It is behaviour such as Abbotsford City Hall’s action on the Old Spaghetti Factory application that leaves thinking people shaking their heads.

I expect that something will be worked out and that we will get an Old Spaghetti Factory in that location. I also expect that the business people who had the misfortune to find themselves dealing with Abbotsford City Hall will be telling other potential investors that they DO NOT want to do business in Abbotsford; that you want to drive on by Abbotsford if you are looking to do or open a business simply because dealing with Abbotsford City Hall is a time wasting, irrational pain in the a*s.

Perhaps there are some parking issues but… we are not talking about building a NEW Old Spaghetti Factory, we are speaking of putting a restaurant into an existing building that housed … a restaurant. That is correct: they are proposing to put a restaurant into a location that previously housed an approved restaurant, same location, the very same building. Understandably someone looking to put in an Old Spaghetti Factory would choose a location that previously contained a restaurant and expect no problems.

I do not care if there are some minor parking issues (if they were not reasonably minor the project would be dead). Abbotsford City Hall approved putting a restaurant in that location originally; it is unreasonable, unpredictable behaviour to suddenly question the suitability of this location for a restaurant. And Abbotsford City Hall wonders why rational, intelligent people do not want to do business in the City.

Personally I think the people behind the proposal should have told Abbotsford City Hall that there was no problem. There is a city bus route servicing that location and customers can park at Seven Oaks Mall and take transit to and from the Old Spaghetti Factory.

What I, potential investors, business people and any reasonable human being what to know is why there is such a difference in the rules for businesses, citizens etc and Abbotsford City Hall. A shortage of half a parking space can scuttle a proposal for others, but Abbotsford City Hall can be short thousands of parking spaces and create traffic chaos and all is fine. Is this the kind of behaviour you want in people you do business with? If Abbotsford City Hall wants to see why people and businesses drive on by and avoid the City – just look in any mirror.

So we are paying Spectrum $5,000 a month, a fee soon to increase by 50%, for their “expertise”. This would be the same “expertise” that produced the debacle at the ECHL all-star game? I am sure the ECHL was impressed by the lack of preparation and knowledge displayed by City representatives travelling on the taxpayer’s credit card.

Given Abbotsford City Hall’s track record I fail to understand why they had to pay for Spectrum’s “expertise” to appear of questionable intelligence. With brilliant moves such as their behaviour/failure on the Provincial funding front, Abbotsford City Hall is clearly capable of demonstrating incompetence without wasting tax dollars on outside “expertise”.

While on the subject of Spectrum: was it not just a few months ago that Abbotsford City Hall was claiming the reason to have brought Spectrum in was not to help sell Plan A snake, but to help secure an ECHL team through “expertise” and “connections” – the same rational that was used to sell the claim that major Ice Shows and Bands would be breaking down the doors to perform at the new arena? We have seen Spectrum’s performance with the ECHL, which raises serious questions about their ability to deliver the promised performers.

I would like to know why it is the city is doing the work vis-à-vis the ECHL when this was part of the stated reasons for brining in Spectrum and where were Spectrums claimed “connections” and “expertise” at the ECHL all-star fiasco. Based on their performance so far I fail to see why we are wasting our tax dollars on Spectrum Unless of course Abbotsford City Hall feels the need to have someone to blame, blame and excuse making being a demonstrated expertise of Abbotsford City Hall, when the arena shows its true colours: white, as in Abbotsford City Hall’s giant White Elephant – bleeding taxpayers dollars.

That certainly explains the mismanagement of Abbotsford by Abbotsford City Hall and I certainly believe him. I am speaking of city manager Gary Guthrie’s statement about Abbotsford City Hall lacking expertise. Of course in this case he was speaking specifically to the contact with MHPM Project Managers on Plan A. Then there was the lack of “expertise” that led to the Spectrum contract and then there is… and then there is … . A little lack here and a little lack there and before long you are totally lacking in expertise.

The proposed construction projects and day-to-day operations of the proposed Arena are fairly simple operations to manage in comparison to the management required to meet the City of Abbotsford’s operational and business needs. Rather clearly explains why Abbotsford is so badly run, does it not?

Abbotsford City Hall will undoubtedly have an excuse, after all serving special interests, ignoring citizens, bad financial management and making excuses are demonstrated areas of major expertise. It is truly unfortunate that there is no demand in other municipalities for these skills, especially excuse making, otherwise Abbotsford would have a source of revenue that would render the casino/revenue debate moot once and for all.

