Then, perhaps Mr. Mohammad can explain this:
"Included in the proposal are a one-mile oval racetrack, a 2 1/2-mile road course, seating for 65,000 spectators with a possibility of expanding the facility to accommodate 75,000 race fans, a motocross/BMX/Snowmobile/rental kart centre within the road course facility, a commercial complex including restaurants and shopping, parking and camping areas and a research and development facility.
It is that last piece that excites Mason....
...Mason is not the only fan of the R&D facility. McMaster University is on board with the idea and has already pledged $30 million for the facility."
(From Article written by Richard Hutton for Niagara This Week, November 26, 2009)
Jay Mason, identified as the CEO of MaseRace, answered questions before Fort Erie Town Council On November 23, 2009.
"Mr. Brady reviewed the benefits to the municipality i.e. increased local
and Regional tax assessment, construction jobs, full-time and part-time
employment, McMaster’s research, development and testing facilities for
the automotive industry, economic impact, farming and tourism impact,
centralization of motorsport industry in Canada and enhance on-going
viability of existing businesses in Fort Erie."
In the presentation, Brady referred to a letter from the Dean of Engineering at McMaster University. The letter starts with the paragraph:
"We welcome the opportunity to pursue the creation of a
world class motor sport research and education
infrastructure as part of the development of a motor
speedway in the Fort Erie Region by Bayt Al Mal
Investments."
David Wilkinson, Ph.D., FICM,FACerS. P. Eng.
In an article from December 11, 2009:
"Mohammad said the complex would take in auto-related academic and private partners, possibly including McMaster University as part of an "innovation cluster" for research and development of new fuels and materials.
McMaster has an interest in high-performance auto research, but spokesperson Andrea Farquhar said it's still too early for the university to make a formal commitment.
"It's very preliminary," she said of the university's interest. "There's nothing that's been confirmed or determined or decided."
McMaster has an interest in high-performance auto research, but spokesperson Andrea Farquhar said it's still too early for the university to make a formal commitment.
"It's very preliminary," she said of the university's interest. "There's nothing that's been confirmed or determined or decided."
Ms. Farquhar was roundly criticized by speedway proponents for expressing that there was no "deal" between McMaster and the CMS. From the Hamilton Standard on December 16, 2009:
"McMaster University is hopeful a $200-million racing complex planned for Fort Erie will prove to be a valuable site for its cutting-edge automotive research.
The university has a memo- randum of understanding with the proponents of the track in which the two sides agree to establish a research centre on site.
The project's proponents, Emirates Consulting, are hoping to have the Canadian Motor Speedway opened as early as 2011.
They plan to build on 332 hectares of land beside the QEW, but still face months of regulatory approvals before construction can start. The facility would be built to NASCAR standards and would seat up to 100,000 people.
McMaster's dean of engineering David Wilkinson said the university's plans with the developers have advanced beyond the preliminary stage that another McMaster official had described last week."
The university has a memo- randum of understanding with the proponents of the track in which the two sides agree to establish a research centre on site.
The project's proponents, Emirates Consulting, are hoping to have the Canadian Motor Speedway opened as early as 2011.
They plan to build on 332 hectares of land beside the QEW, but still face months of regulatory approvals before construction can start. The facility would be built to NASCAR standards and would seat up to 100,000 people.
McMaster's dean of engineering David Wilkinson said the university's plans with the developers have advanced beyond the preliminary stage that another McMaster official had described last week."
So, if we take those early presentations, statements and news articles as fact, then there was a plan that the R&D facility would be placed in Fort Erie at the proposed speedway. No wonder some people hailed this as a good thing. Jobs, jobs, good-paying jobs were promised by the now-absent Jay Mason who was the head cheerleader for the project, especially for its research component. Now, he won't speak about it as he is "no longer involved" in the project.
So, who do we believe? Frankly, I have never believed that the good people of Fort Erie were getting the whole story. It is now 2012 and the CMS has been stalled for well for almost two years. Not always due to local opposition. Something is seriously wrong with the whole proposal. Options to buy properties dropped; other properties, already bought, abandoned. Very limited information coming from officials of the investment company and a website that is seriously out of date. This does not inspire confidence that the project will ever get off the ground. We will see what happens on June 18 when the OMB hearings start.
