Katz, for all his ethical shortcomings, boasted a high political IQ, even if he had trouble using his powers for good.

Looking back at the events of the past few weeks, and Bowman’s reaction, it’s hard to identify his overarching strategy. In terminating the option and defaming True North, Bowman has left the city open to a possible lawsuit. True North has indicated no interest in pursuing litigation, but the city remains vulnerable to future action.

This was not a situation that needed to end in humiliation and disgrace. Battle-tested political operatives would have known more fact-finding, and less hyperbole, could have kept the lid on this situation. Chipman was, at one time, a political ally of the mayor. CentreVenture is a valuable city agency. There is no good reason to turn those people into political enemies.

The fact neither Bowman nor his senior staff saw that opportunity is hard to explain, other than to conclude this is becoming a painful lesson in the value of political IQ and evidence of the deficit in the mayor’s office.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca