Former Vancouver mayors Larry Campbell and Philip Owen resuscitated the Olympic Village bailout story on Tuesday evening by holding a joint press conference at which they pleaded with reporters to let the story die.
“I’ve asked everybody to just disengage on this,” Senator Campbell told a large press scrum on a slow news day. “We’ve got to ratchet this down and we’ve got to get on with life.”
Campbell, a founder of Vision Vancouver who was mayor from 2002 to 2005, also said he regards the breach of confidentiality as a much larger concern than the loan.
“If I was mayor I’d be asking for a criminal investigation” into who leaked a secret city document to the press, Campbell said.
Owen agreed, and emphasized his view that Vancouver taxpayers are not at risk.
“This city is in good financial health. They can afford this,” said Owen, who was NPA mayor from 1993-2002. “They have title to the land. They have personal guarantees from these people. They’ve got opportunities to get the funds back if they have to... The city is not going to get burned in any severe way.”
When asked why the public has responded so strongly to this issues, Owen said, “Well, because they think its been a secret deal. And it’s not. It’s a standard process when you are dealing with property in the Property Endowment Fund.”
Both former mayors acknowledged that they knew nothing about what was discussed at the Oct. 14 in-camera meeting, at which Vancouver City Council reportedly approved up to $100 million in loans to bail out Millennium Developments and/or Fortress Investments.
And both insisted their joint appearance was intended as a non-partisan statement.
“It’s an election deal,” Owen said. “We’re faced with the same thing facing the United States. We had Karl Rove and we had Dick Cheney and we had all the negative ads, and I guess someone’s picked up on that and said, ‘Let’s start throwing some mud around.’”
“There isn’t just one party that’s doing this,” Campbell said. “It’s coming from all sides.”
In response to a question about why this issue has come to dominate the campaign, Campbell said, “I don’t think we had enough issues. I mean, obviously, homelessness isn’t big enough. Mental health isn’t big enough. The Olympics isn’t big enough.”
By speaking at 4 p.m. on Remembrance Day, the former coroner virtually assured that the Olympic Village story will survive until Wednesday’s newspapers are on the street. And with Fortress Investment Group, the struggling New York firm that had been bankrolling the project, expected to release its third quarter results early Thursday morning, it appears unlikely that this particular corpse will be laid to rest before Saturday’s election.
Monte Paulsen reports on Vancouver politics for The Tyee.
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leftofcentre
3 years ago
A Non-NPA Councillor is the Chief Suspect
Global reported tonight that city staff has identified a councillor as the chief suspect in the leak. They say they tracked them through card swipe data and surveillance video.
If this pans out, there's a city councillor in deep legal trouble.
egmont rapids
3 years ago
What phoney spin
I am sure both parties want it to go away,I have never seen such a propoganda ploy as that performance!
Lets just forget about BC Rail!
Lets forget about the illegal forest land giveaways!
Lets forget about selling rivers!
But lets have a front page story on a unpaid skytrain ticket!
Lets follow glen Clark around with camera crews over a PATIO DECK!
Lets forget about union contracts being torn up!
lets forget about seniors in hallways,dirty hospitals,pay raises,crack buying mayors,or how about that famous statement by Larry Campbell " I don`t think there is anything wrong with people using crystal meth"
Yes,no doubt both Vision and the NPA want the story to go away,it isn`t,this story will grow and grow and grow!
Canwest global has no more clout,period!
If this was an NDP story it would be front page everyday until the election!
No one is buying the story Canwest,Larry Campbell/Owen go crawl back under your rock!
NicS
3 years ago
egmont rapids Is Exactly Right
Well done everybody, Tyee, loyal readers, crackpots and former Mayors. An excellent and most amusing public discussion.
I heard there was supposed to be a debate at the Wosk Centre For Dialogue tomorrow night between Ladner and Robertson. Unfortunately I have a prior engagement. I suspect it could be the event of the year, if it actually happens?
mainstradical
3 years ago
They should stick to...
whatever their jobs are now and butt out of city politics. This is a bloody important issue and sweeping it under the rug isn't the way to address it. The CFO has resigned! We're facing a mojaor financial hit! Oh no - wouldn't want to "stain" the reputation of the Olympics. Pathetic.
NicS
3 years ago
With Friends Like Owen and Campbell....
With friends like former Mayor's Owen and Campbell, I guess Peter Ladner doesn't need any enemies.
Talk about "strategic blunders". Gregor Robertson will forever be in their debt.
not your wife
3 years ago
tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock
I particularily enjoyed both the Global News and CBC News at 6pm tonight.
Can you say "swipe-card", boys and girls?
Or just "swipe"? I look forward to the criminal investigation.
Gregor, your 15 minutes of fame is nearly up...
Dessident
3 years ago
I love the way Owen said,
I love the way Owen said, ..."The city is not going to get burned in any severe way.” WTF does THAT mean? $25M, 50M or 100M?
These guy's are a joke, and trying to deflect the real issue of who's making what from this, and who's getting stuck for the rest.
Time to get mad, Vancouver!
RossK
3 years ago
And If Fortress' Backers Come Looking For Cash....
....In Vancouver Like They Did In Whistler?
And if they don't like what they see?