Congratulations Kim Craitor!
"Grandparents' Rights Bill" gets a second reading at Queen's Park.
Craitor gets standing ovation. He deserved it. He has worked very hard to give grandparents rights when child custody and visitation rights are arbitrated.
"Grandparents' Rights Bill" gets a second reading at Queen's Park.
Craitor gets standing ovation. He deserved it. He has worked very hard to give grandparents rights when child custody and visitation rights are arbitrated.
Thank you, Nature Lover, for further reminding us of the promises made almost three years ago by the CMS developers and how they're now trying to say that wasn't what they meant.
ReplyDeleteThis may be another crazy, tin foil hat expedition, but there are some (not me) who believe that what's under the ground (minerals) on the proposed site of the CMS is what the Kuwaitis are really after. Sounds crazy - even to me. Since there is a quarry nearby, it might make more sense.
I have to admit, I'm always looking for the hook in any too-good-to-be-true deal. I still haven't figured out what the Kuwaitis will gain from this. And that scares me.
Here's a reminder of the hand-waving, desperation, and futility that has been behind the CMS project.
ReplyDelete"The promise of a new $172 million, state-of-the-art race track isn’t enough to lure NASCAR to Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada., a spokesman for the auto-racing organization said Friday. The group of investors planning a racing complex that would seat 65,000 spectators hopes to bring top-level auto racing to Southern Ontario, but NASCAR won’t be part of the project. “Our schedule is extremely full, especially in our top three national series,” NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston told The News, referring to the Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Craftsman Truck series. “There’s really not much, if any, room to add any dates at this time.” But local officials say there never was a commitment from NASCAR to bring a race to Fort Erie and the project is an economic engine that doesn’t hinge on NASCAR’s participation. In fact, one economic-development official involved in the project said NASCAR still could change its mind and bring a race here once they see the success of the finished track. “In the end, NASCAR may be approached, or be approachable,” said James A. Thibert, president of the Fort Erie Economic Development and Tourism Corp.
Officials revealed plans for the project at a Tuesday news conference in Fort Erie, where a Kuwaiti financial company was identified as the lead investor. However, news of the race track began leaking out over the past week or so, and media reports referred to it as a “NASCAR-ready” or “NASCAR-level” track. The facility, as envisioned by local officials and Bayt Al Mal Investment Bank of Kuwait, would hold a one-mile oval track and a 2 1/2-mile, road-course track. It could be expanded to seat 100,000 people, and officials say the complex could host retail shops, a hotel, research-and-development space and other business operations. Local officials point to the construction and permanent jobs the track would create, and they suggest it will boost tourism. Harry Schlange, chief administrative officer for Fort Erie, noted that officials never called it a “NASCAR track.” But investors and local officials said the track would be built to the specifications needed to host an auto race at the level of NASCAR, Indy Racing League or another series. They noted NASCAR had said publicly that it wants to locate a race in Canada, and they pointed out Fort Erie’s proximity to Toronto and to major markets in the United States. However, Poston said this part of North America already is well-covered by NASCAR races in Montreal, Watkins Glen and Loudon, N. H. Officials said it’s no surprise NASCAR is saying no right now. A lot of communities want to bring NASCAR to their tracks, and the organization can’t make premature promises, Thibert added. NASCAR faced an antitrust suit over a race track project in Kentucky. Still, Thibert said investors and local officials have been in negotiations with other racing leagues. He said he couldn’t identify them yet. “We have all sorts of plans, and all sorts of things in place,” Thibert said.(Buffalo News)(10-18-2008)"
Also, did anyone see Council on Cogeco last night? Looks like Ron Tripp may have given misinformation to Bob Steckley regarding downloading of roads by the region. Since the deal included the uploading of the streetlight costs and maintenance of the roads in question and Regional Councillor John Teal could not give a date as to when the uploading would take place, Don Lubberts sought to table the download acceptance until that information was available. Shular put his foot into by asking, under New Business, why the tabling since it was a "done deal" anyway. Bob Steckley said he was told by Acting CAO Ron Tripp that the town did not have to accept the download. (Mr. Tripp was not in attendance.) Mr. Brady, the town planner said that if Tripp had said that, "he was mistaken." Oh Snap! He also went on to say that he understood why Lubberts wanted to table the acceptance: to put pressure on the region to upload the street lighting. OMG! Martin was furious and proceeded to cut off Lubberts from any further discussion of the issue. Fail.
