Ottawa may build new embassy in Israel

Yet, elsewhere, government is selling off diplomatic residences to raise $80M

OTTAWA— Canada is planning to build a new embassy in Israel, even as the Conservative government attempts to sell $80 million in diplomatic properties abroad.

The federal government is seeking outside help in assessing the cost of constructing a new, 26,000-squarefoot embassy and ambassador’s residence in Tel Aviv, documents show.

The price tag for the project is not known, but the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development is seeking a contractor with experience dealing with embassy construction contracts with costs of more than $10 million.

The department expects the contractor to provide cost estimates for the new building, based on concept drawings and design specifications.

The documents repeatedly mention the word “prestigious” and emphasize the design must be modern. The location is also expected to be “prestigious,” within walking distance of mass transit and “in the central business district or a very important sector of the city or a diplomatic enclave/area.”

The new digs in Israel come as the majority Conservatives continue to sell off posh diplomatic residences around the world. The government announced they would begin “rightsizing” diplomatic residences in the 2012 budget, hoping to rake in $80 million from the sales.

Seven residences have been sold, bringing in $25.15 million to federal coffers — including the official residence in Oslo ($12.5 million), Mexico City ($3.33 million), and two residences in Washington ($4.3 million).

More are on the market, including Canada’s official villa in Rome, a multimillion-dollar mansion in Miamiand residences in Dallas, Denver, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Bridgetown, Barbados.

The documents don’t state the reasoning behind building a new embassy in Israel amid the diplomatic property sell-off. But a source familiar with the plans said the embassy’s current Tel Aviv location is not ideal and security improvements are required.

An internal audit of Canada’s embassy in Israel lists it as a “middlesized” mission with 14 Canadian staff, 40 additional local staff and a total annual budget of $5.2 million in 2005. That’s probably changed in the intervening years, as the Conservatives have put a huge emphasis on their ties with Israel, both political and economic, with Canada’s importing $1.1 billion in goods and services, and exporting almost $450 million in 2014.

In a written statement to the Star, a Foreign Affairs spokeswomaan said the government is “intent on ensuring that Canadian diplomacy provides value for money.”

“In the case of Tel Aviv, we are looking at options for cost-effective ways to modernize our presence in Israel in a way that would reflect the great importance of the relationship and our current operational requirements,” Bianca Healy wrote.

“As this effort is still in the planning phase, DFATD is unable — at this time — to share details on any options currently being considered. This particular contract is intended to provide us with expertise to assist in the planning process, which remains at an early stage”

Canada’s current ambassador to Israel, Vivian Bercovici, was appointed by former Foreign Affairs minister John Baird in January 2014.