Mayor Bowman won't publicly apologize to True North

Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman admits there are fences to mend, but he won't publicly apologize for the controversy surrounding a proposed CentreVenture-True North development in downtown.

Bowman said he has reached out to True North executive chairman Mark Chipman and plans to speak to him directly.

"I'm looking forward to the opportunity to sit down with him," he said Friday.

Furthermore, the mayor says the deal between True North and CentreVenture Development Corp. can continue — but at a cost to CentreVenture, the arm's-length downtown development agency of the city.

"At the end of the day, CentreVenture has a deal with True North, and that's their deal to manage," Bowman told the CBC's Sean Kavanagh in an interview.

"That deal can continue. They can build it and, you know, we will take that $3.75 million and we'll use it to balance the budget."

Bowman was referring to a $3.75-million penalty coming out of a failed deal with construction company Stuart Olson to build a hotel on a lot next to the RBC Convention Centre.

The money is supposed to go to CentreVenture to pay for the lot, located at 220 Carlton St., but council won't free it up unless the agency launches a fresh call for proposals to build a hotel there.

Mayor 'very disappointed' in chamber remarks

Bowman, who was away on business in Toronto for the past couple of days, also said he was "very disappointed" to hear comments made on Thursday by Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce CEO Dave Angus.

• Bowman should apologize for True North 'debacle,' says chamber

Angus called on Bowman to apologize "to the people that have been discredited through this process," which he called a "debacle, a self-inflicted wound that didn't have to happen."

"He's someone that's been a friend and I've worked collaboratively over the years to help strengthen and build downtown. That being said, I respect his freedom to express his views," Bowman said.

While Bowman said he will speak to Chipman privately, there will be no public apology from the mayor.

"This has never been an issue about individuals. It's not about Brian Bowman, it's not about Mark Chipman, it's not about the individuals on the CentreVenture board," he said.

"I have no doubt that everybody involved is trying to do what's best for downtown Winnipeg."

Angus accused the mayor of not taking enough time to work with CentreVenture and finding out the facts about the agreement with True North before going public and suggesting the deal was secretive.

Bowman's suggestion prompted a visibly angry Chipman to speak out on Wednesday, saying Bowman's remarks about the agreement have unfairly misrepresented his company's role.

"The reckless use of those kinds of terms is, in fact, extremely damaging to all of us involved," Chipman told reporters, adding that he is putting the $400-million project — a multi-building and hotel development on Carlton Street — on hold.

• True North's Mark Chipman fires back at mayor, puts Carlton Street project on hold

At the same time, Chipman said at the time that he was not looking for an apology.

"No, not at all. I'm just looking for some signal that we're not going to be accused of taking advantage of people and that we can establish some trust," he said.

Bowman said of Chipman, "I'm obviously saddened to hear how he feels about the situation. My discussions and my efforts with my council colleagues have never been intended to upset him.

"Well beyond that, I've got the utmost respect for him and what he's done for our community," he added. "The issues that council and I had was with the processes followed and we've been really focused on strengthening the processes at CentreVenture."

How much does he know?

Bowman has said he didn't seen the details of the land deal but Chipman on Wednesday revealed the mayor had in fact seen a corporate promotional video of the project in November.

On Friday, the mayor maintained that neither he nor council has been able to see the option agreement between CentreVenture and True North because it's being held in confidence by the city solicitor.

"What councillors were advised by the city's legal counsel is that we could be provided with certain information but we couldn't see the deal, and so we still don't have all of the details about how we came to be in the position that we're at," he said.

Bowman also insisted that there must be openness and transparency on any deals involving the City of Winnipeg.

"These deals took place before I was elected, but we still had a job to do to look out for taxpayers and to make sure that before money flows out of city hall that we're doing our due diligence and we're looking out for Winnipeggers," he said.