Could be an end of era for Guv Complex? :(
 http://www.thestar.com/News/article/209041
friend posted this on a local forum :'(
Bayfront office tower bid endorsed
May 01, 2007 04:30 AM
Paul Moloney
city hall bureau
A $159.5 million taxpayer-financed waterfront building was enthusiastically endorsed yesterday by city council's powerful executive committee.
The seven-storey office development, to be leased to Toronto-based Corus Entertainment, is to be built with a $132 million loan from the city, $15 million from the city's economic development agency and $12.5 million from the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corp.
The project is seen as a way to bring 1,300 jobs to the East Bayfront section of the waterfront, just east of the Tate & Lyle (formerly Redpath) sugar refinery.
Developers want to put up condominiums on the north side of Queen's Quay, so it's important to secure jobs on the water's edge, said TWRC president John Campbell.
"From our point of view on the public side, I think the onus is on us on the south side to try to drive as much commercial development as possible and get jobs down there," he said. "That is really, really critical."
The return on the public investment is estimated at 8 to 8.5 per cent, slightly lower than a private sector investor would require, said Joe Pennachetti, the city's chief financial officer.
Another public benefit is the expectation surrounding public lands will rise in value, the committee was told.
"Council at the end of the day must weight the project's public benefits," Pennachetti said. "From my perspective, the employment benefit kickoff for the waterfront is a very positive force for us moving forward..."
Mayor David Miller urged councillors to look beyond the city's naysaying political culture. "We need to learn how to say yes." If approved by council, construction would begin in August, with Corus moving into the building in November 2009.
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