ReplyDeleteEditor's Note: The above comment was posted before 10:00 am but it disappeared. That's what I was responding to in my original comment.
ReplyDeleteThis is what I posted sometime before 10:00 a.m., referenced above by the Editor.
ReplyDeleteIn case anyone thinks that Mason, Brady, and Willkinson referred to by the Editor were all just loose cannons, remember what I posted back under the “We Told You So” thread of this blog. I gave you the minutes from the Town of Fort Erie for the visit paid to the Town by the Canadian Motor Speedway representative pitching the deal, Kenneth R. DePodesta, P.Eng, Principal Consultant, AMEC Earth & Environmental o/b of Canadian Motor Speedway. According to the minutes, Mr. Poedesta said that the Canadian Motor Speedway “… will highlight a Centre of Excellence including a Research and Technology centre as an integrated component of the site…”
Also under “We Told You So,” I showed the Linkedin site for Azhar Mohammad himself, the big daddy-o of the Canadian Motor Sjpeedway scheme. It says, “Attached to the facility will be a 21 acre Innovation and Technology Park for Automotive Research & Development covering motor sports and general automotive technology. This is is partnership with McMaster University in Canada. The test centre will focus on eco-friendly composite materials development, renewable racing fuels, and powertrain testing adjacent to the track. NASCAR Champion Jeff Gordon is a strategic partner.”
AND HERE’S YET ANOTHER QUOTE FOR YOU. It’s from the ARCHITECT of the speedway.
“http://www.paxtonwatersarchitecture.com/projects/canadianmotorspeedway.html
Paxton Waters Architecture and Jeff Gordon have joined forces to design the Canadian Motor Speedway, the first major oval/road course motorsports facility in Canada. The facility will be located just over the border in Fort Erie, Ontario.
Track Features
• 65,000 Seats (expandable to 100,000)
• 80 Luxury Suites and Club Seating
• Research and Develpment Park
• Industrial Park for Motorsports-Related Business
• Hotels, Hospitality Village, Restaurants and Shopping
• Eco Park, Bike Paths, Walkways, and Camping”
Let’s face it people, the Canadian Motorspeedway salesmen made promises that they didn’t keep and possibly never had any intentions of keeping, and now they are not only reneging but apparently even claiming they never said that. And instead of being outraged, we see people in Fort Erie standing loyally behind the speedway developers Why? Because some people in Fort Erie have an unhealthy trust in people that they believe are smarter than them, they believe whatever line of spiel a salesman tells them, and they don’t care about the rights of the people that live in the region or about the environment. They only care about blasting the NIMBYS (which means the people who actually live in the area most directly affected by a scheme), getting a place nearby where they can watch cars drive fast and people get injured, and, most of all, hoping fervently they can get something for nothing. They want to believe that these Kuwaiti businessmen have come from the other side of the planet to be the salvation of Fort Erie.
These Kuwaitis are businessmen and they’re smart businessmen. They don’t care if they lay the whole region of Fort Erie to waste, as long as they turn a profit for themselves. After all, the Kuwaitis don’t live here and their children, and their grandchildren won’t live here. They don’t love Fort Erie. What businessmen do love is to find people who can be hoodwinked. And, wow, these people in Fort Erie are looking like gems—incredibly naïve and gullible. They don’t get mad no matter how you abuse them. Instead, apparently you can scam the people of Fort Erie and they’ll continue to think you’re a knight in shining armor.
Fort Erie needs to realize that when businessmen make foreign investments, they look out for themselves. It’s up to Fort Erie to look out for Fort Erie.
