Roots of conflict between developer, Winnipeg city councillor date back 14 years

A $5-million decision against the City of Winnipeg raises questions that both developer Andrew Marquess and Coun. John Orlikow say they can't answer regarding the development of the Parker lands.

On July 6, Manitoba Court of King's Bench Justice Shauna McCarthy ruled the City of Winnipeg is liable for misfeasance because former chief planner Braden Smith and city planner Michael Robinson engaged in "bad faith and deliberate conduct which were intended to slow or frustrate" efforts by Marquess to build 1,900 residential units on his property in Fort Garry.

McCarthy also stated the planners "were aware their conduct was unlawful and likely to cause harm" to the developer and stated "the impetus and motivation for this deliberate interference" was "primarily the wishes and demands" of Orlikow, the area councillor.

One day later, Marquess said he has no idea why the River Heights-Fort Garry councillor directed planners to place obstacles in his way.

"I don't know. You'd have to ask the City of Winnipeg about that," Marquess said in an interview at the downtown Winnipeg offices of his lawyer, Dave Hill.  "Regardless of the reason, the actions really don't justify any motive."

Orlikow was not a defendant in the case. One week after the judge issued her decision, the councillor said he made no demands of city planners about the Parker development.

"All of a sudden I'm being accused of doing things that I never did," Orlikow said at city hall, vowing to go through records to find out why a judge would make this determination about a development process that formally started in 2013.

Notwithstanding these statements by Marquess and Orlikow, the roots of the conflict between the developer and the councillor date back even further.

On July 13, 2009, members of city council's property and development committee met behind closed doors to approve a land swap between the city and Marquess.

The developer gave up a small parcel of serviced land in Fort Rouge that Winnipeg Transit needed for a new garage. In exchange, Marquess acquired the Parker lands, a larger triangle of unserviced city land in Fort Garry.

At the time, Orlikow was a rookie councillor with only six months of experience at city hall. He was not briefed in advance by anyone about the deal that would become known as the Parker land swap.

He found out about it three days later, when the Winnipeg Free Press reported Marquess's plans. An outcry from area residents led the councillor to call a public meeting, where hundreds of residents expressed opposition to the loss of forest on the parcel Marquess was about to acquire.

The land swap wound up before city council seven days after the plans were made public. Orlikow tried and failed to convince his colleagues to put off the vote.

Orlikow then promised city hall would take time to create a careful planning framework for the Parker lands.

"We make sure that the process is a little bit longer. Not just a land-development agreement," Orlikow said on the floor of council on July 23, 2009.

"It's a little bit longer. It deals with the traffic. It encompasses stuff like the potential roadway. The CN align[ment], how is that going to be dealt with? The hydro pole lines, how is that going to be dealt with? How about preserving the forest, natural habitat, density issues [and] land drainage issues?"

Minutes later, council voted 10-6 to approve the Parker land swap. Orlikow voted in opposition.

He was joined by Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt, who warned that the city rushed into what he called "a bunch of garbage" in the middle of summer in order to avoid public scrutiny.

"We're not doing our due diligence here. I think there's an opportunity for the city to get value for this property," Wyatt said.

The Transcona councillor's comments proved to be prophetic. In 2014, an external audit of major Winnipeg real estate transactions concluded the Parker land swap was a rush job made without property appraisals or inspections.

"The Parker lands exchange was based on brief analyses of the estimated value of the properties involved and such analyses were completed in a rushed manner," the audit found.

"The highest and best use of either property was not determined nor was either property inspected. As such, it could be questioned whether value for money was achieved. Full consideration may not have been given to the value of the lands as a competitive tendering process was not undertaken."

The real estate audit emerged at the end of former mayor Sam Katz's administration. His successor, Brian Bowman, campaigned for mayor on a promise to clean up city hall.

The new mayor appointed Orlikow to executive policy committee and made him the chair of council's property and development committee.

On July 13, Orlikow was asked if he got in the way of Marquess as payback for the Katz-era land-swap decision.

"No, I don't believe so. I've never heard of that," the councillor said, adding he was only interested in the planning framework.

"I had some concerns about it, but that's all. There was never any comments about trying to stymie any development there. The BRT [bus rapid transit] route goes there. We want to get that development going."

The city has yet to declare whether it intends to appeal the decision in favour of Marquess, one of three legal actions between the developer and the city over the Parker lands.

Marquess previously convinced a judge to require the city to hold a hearing over the development, which city council approved in 2020.

The third dispute involves compensation for land expropriated by the city to make way for a retention pond. Manitoba's Land Value Appraisal Commission has yet to hold a hearing to determine what the city will pay Marquess for the land.