After a few months of silence, we finally has some news on the LeBreton Flats RFP proposal process.
#NCC confirms decision on “preferred” bid for Lebreton Flats dev. will be revealed @NCC_CCN Board meeting next Thurs. Apr. 28. @ctvottawa
— John Ruttle (@JohnRuttlectv) April 21, 2016
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What this means is that after the submission of the DCDLS and RendezVous bids, the NCC has examined and assessed each bid against the criteria outlined within the RFP documentation.
According to said documentation, “the NCC will be in a position to engage with the business terms and conditions to be contained in the development agreement(s) contemplated in this process.”
Since the NCC has admitted that it has a preferred proponent, once this proponent is informed of the decision, the NCC will then negotiate a development agreement with the identified party. The NCC “may use the negotiation process to finalize any aspect of a proponent’s submission.”
The wrinkle in the RFP documentation is that if the NCC fails to come to terms with the preferred proponent, the NCC reserves the right to “enter into negotiations with the second highest ranked proponent.”
If that is not enough, the NCC also has the authority to “enter into separate and distinct but contemporaneous negotiations with the first and second ranked submissions and identify a preferred proponent following the conclusion of those negotiations.”
Whether or not the negotiations ever get to this point remains to be seen, but it’s important to note that just because a preferred proponent will be named next week, it doesn’t preclude either group from being the one that gets to redevelop LeBreton Flats.
Once the preferred proponent has been named and an agreement has been reached, the process then requires Treasury Board recommendation and Governor-in-Council approval. Once it formally has these approvals, the agreement will be binding.
It’s exciting to think that we’re one step closer to realizing a new downtown home for the Ottawa Senators, but the consequences of the NCC’s decision for which is group is preferred will have interesting ramifications.
If DCDLS is successful, it will only fuel speculation that Melnyk may be pushed to sell the franchise since nobody views the Senators’ long-term future being in Kanata. Without a primary tenant in their proposed arena, DCDLS has let it be known that they are interested in scooping up the team from Melnyk.
If Melnyk is successful however, he will get the new arena that he desperately seeks and with it, he will continue to maximize this team’s revenue streams and boost the franchise value to new levels.
The April 28th public meeting of the NCC Board of Directors is open to the public to observe. According to the NCC’s website, the meeting will last from 9 am to 3 pm (with a lunch break from noon to 1 pm). The agenda for the meeting has not been disclosed, but the website promises to publish it in advance of the meeting.
The meeting will take place in the NCC’s headquarters at 40 Elgin Street in Room 324.
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