In response to the Editor's wondering if there could be unstated reasons that Kuwaiti investors are pursuing this deal, here's a possibility to consider: they may want the land. Land is more precious than oil in Kuwait! http://farmlandgrab.org/post/view/18316
ReplyDeleteA few excerpts:
" Investors are buying Canadian agricultural land, betting that rising food prices, a ballooning global population and growing worldwide scarcities in farmland will mean a payoff for them...
“I say thank you very much for telling us we’re on to a good idea, but you can’t invest,” he said. That’s because only Canadians are permitted to own farmland in Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba. But anyone is permitted to purchase farmland in B.C., Ontario and Quebec where, last year, outrage followed reports that Chinese interests wanted to buy millions worth of farmland in the province...
The governments of land-poor countries such as Saudi Arabia and Korea, as well as corporations and hedge funds, are buying huge swaths of farmland in South America, Southeast Asia and Africa, in what many call a land grab...
Indeed, wherever these sales are taking place, there is protest, said Devlin Kuyek, a researcher with GRAIN, a non-profit that has studied the phenomenon since it noticed the trend in 2008, after the stock market crashed. “It’s about food sovereignty and control over land and water,” he said of the protests. In Canada, too, there is growing opposition."
I forgot about the Council coverage last night. Did I understand that Mr. Brady understood and approved of a remark by Don Lubberts that displeased the mayor?
ReplyDeleteNature Lover: your comment disappeared twice. Sorry about that. As to council: Brady said that the download is non-reversible, but he said he understood and thought it was appropriate (I don't have the exact wording) for the town to put pressure on the region to give a definite time frame for the uploading. Mr. Brady once worked for the region and probably has a fairly good handle on this type of situation.
ReplyDeleteCorrection:
ReplyDeleteIn an earlier post, I had stated that it was the town planner who answered a question about the downloading of the roads. It was actually T. Kuchty, Acting Director of Infrastructure Services who replied that if Ron Tripp informed Bob Steckley that the town could refuse the download of roads from the region, Mr. Tripp was "incorrect." He also did understand the tabling until Regional Councillor Teal could come back to council with the date for the uploading of the street lighting obligation to the region. The move was to put pressure on the region to move faster on the uploading.
Unfortunately, none of that conversation is recorded in the minutes; hopefully it has been preserved in the audio of the meeting.
I think it is very important because it shows that Ron Tripp either doesn't know what he's talking about or he's a liar. It is highly doubtful that Bob Steckley would go on record saying that Tripp said something when he hadn't. Sounds like Ron Tripp is not even qualified to hold the job os Director of Infrastructure Services let alone CAO.
That opinion is based on this incident and many other reports about the actions of Ron Tripp.
The Minutes are almost useless - until they start to recording everything not just from the person speaking at the podium. They need to include comments from both our council and staff as well!
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that there was a whole exchange and explanation of the motivation behind Lubberts' move to table. And that was not reflected in the minutes. Without that discussion, it would seem that Lubberts wanted to table the motion to accept the download because he merely wanted to disrupt the process. Not so. There was a strategy in place, which was supported by the Acting Director of Infrastructure Services. To be sure, since it is John Teal's responsibility as regional councillor for the Town of Fort Erie, why did he not press the region for the date of the upload of the streetlights? You'd think he would have come prepared with that information. If he had provided the date for the upload, there would have been no need for the tabling.
ReplyDeleteI notice that several times Councillor Lubberts asks for clarification, not because he doesn't understand but because he wants to make a point of something so that it gets recorded and noted in the minutes. I also notice that this tactic is not understood by many in attendance.
ReplyDeleteOne such instance was when he asked Mr. Brady if it was common practice for a developer to be responsible for road work and grooming upgrades to their projects. Mr. Brady answered it is generally done.
Why when the Molinaro plan to do this kind of upgrade is it a Community Benefit?
Paid a visit to the newly refurbished (beautiful) Crystal Chandelier this afternoon to attend the dedication of the bench to honour the late Fred Truckenbrodt. Quite a fitting memorial that was well-attended. See some pictures on The Strand
ReplyDeleteIs anyone surprised by the second-to-last paragraph in the story below?