Let us ignore, as did Mr. Guthrie, the fact that project delivery on time and within budget would, for most cities, be specified in and part of the project construction contract as Mr. Beck promised during the slick Plan A sales campaign. After all the process that led to the hiring of MHPM was so badly managed and executed that 3 of 4 contractors could not understand what it was Abbotsford City Hall wanted done. Defining the requirements of this type of management contract is small potatoes really, easy, simple and straight forward in comparison to the complexity of setting out what you want built when you refuse to be bothered drawing up architectural and engineering plans to present to the bidders. Leaving me shuddering at the potential for disaster inherent in the lack of competence just demonstrated by Abbotsford City Hall in clearly setting out – in even this relatively simple matter – what is required from the bidder.

More directly on this question of expertise, I know of at least two people in Abbotsford who are capable of managing these construction projects, available on a contract basis for considerably less that $524,250, who would be devoting full time to the project management. The idea of time devoted to actually managing the projects is important because, as anyone familiar with these types of management contracts would tell you, there are not likely a great number of hours available within this contract to be spent on actual management.

Of course hiring somebody locally to oversee project construction or running the proposed Arena would leave witnesses of what actually took place in Abbotsford and available to tell the citizens of Abbotsford what went or is going wrong. I tip my hat to Abbotsford City Hall’s brilliant posterior covering insurance policy with MHPM Inc which ensures them someone out of town to blame for the debacle Plan A holds promise to become. Leaving witnesses safely hidden away in Ottawa or the USA.

As I said, the City would have a fantastic source of revenue if only there was a need or demand in other municipalities for this kind of cover-you-posterior activity. Instead we are left with the $524,250 cost of posterior insurance for Abbotsford City Hall. But then what is another paltry $524,250 added into the $97,000, 000+ nightmare that is Plan A? After all, it is only taxpayer’s money, a few additional percentage points on the old tax bill.

How was it that I missed this major change?

Just a quick question about how it is that Mr. Guthrie can say we need to employ a Project Manager because “(City) staff is unable to dedicate neither the required time not specialist skills…”; then state that they excepted the lowest bid, even when it was grossly out of line with the three other bids on the grounds that work would be carried out by the city?

If the accepted bid requires the city to dedicate time to project management, but as Mr.. Guthrie asserts “staff is unable to dedicate… the required time…” who is going to do the work – City Halls Fairy Godmother or will it just not get done leading to further disaster on the DISASTER that is Plan A.

Citizens had certainly better hope that Abbotsford City Hall suddenly develops the ability to define project requirements correctly, accurately and in great detail. If they are so bad at defining their needs that three out of four contractors could not understand what it was that Abbotsford City Hall wanted done on a small Plan A contract such as this, just how BIG a mess are they going to bring down on the heads and pocketbooks of the citizen taxpayers of Abbotsford with the remainder of Plan A?

Does no one at Abbotsford City Hall understand the concept of careful consideration, thinking things through, acting with due deliberation and diligence? It would appear, based on reading the coverage in the local papers, that the question: is it rational, intelligent behaviour to go running around madly trying to get a bid for an ECHL team, a bid that should be a year or more in the making, done in a month?

Desperation is a very, very bad position to be bargaining from. And Abbotsford City Hall is well past desperate on this matter given the multimillion dollar mistake they made on Plan A already, in not having the common sense to secure provincial funds BEFORE taking it to the taxpayers. Now they face the looming possibility of the mirage of an ECHL team they sold the taxpayers as part of their snake-oil sales pitch, disappearing the way all mirages do when approached.

How many more dollars is Abbotsford City Hall’s desperation going to cost taxpayers? What is Abbotsford City Hall willing to pay to avoid being so clearly stuck with a white elephant of an arena? Given their demonstrated inability to admit misjudgement and accept responsibility for local taxpayers being stuck footing the entire bill for Plan A, one can only expect them to adopt an attitude of “cover our A**es”. I fear, based on their attitude and performance so far on Plan A, they will be willing to spend any amount of taxpayer’s money in order to hide from reality or acceptance of responsibility.

I have little doubt that with a willingness to throw any amount of money at this situation, you may well be able to find a black knight to ride to the rescue of Abbotsford City Hall and their white elephant. I say black knight because the bills for this team are likely to end up being paid by taxpayers.

Should Abbotsford City Hall find their black knight I think we can be sure of two things. The first is that Abbotsford City Hall will crank up the smoke machines and roll out the mirrors to once again sell a mirage to taxpayers. And two, that all the important financial arrangements and agreements that lead to a team in the city will be deemed sensitive and hidden from taxpayers as none of their business.

OK three things. The third being that should you decide you really want to know what was agreed to and pursue the truth trough “freedom of information legislation” the city will fight you, as they have and continue to do with those seeking full disclosure on the original finances for Plan A.

This behaviour has left taxpayers only one option in dealing with Abbotsford City Hall: caveat emptor – let the taxpayer beware.