Murray Wood: Saskatchewan's auditor should go white elephant hunting
Murray Wood says the provincial auditor found the Global Transportation Hub could have helped Regina avoid giving Costco...
Regina’s mayor agrees there should be better collaboration between the city and province regarding the Global Transportation Hub (GTH).
The provincial auditor reported better communication could have saved the city from having to provide Costco with a subsidy of more than $6 million.
Read more:
- Regina’s $6.8M subsidy to Costco could have been avoided, says auditor
- Second Costco to stay in Regina city limits for $6.7 million
- GTH president says hub wasn’t competing with city on Costco land deal
“Since then, we have been working – and actually, some of the points the auditor made – we have been working with the GTH to establish those lines of communication that were highlighted, that were missing in that instance,” Mayor Chad Bachynski said during an appearance on the Evan Bray Show.
Listen here for the full interview:
The site of the future Costco location is in the Westerra neighbourhood along Dewdney Avenue. (980 CJME file photo)
The city had already approved a site in the Westerra neighbourhood, located at Dewdney Avenue and Pinkie Road, for a second Costco location when the company backed out earlier this year and was speaking with the nearby GTH about a location there.
Regina city councillors then approved a subsidy of $6.78 million from the Land Development Reserve to secure Costco at the Westerra location. Property taxes paid by the warehouse store will be used to replenish the amount in reserves.
Provincial auditor Tara Clemett said the GTH, a Crown corporation, should have had a procedure in place for an instance like this.
Bachynski doubts the province will reimburse the city for the subsidy.
“That’s a conversation piece that I’ve brought up,” he said. “It’s nothing we can force the province to do. It’s something that was done at the time.
“There’s nothing that went against what they technically can do, but as highlighted in that report, there’s things that they should have done.”
Following the council decision, GTH president and CEO Daniel Hersche denied that it was actively competing with the city for business, saying it was approached by Costco, not the other way around.
Hersche also said at the time that he hoped to reset the hub’s relationship with the city, and move together in a positive direction.
– with files from The Canadian Press