ReplyDeletehttp://cupe.ca/P3Sep2002/4405
BC P3 ruled illegal
SEP 18, 2002 08:00 PM
A public private partnership to redevelop the downtown core of Maple Ridge has been ruled illegal by the highest court in British Columbia.
In a unanimous decision, the BC Court of Appeal has found that the agreement between the city, Voth Bros. Developments and P3 International Trade and Investments was invalid because residents were not given a chance to vote on it.
The terms of the agreement are outrageous, and show just how corporations fleece the public through so-called ’partnerships’. The city agreed to a 50-year, $25 million deal where they fronted $7 million to the developer. The city also agreed to pay $2 million for demolition and another $2 million for capital financing. The developer stood to make almost $20 million from a $24 million investment.
As well as the office space, the developer promised to build a hotel and an arts centre. But neither project has been built. A problem? Not if you have a clause in your contract that says “the developer does not agree to a specific completion date for any specific item of work.”
CUPE BC is calling on city council to hire a credible, independent auditor to do a forensic audit that gets to the bottom of this disaster.
Even Jeff Gordon thought there was going to be an on-site automotive research and development park at the track to which he was willing to lend his name (back when he was talking about it, in January 2010—I haven’t run across anything he’s said about this project for the past few years, has anyone else?). Here’s a quote from Gordon’site http://www.jeffgordon.com/news/news.php?uid=3562
ReplyDelete"Valued at $ 150 million, CMS will incorporate a 1-mile 'Jeff Gordon Design Signature Speedway' oval, a 2.6-mile FIA grade road course, 65,000 seats (expandable to 100,000), a Motorsports and Automotive R&D Park in collaboration with McMaster University, and much more into an 820 acre parcel of land along the QEW highway, just kilometres from the Canada/US border."
Imagine you’re a Canadian with 3 acres of land from which to support your family. One of the acres is beachfront, and you make money off it by selling lemonade to beach-goers. The other 2 acres are farmland on which you grow crops.
ReplyDeleteYour grandparents had 100 acres, many of them prime beachfront, but unfortunately, they sold all but the remaining one acre of beachfront land to Americans. You resent that Americans own so much beachfront and blame them for buying it, although it was actually your grandparents' decision to sell the land.
Now along come a Burlington man and a Kuwaiti asking to buy 2 of your 3 acres of land. Say that land is selling on the open market for $100 an acre.
The Burlington man says if you sell him the beachfront acre for $20, he’ll build a condo on it but still let you and your beach-visiting lemonade customers walk on a portion of the remaining beach land, and he'll build a place for you and your customers to change your clothes and a skating rink too. But, when you consider his offer, he drops the part about a place to change clothes and the skating rink. Plus, he starts planning a toad zoo on a huge portion of the land that you and your lemonade customers were supposed to be able to walk on. Do you think that once he owns the land and has built the condos, that he and the condo owners (who will want privacy) will really try their best to help you and your lemonade customers get to the beach? Why should they? If the condos hurt your lemonade business, what will you be able to do about it once you’ve sold the property? Nothing.
The Kuwaiti offers you $20 for an acre of the farmland from which you currently derive crops, clean water, a serene atmosphere, and healthy wildlife. He tells you he’ll build a racetrack on it and spectators will come from all over (even though there are other racetracks not far away) and that your children can work a research facility he will also build on that acre. You know that all existing racetracks are deafening, polluting, rowdy, and traffic-jam creating, and that you and your lemonade customers will hate that. But the Kuwaiti claims he will be able to create the world’s first quiet, clean, orderly racetrack. So you sell the Kuwaiti the farmland, and he denies he ever said he’d build a research center there. Can you can trust him now to do what no one has ever done before? What will you be able to do if the racetrack turns out to be, like all others, loud, dirty, rowdy, and chaotic? Nothing.
What will you have left if you do take these offers? Not much land to call your own and invest in yourself. No changing rooms or skating rink. No research center, and less land to farm. More difficult and limited access for yourself and former tourists to the beach, and hence, reduced lemonade sales. And a noisy, polluted, chaotic environment that neither you nor the beach tourists like. You’ll have $40, but that won’t last long.
