Catch-22s sank Welland project
Municipal treasurer says pitch lacked a business plan
Welland Mayor Frank Campion said city council chose not to climb aboard the Titanic project two years ago, worried that it might sink.
“I don’t think we necessarily missed the boat I think we let it sail by because we weren’t sure if it would sink or float financially and in the minds of the community,” he said.
Campion said city staff and councillors were at first reluctant to publicly discuss the project to build a nearly full-sized replica of the ill-fated ship in Welland, because the proponents insisted that the project remain confidential.
But after the proponents themselves weighed in on the project in recent news stories, Campion felt more comfortable sharing the city’s perspective on the project that was submitted to the city in January 2016 in response to a request for expressions of in- terest from developers.
The project would have built a 264-metre-long replica of the ship including attractions, a hotel, several restaurants and other amenities within the recreational canal, near Main Street
Bridge.
Ascaled-down version of the project is now moving forward in Niagara Falls.
“Although council was very interested in the project and asked several times for the proponents to make public the entire proposal they refused, allowing only a cursory overview with little detail,” Campion said in an email.
“I believe that council wanted extensive public consultation prior supporting the concept as it would have significant positive and negative impacts.”
He said the project needed to be fully disclosed to the public, allowing residents to judge the merits of the proposal “to determine if this is how they want their community to look.”
“It would have also allowed residents to determine how it would change the character of our community and their lifestyle.
“Unfortunately, through no fault of council, there was no opportunity to engage the community on the project,” Campion said, adding it was “a bit of a catch-22 situation.”
Welland city treasurer Steve Zorbas shared similar concerns about the confidential nature of the proposal.
Meanwhile, he said city staff remained concerned about the potential impact on the Region’s nearby drinking water intake, although the developer had proposed solutions to that concern.
Campion said council was also concerned about the unfunded nature of the project, describing it as another catch-22.
“If actual money was on the table and the public were able to be fully engaged perhaps there may have been a different outcome,” he said.
“The ideas and concepts were there, but money wasn’t.”
While the developer asked for a letter of support from the city which would be used to help secure financing, he said council was concerned about putting their support behind a project that was not fully funded.
The project has since secured a $3-million commitment from the Niagara Angel Network, and Campion wished “them every success in raising the remainder.”
Zorbas pointed out that, in addition to private funding, the developers initially planned to request investment from other levels of government.
He said the proposal also initially lacked a business plan, describing it as “only a concept.”