Transcript CBC Winnipeg Radio One Information Radio July 8, 2004 7:20 AM CBC: And Sam Katz has been in the Mayor’s office for just over two weeks now. Not much time on the surface, but a lifetime if you’re learning the ropes for the first time. As the owner of the Goldeyes Sam Katz had to fight City Hall to get the ballpark built. Now he’s on the other side. Mayor Katz joins us now. Hi there. Sam Katz: Good morning. CBC: So what’s kept you most busy since you took over at City Hall? SK: Well, you know what, it, the morning’s always start off almost every day with seven or seven-thirty AM interviews and then you’re in the office, and there’s been a lot of… meetings go on all day long. Whether, you know, you’re getting briefed on topics, on many of which are contentious issues and then you’ve got Standing Committees, and obviously there’s Executive Policy Committee. It just doesn’t end, it keeps on going and of course there’s always appearances where you want to give greetings from the City. It’s a busy hectic time, but it’s been great so far. CBC: Can we talk a bit about some of those contentious things, because many Winnipegers want to know… SK: (Laughter) CBC: where you stand on this for example on the… SK: If I said No, would you stop? Of course, we can talk about it. (Laughter) CBC: Well, I was hoping that you might be prepared to talk about it. SK: By all means. CBC: I mean, a lot of people are curious about the way you think. And your attitudes about some of the big things on many people’s minds. What about this big Waverley West development, 10,000 homes down on the southwest corner of the City? Have you figured out where you stand on whether this ought to get underway and how it should? SK: Well, I’m actually, yes, of course I’ve figured it out, because that was a very contentious issue during the election. It came up in almost every forum and debate that we had. And what I said then is what I basically continue to say today, is that, we have different situations where we have to have housing. Of course we always look at infill housing. And we look at housing such as Waverley West, and I’ve always felt that people should have the option to decide what their lifestyle should be and where they want to live. By the other side, if there is going to be a development I truly believe that the development, i.e. the developers, have to pay for it And what I mean…    In the past, when there have been these urban developments, you know, they have paid for the development, but all the other costs such as providing, you know, transit, et cetera, to the area, it’s always seem to have been borne by the City and I’ve said right from the beginning that if a development such as this is going to take place, that all the costs have to be borne by the developer, including situations where you can see for example that down the road there will be situations that will arrive which will have an expense attached to them, and only are there because of this development, those are costs that also have to be borne, i.e., there’s onsite costs and there’s offsite costs. If all those things are addressed, I can certainly accept the fact that we do need more housing for the City of Winnipeg. CBC: So building a community that’s roughly the size of Brandon in that southwest corner, are you saying then that the private sector should bear some of the cost of the rapid transit that would be required to move those people? SK: Well, you have to, listen, there’s schools, there’s recreation areas, there’s transit, it goes on and on and on. You know, there’s impacts on the roads, getting people, you know, access and egress. These costs have to be borne by the developer. And you know what, when people throw these things around, the size of Brandon, okay, (laughter) let’s just, you know, it’s words like that that I think scare people. It’s not like you are going to go to bed tonight and wake up tomorrow and all of a sudden there is going to be a new city there. This is over, like, a twenty-year period of time. It’s not happening overnight. CBC: But you’ve said that you’re not a, do I have it right, not a fan of the rapid transit proposal that’s on the table now. Wouldn’t it seem logical that if this community grows there that we’ll rapid transit to help to meet some of the transportation needs? SK: No, I have never, ever said I am not a fan of rapid transit. What I have said is that the bus rapid transit that has been discussed to date is something that we should revisit to make sure that… One. It’s going to work. Number 2. The monies that are being spent there are being spent wisely. That’s what I have been saying. CBC: Now, let’s switch gears a bit and talk a bit about the old Winnipeg Arena site. What would you like to see happen on that old Winnipeg Arena site? SK: You know, I love when people ask that question, my answer is, what does it matter? I mean, what I want is irrelevant. There has to be a proponent who wants to come and do it. It’s not up to me or Council. You know, this is a situation where the private sector has come forth. As you know, there were many people who wanted to be a water park there. Unfortunately, we never had a proponent to come forward who wanted to really build a water park. They were testing the