What should you have done? If you had to sell these two acres, you should at least have sold them for the $200 CASH that they’re worth, without being taken in by empty promises that the buyer can't be forced to keep once he's gotten what he wanted from you. Only a fool would accept fantasies in lieu of money.
Better yet, don’t sell the land. Even $200 won’t compensate you for it long-term. Instead, find ways to capitalize on the tourists even more (hotels, concerts, theatre, boating, etc.). Well-located land such as yours is a wise investment. That's why the men from Burlington and Kuwait want it. Don’t ruin the land in ways that can't be fixed. And don't make the same mistake your grandparents made by selling it and thereby losing control of it forever.
We can lament the fact that the condo is being built all we want. But, lamenting the facts with coulda, shoulda, woulda, is not going to change the fact that the condo is gonna be built.
ReplyDeleteThere is always hope that the condo won't be built and we'll hold onto that hope until the last second.
ReplyDeleteSince this thread is about the speedway, how can anyone be sure that the speedway will be built? We wouldn't have heard anything from the speedway developer if a reporter hadn't asked a couple of questions from officials at McMaster. And all anyone heard was an e-mail from Mr. Mohammad who is where? And all he did was say that CMS never promised that the R&D centre would be located at the CMS in Fort Erie, which is clearly a lie, based on Mr. Mohammad's previous statements that are preserved in print and on the internet.
What this region needs is a good investigative reporter who is backed up by his newspaper. Unfortunately that ain't gonna happen. In this job-challenged economy, no reporter or writer is prepared to go up against the editorial board of any local newspaper. Local media is in the tank for developers, etc. Wouldn't want to upset the advertisers with the truth, now would they?
Madam Editor, I could not agree more with your comment about the relationship between Editors and Developers after having read last weeks Times which was nothing but a big "rah rah Martin is amazing" with all this developing going on.
ReplyDeleteSubstitute the word destruction for developing is much closer to the truth.
If Kris Dube could sew his lips any tighter to the Mayor's back end, he would.
Also it looks like the mayor has learned a lesson from his 5 re-counted vote victory with his attempt to change ward politics as he knows he is generally despised in wards 4 5 and 6. Trying to sell this as cost savings from a man who squanders taxes and the town's future for political and personal gain is the ultimate spin.
I can understand about Kris Dubé. He's a young man who has a dream job in his home town.I do wonder about some of the other reporters though. They all know better. You hear of the cover-ups of alcohol-related car crashes that claim lives, yet the press backs off from reporting the details - or the truth. So many things have gone unreported by the press that it's embarrassing. They are afraid for their jobs and they have been told to back off on many stories. They get no support to investigate stories; certain people get a free ride when it comes to such indiscretions.
ReplyDelete"You hear of the cover-ups of alcohol-related car crashes that claim lives"
ReplyDeletewhat crashes and cover ups?
I did not cover these stories, therefore I can only refer obliquely to them. But there are reporters who were early on the scenes who did see and learn of the truth which was later covered up. Why the truth was suppressed is anyone's guess. Perhaps because people involved had "connections"?
ReplyDeleteStill, it isn't fair that some people get away with drunk driving because of who they are.
I know of a an off duty policeman running a red light drunk as a skunk and T boned another vehicle. The occupants of said vehicle were encouraged to not show in court. This is the police trying to cover for their own not the press, but still it happens with people in power positions.
ReplyDeleteHey anonymous at 10:57am,yeah I have.
ReplyDeleteI see that Kris Dubé has stated that the Bay Beach issue was a major issue in Paul Collard's successful campaign for Ward 6 councillor. Collard set the record straight in a follow-up article posted earlier this week, citing that the number one issue when he ran was the Canadian Motor Speedway.
ReplyDeleteWell, I found proof that Collard was correct in a John Robbins article from 2010 in the Niagara Falls Review titled Speedway Big Issue in Ward 6.
The candidates were interviewed about the issues facing the voters in the ward, located in Stevensville. Most were concerned about the condition of roads and infrastructure in the area. And they all agreed with the racetrack "in principle" but that the issue needs more study.
Sadly, one of the Ward 6 candidates in the municipal election, Rick Unyi, was killed in a traffic accident over the past weekend.