Media Release For Immediate Release – February 22, 2010 Building Bancroft Bringing in Financial Experts to Assess Project Viability As the work on the Business Case for the Building Bancroft Project heads into the final few weeks, independent and expert financial advisors are being hired to assess the financial risks the Town might face in moving forward with the Project. The Building Bancroft Project Committee is proceeding with an invitational RFP for the provision of specialized accounting and financial modelling services, which will likely be provided by national accounting/consulting firms. The primary purpose of this work, which must be completed in the next few weeks, is review the findings of the other consultants that are preparing the Project Business Case, and to fully assess the financial risks associated with the Project. PKF Consulting will be preparing the final elements of the Business Case, which will assess the economic feasibility of the Project, for both the Town and private sector partners. The risk assessment will clarify exactly what is affordable for the Town. In addition to clarifying that financing risks for the Project won't all sit with the Town, the risk assessment will identify potential funding and financing structures and sources. Preliminary discussions about financing options have been held among Town staff, Project staff, the Project’s legal counsel and a representative of P3 Canada, a federal government agency that has a $1.2 Billion fund designed to stimulate P3 (public private partnership) projects. The Project Committee has recognized the need to further demonstrate that the major financial risks would and could be allocated other than to the Town (higher level governments, private developers, lenders). The Committee expects that this additional review will add financial rigour and defensible independence to the report, will be valuable to the project's short term and long term success, and will assist at both a political level and at a financing level to build further momentum. Project staff expects that the work of the financial advisors can be achieved in the short time available prior to March 31st, when federal funding support for the current phase of the Project comes to an end. -30- Contact: Larry McTaggart – 613-332-3331 Chair, Building Bancroft Project Committee Deputy Mayor, Town of Bancroft |
