Comment 71463

By Nox (anonymous) | Posted November 20, 2011 at 08:19:06

"If the shortlisted RFPs were made public, there could be pressure brought to bear to change or alter, or one bidder’s excellent idea could be lifted by another to gain unfair advantage. But even if you accept this defence, there’s an easy way to get around it. IO could receive the bids in confidence, share them confidentially with appropriate people, and manage the back-and-forth that is inevitable between bidders and the contractor. Then, when all bidders have done whatever fine tuning is necessary, declare the RFPs complete and make the short list public. That removes the risk of competitive advantage being lost because all three bidders are in the same position, have taken their best shot and cannot make further adjustments.

That’s not going to happen. Instead, IO, with input from city staff and the Pan Am subcommittee, will select a winning bid from the three, and only then will the details made public. So city taxpayers, and the majority of city council — councillors not on the subcommittee are kept in the dark, too — are on the hook for $45 million for a project they only get a look at once it’s a done deal. It may be legally and procedurally defensible, but it’s still wrong."

http://www.thespec.com/opinion/editorial/article/627604--too-much-secrecy-around-taxpayers-stadium

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