Winnipeg officials, mayoral candidates respond to police HQ inquiry report

The inquiry into the police headquarters construction project criticized past city executives and found serious flaws in how the city manages major projects. Mayor Scott Gillingham and CAO Joseph Dunford say they accept the report's conclusions. While the inquiry report examines events that occurred under a prior administration, their significance and the impact they had on public trust is not diminished. We take those findings very seriously. Gillingham highlighted part of Commissioner Garth Smorang's report praising the city's decision to pursue legal action against Caspian Construction owner Aramik Babikianians, which ultimately recovered more than $29 million for the city. It sent a clear message. If you try to rip off the city of Winnipeg and its taxpayers, we're going to come after you. Neither of the two current leading candidates in the Winnipeg mayoral election were on council at the time of the police headquarters construction, but both used the inquiry report and its recommendations as an opportunity to attack the other. Former city councillor Kevin Kline criticized Gillingham for not supporting his call for a forensic audit. Not enough has been done under his tenure to ensure that this will never happen again. Gillingham responded by pointing out that Kline voted against money for the legal battle against the contractor. If we followed Mr. Kline's advice back then and his judgment, we'd be $30 million poorer. Gillingham and Dunford say they will come up with an implementation plan for the report's recommendations. They also didn't rule out the possibility of further legal action to recover more money. Cameron McLean, CBC News, Winnipeg.