Skip to content

Councillor casts doubt on Romano’s effectiveness at Queen's Park

'I feel that we've seen a lack of support from the provincial government for vital work we've been pursuing and infrastructure we require' - Ward 5 Coun. Corey Gardi
701DE4E2-D21F-4B20-A080-C07347142C80
Architect Franco Pastore presented his design for the proposed McMeeken Centre replacement to City Council on Monday night. Without provincial support, councillors seemed hesitant to move ahead with the project. Screen capture from Zoom teleconference

Ross Romano might be minister of colleges and universities in Premier Doug Ford's provincial cabinet, but Ward 5 Coun. Corey Gardi was expressing doubt tonight about how much clout the Sault's Conservative MPP really has at Queen's Park.

"I don't want to question Mr. Romano's effort or his influence when it comes to being the member of provincial parliament for Sault Ste. Marie," Gardi told tonight's City Council meeting.

"Nor do I want to question that effort to influence as a member of Mr. Ford's cabinet. But I'm getting close to it," Gardi said during a debate over whether the city should foot the entire bill for a $28-million replacement for the McMeeken Arena.

"The reason I'm close to questioning it is that in the last while, personally, I feel that we've seen a lack of support from the provincial government for vital work we've been pursuing and infrastructure we require," said Gardi.

"We required this arena. We put forward our application to the province. They turned us down when I am quite confident that we had met criteria that would have received federal support for the project."

"As a result, we're faced with the burden of carrying this alone."

Gardi, who in the past has been active in partisan party politics on behalf of local Liberals, also pointed to Sault's difficulty in getting provincial support for a Level 3 withdrawal management facility.

"What do we hear from Queen's Park?" he asked.

"Nothing more, essentially, than 'Thanks for the request.'"

"Most importantly, we hear from family members who are extremely distressed about their loved ones not getting the care they need, and also from the health professionals who treat them."

"People continue to struggle, they continue to die, both young and old alike."

"I said at a previous council meeting that we can't always count on other levels of government to move our community forward. But when it comes to the community's highest priorities, whether they be for culture and recreation infrastructure, dealing with our most critical health crisis whch pre-existed COVID-19, and a community initiative to help address our most significant challenges, do we get any support from the province, for at least one or two of them?"

"We aren't. For any of them."

"Personally I think it's a shame. The question I have to ask is why we're not."

As SooToday reported earlier tonight, councillors seemed to favour the arena project but also seemed reluctant to proceed without financial support from higher levels of government.

At Mayor Provenzano's suggestion, they voted unanimously to defer the decision until budget deliberations, slated for about a month from now.

In the meantime, city staff have been instructed to sharpen their pencils to come up with more exact cost estimates, including one for a single-pad arena instead of the proposed twin-pad design.

Councillors were reminded that the provincial program from the city hoped to receive a major contribution toward the McMeeken replacement got many times more requests than it was able to satisfy.

Provenzano hinted tonight to project manager Jeanette Biemann that the $28.2 million proposed cost of a twin-pad arena includes $6 million in contingencies, professional fees and other 'soft' costs that were higher than he expected.

"Whatever project we choose, it's going to come to significantly more expensive with time," the mayor said.

"I actually think it's going to become significantly more expensive the later we get to it next year or the year after."

"If we're going to do a project, I think we should start the project next year."

"If we're not going to do a project, that's a different story," said Provenzano.

The Sault's focus should be on whether to build a double-pad or a single-pad arena, he added.

"If we're not going to do either of those things, we need to give staff some direction by the end of the year to move on with this project, to keep it on the shelf for the future."


What's next?


If you would like to apply to become a Verified reader Verified Commenter, please fill out this form.


Discussion


David Helwig

About the Author: David Helwig

David Helwig's journalism career spans seven decades beginning in the 1960s. His work has been recognized with national and international awards.
Read more