Red Hill parkway lawsuit has cost city $3.1M with no end in sight
Combined cost for taxpayers is more than $5M
The city has spent $3.1 million and 12 years on its Red Hill Valley Parkway lawsuit with the federal government, and one councillor estimates there’s at least another four years left to go.
City legal fees reached $3,092,531 as of January, or $69,206 in the last year. Coun. Terry Whitehead of Ward 8 says that’s too much money, but he sees no end in sight.
"Whether it'll even be settled before the next election, I doubt it," Whitehead said after an in camera session Wednesday to discuss the $75-million lawsuit.
"I'm talking about the next municipal election. It's possible, but look how long it's taken to this point."
Whitehead says there are dozens of witnesses and a lot of procedural aspects that still have to be determined. He didn’t support the lawsuit originally, he said, fearing it would be "a money pit."
When governments sue each other, he said, the lawyers are the only winners, and the taxpayers are the losers.
"I'm not overly happy," he said of the cost.
"But it's pretty clear to me that the majority of council are supportive of the continuance of this lawsuit, and the last thing I want to do is send a divided message to the federal government."
The city launched the lawsuit against Ottawa in 2003, charging that 46 government employees acted in bad faith by applying the Environmental Assessment Act to the highway project, thus delaying construction. The highway opened four years later.
The federal government revealed last January that it had spent about $2,390,600.61 on the lawsuit.
Coun. Judi Partridge of Ward 15 wants to see the lawsuit wrapped up by summer. She’s not happy with the cost either.
She wouldn’t comment on whether the city is likely to win the lawsuit. But "I wanted more facts today," she said.
"We did receive an update. We did receive more facts. I've had questions all the way along about whether we should continue with this court challenge. Are we going to win it? I just think there are still an awful lot of questions.
"I begrudgingly go along, but I really think we need to have this wrapped up by summer."
Mayor Fred Eisenberger opposes the lawsuit in general.
"It's not going to end well for anyone," he said. "It doesn't bode well for our working relationship with the federal government and I just don’t see a logical resolve here that will give us any benefit other than legal costs are mounted."