waters, but what most people don’t know is in addition to their water park, their proposal, okay, also consisted of a great amount of retail and a great amount of residential. So, I mean, what they’re dealing with right now is what the private sector is interested in doing, and that will be something that Property and Development will be dealing with, and I’m certainly not going to interfere with the process that is taking place right now. CBC: Would you oblige though, if there is a commercial development going on there, the private sector, again, to be involved in dealing with some of the traffic issues that arise from that. That’s one of the things that many people have said about the new expansion of the big box stores in the Polo Park neighbourhood is that enough consideration wasn’t given to the needs of transportation and streets and roads around those kind of new businesses. SK: And I agree with them. It wasn’t. They are absolutely correct. It wasn’t. And they are trying to deal with it, and I think it is something we have to address before more and more goes in there. You are absolutely correct. Listen, I’m not going to pretend, I drive down there too and so do you. And the more development that goes in that area the more congested it gets and we have to find solutions. Unfortunately, sometimes after the fact. It’s not easy to find a solution.    But yes, that’s certainly something that we have to give consideration to. CBC: Now, where do you stand on the issue of the barriers at Portage and Main? SK: What issue? CBC: Well, the question of, there was a kind of momentum that Glen Murray was developing…you know, to deal with the City crossing proposal, and to get people thinking in a different way about trying to develop a sense in the community that perhaps it was the time to think about taking those barriers down. So, that’s what I mean. SK: So here’s the dilemma. I mean, first of all, there’s no issue because what is, is what is. I grew up with no barriers at Portage and Main. I used to cross the street all the time. As you know, many years ago, there was an agreement signed. You know. Several partners were involved. And that was shut down. And what I have been saying is why does this question get asked over and over again. Until the partners of that agreement come forward to the City, and say we are prepared to void the agreement and you guys can do anything you want, i.e., Council can make a decision, there’s nothing to talk about. We have a deal. CBC: But can’t you apply any pressure to them to consider this more seriously? SK: Well, let me ask you a question. If I sell you a house for $150,000, and we sign a deal, okay, its signed, you give me a deposit, everything is done, what pressure can I put on you to say, “You know what. I want you to pay $200,000 for that house?” No. I can’t do that. It’s ludicrous.    And I can tell you right now that some of the partners involved in that deal have no intention of changing it. They have no intention. Now if you want to talk about whether that deal was a good deal or a bad deal, fine, we can do that, but you know what? What does it matter? It was done so many years ago that there is nothing that anybody can do about it.    So you know what, there’s been a lot of talk about it, but no one has come forward and said, “Yes, we’re prepared to let you out of that deal.” So that’s not reality. So why would I spend all this time talking about something that’s not real? CBC: Now, one more question before you go. There’s been a lot of concern raised lately about the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, and some of the challenges that it’s facing raising the full amount of money required. What kind of pressure, what kind of good will, can you call forth to make sure that this project happens? SK: Well, (sigh), I mean, there’s been a lot of talk which we’ve all heard, I mean, people saying, “Yes, there was a commitment, no there wasn’t a commitment. We didn’t sign anything, we just talked about things.” I can only tell you this, is that I do have a meeting coming up in the very near future with Gail Asper, and we will be discussing exactly what you just asked me and we’ll see what we can do.    But keep in mind. I mean, we’re not in a position to discuss the kind of issue that they are talking about in the past. I mean, if there was a commitment made by the federal government prior to the election, that’s something, but we certainly will explore all opportunities to make this a reality. I mean, this was a dream from a great man who did so much for this city. I think it’s a fantastic idea. And I think that all Canadians should support this to the best of their ability, and that includes me and you. CBC: Are you worried about this? SK: No, I’m not worried about it. Not at this stage in the game. No. I mean, when I have a conversation, and when Gail tells me what the facts are right now…Let’s put it this way, if there’s a problem, you sit down and you identify the problem and you address how to come up with a solution. But we’re going to work towards it. CBC: Okay. Sam Katz, thanks for your time this morning. SK: Thank you. CBC: Appreciate it. SK: Bye Bye. CBC: Sam Katz, the Mayor of Winnipeg. You are listening to CBC Radio One, 990.