Are personal guarantees going to mean squat given that Fortress is in for $750 million while the City is only in for a paltry $300 million.
I'll be happy to stop bleating when I am convinced that Estelle Lo tells me to stop worrying.
And now that I think of it, who was it, exactly, that forced Ms. Lo to take a sabbatical anyway?
.
Grumpy
3 years ago
Sure Larry.............
..........and while we have an investigation going on 'villagegate, let's investigate the reason why you got a Senate seat!
realisticman
3 years ago
If
If Gregor wins we will have a mayor that is either ignorant of City Hall procedure and the legal obligations of meetings, or a leftie one that practices the worst of ultra-right negative politics in the Karl Rove/Dick Cheney/Lee Atwater style.
The mood at City Hall particularly as it relates to senior City Staff will be most interesting.
So much for decent politicians. More cynicism ahead.
G West
3 years ago
So much for decent politicians
Who did you have in mind realisticman?
I'd say the fellows at the top of the pyramid right now would be awfully hard to pin the adjective 'decent' on.
Weren't you the guy screaming about red herrings the other day?
As for Rove/Atwater/Cheney...not so long ago those guys and their tactics were the toast of your neo-liberal world; the saviors of humanity and the odds-on contractors who were going to solve hunger, the oil crisis and world poverty.
How soon they forget. Fact is, Sammy and his gang can’t even get City Hall right…..
realisticman
3 years ago
COPE Redux
If VISION does win, how much money will your new ideologues divert from Vancouver City services for citizens and devote to keeping nuclear weapons from our Port? One thing we know for sure; taxes will go up, that's already been promised. Will they actually cancel the Olympics? That's the new rumour. Perhaps a massive delegation on a fact-finding mission to Africa or Antarctica is how this VISION/COPE team will spend taxpayers money. Where will the tent city be do you think? False Creek, Stanley Park, Queen Elizabeth Park? Maybe all three. Higher taxes for all and especially nasty businesses. I guess that means more small shopkeepers will move out to Richmond and Surrey. Costco lives!
G West
3 years ago
Yep
The sky is falling - the NPA will have to take some time in the penalty box - woe is you realisticman.
Bye!
egmont rapids
3 years ago
Rman
Did you just blow a brain fuse?
The last gasp attack "Vision will raise taxes"
Reminds me of John Mccain in the last week of the campaign "Obama,taxes taxes taxes,Obama will raise your taxes"
Reminds me off the words of George Bush Senior when he was campaigning in 1988
" Read my lips, no new taxes"
We all know how well that went!
Rman,your polical mud slinging style has lost it`s stick.
God forbid that Gregor Robertson may spend money on SOCIAL PROBLEMS! The Audacity,how dare he,could you imagine,a politician trying to make life better! Well now I have heard everything!
egmont rapids
3 years ago
I really like the doner list
http://thebernermonologues.blogspot.com/2008/11/who-payed-for-gregor.html
spartikus
3 years ago
What's funny
What's funny is Gary Mason tells us today (in not so many words) that the "missing memo" was part of the original leak.
Luke Skywalker
3 years ago
leftofcentre...
And city staff are apparently quite pissed about this incident.
Yes, John Daly of [BCTV] Global News confirmed yesterday that the city has identified the suspect councillor through card swipe data and surveillance video.
Breach of trust and confidentiality issues raise their ugly head.
Who has motive in this matter?? It's either Sam Sullivan or one of the four Vision councillors.
Wanna bet that this person's name will be leaked within the next two days?
The shite is then gonna hit the fan and woe the political party's chances involved in that scandal.
spartikus
3 years ago
Sorry, that would be..
"not part" of the original leak.
Blackbird
3 years ago
Larry Campbell's Right About One Thing
A police investigation should have been started immediately, which would have been a month ago when Ladner realized he'd lost his papers. Now we have talk that City staff have conducted their own investigation by tracking video surveillance and swipe card records.
Well? Are the police going to be involved now or are we in for yet another round of secrets?
Ultimately, whomever "stole" the so-called sensitive documents that Ladner was careless enough to lose track of (for which he should be held accountable) will pay a price as will the party s/he belongs to, but the voters need to know before the election and I am writing this as a Vision Vancouver member.
If it is true that hard evidence regarding incriminating movements of a City Councillor exists, it needs to be turned over to the Vancouver Police Department immediately so a proper investigation may occur and charges may be laid or not. There are only two days before perhaps the most important municipal election in Vancouver history, given the approaching Olympics and the global economic meltdown. The citizens of Vancouver deserve to know what's happening right now, not on Sunday morning, so we can make up our minds.
What I still don't understand is why Ladner waited a month after realizing he'd lost his papers to make the issue public.
This is about as ugly as I've ever seen Vancouver civic politics get.
Betty Krawczyk, you haven't lost yet!
G West
3 years ago
NPA off the hook - not by a long shot!
http://www.canada.com/vancouvercourier/news/opinion/story.html?id=e56ac907-fea2-4f19-b748-4b46192bc175
I'll just quote three sections ...which pretty well covers the NPA with their own mud; you'll have to read the rest yourselves.
After all, was it a 'secret' that this meeting ever took place at all?
Seems to me I've heard the same sort of voice echoing from the Premier's office too....but of course, that too would be a 'secret'.