I have more details of the city’s improper loan program. Yesterday, we knew that through 2010 some $2.25 million had ben funnelled through the Metro Centre in the form of loans to Power Promotions.
But the program had been in existence since 2008. That year, $950,00 in loans were issued to Power Promotions related to the Keith Urban concert on the Common. In 2009, an additional $2.4 million was advanced to Power Promotions related to that year’s KISS concert.
All the 2008 and 2009 monies were repaid in full, but without interest.
Of the 2010 loans, $359,550 was not repaid.
Anstey retires
At an emergency city council meeting held this afternoon, acting CAO Wayne Anstey resigned, effective immediately. Deputy CAO Mike Labrecque is now the city’s top bureaucrat until newly hired CAO Richard Butts takes office March 28.
Kelly avoids answering direct questions
After today’s council meeting, mayor Peter Kelly was scrummed by reporters. I had a particularly interesting back-and-forth with him. I’ll post the recording later tonight in this space.
For The Coast’s complete coverage of the Common concert financing scandal, click here.
This article appears in Mar 17-23, 2011.
Kelly is unfit to be Mayor.
He has not been upfront with the taxpayers.
he knew about the payments.
RESIGN NOW.
Anybody got a ‘Kelly Out’ petition ?
No petition yet but there’s a facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_…
If tweeting, please hashtag with #scandalpalooza #DumpKelly #HorriblyRunMunicipality
That was the most passionate “yes or no” exchange since Paradise By The Dashboard Light.
IMHO Peter Kelly has been an embarrassment to Halifax for years – blowing in the wind, showing no leadership, vision or backbone. For him to say in a CBC interview that “the buck stops here” then go on to blame Anstey, city lawyers, an unclear policy etc. without accepting any responsibility himself was a disgraceful, pathetic display from a disgraced, pathetic man.
Kelly is getting lousy advice.
He needs to own up to what he knew, what he did, why he kept it from the council, and what he thinks should be changed in the HRM Charter and policies to ensure such actions never happen again.
He was not forthcoming yesterday and today he finally fessed up, but only after Anstey disclosed that Kelly knew what was going on.
Kelly needs to call a press conference on Friday, make a full and honest disclosure and then take questions.
Or resign and take his chances at the polling booth.
Until then, he cannot be trusted.
Soooo…Power Promotions paid back loans of 950K, then 2.4 million in 2008 and 2009 respectively. Then Power promotions fell 400K short on 2.5 million and everyone is outraged?
Let me get this straight, if I get a loan and pay it back, then get another loan and pay it back, I shouldn’t get a third loan. What am I missing?
KalvinCline, the point is not how much of the money was paid back, the point is that the loans were made without proper oversight or approval, AND Kelly lied about it, AND hid it from the public.
If you went to a bank and the teller gave you an interest free loan by taking money from the till and you later paid it back, then did the same again, you better believe that the teller would go to jail if they were ever caught!
Kalvin – What are you missing ?
A couple of key elements :
1) Banks are in the business of lending to businesses and individuals. They usually ask for security in case you cannot repay the loan or they charge a high rate of interest for an unsecured loan.
2) HRM is not a bank. The legislation does not allow them to lend money to any individual, business or organisation, thank goodness.
@KalvinCline: A lot. You’re missing a lot.
@ quinngate:
Exactly!
The facegroup Peter Kelly resign, is not open to everyone.
Just ask the administrators to confirm.
So now the city is being run by Mike Labrecque, the man who was one of the main proponents of the Commonwealth games and spent 2 weeks in Australia on the city’s dime to “observe the Games there”, along with his entire family. Anyone who thinks that Labrecque is clean from all this is delusional.
Kalvin, when your bank opens, please give me a shout and I’ll be right over with a big sack!
Like Moncton, Hfx shd not be bankrolling concerts for private, for-profit businesses. That’s not why I pay taxes. Kelly is either an incomptent or a liar and all the secrecy has to stop. This “hush, hush, wink and nod” culture with Municipal gov’t has to stop. However you feel about Kelly, the City has stagnated during his tenure.