Sunday, May 17, 2009

Hard To Believe.... she's still in charge.....

I guess I must have been South when this news item passed the wire but I was out on the Links on Saturday and a couple of my buddies were laughing about PEI's golf situation... the Minister tries to make the argument that it's not the right time to sell PEI’s golf courses because of the economy but just last month right in our own backyard one of the partners of Eagles Glenn in Cavendish offered to buy out all the other partners.... a bidding war ensued and another partner bid higher and is now the new owner... and guess what "competition and no fire sale" in this market... but Minister Docherty won't even call for proposals to see what we can get for the courses... she taking the word of some "consultants" that say we won't get a fair offer in this market... probably the same consultants the Government engaged for the beef plant, the pork plant, the fish plants, and the "Tech" centre and we know how good a job they did there... Government shouldn't be in private business like golf courses and the last thing they should be doing is leaving the fate of the taxpayer's investment in the naive hands of a Minister and her Deputy who have ABSOLUTELY NO BUSINESS EXPERIENCE and that my friends is what you need before you can get a return on your investment... oh! let’s wind up the meat plant and get “nothing” for the $20 million dollar building but put some local beef growers out of business because it’s losing $200,000 a month…. well guess what… the golf courses aren’t doing much better but "keep them open" so guys like me will have a place to play and they can give away a few more “rounds” to friends… hey, how about a few free steaks for my "barbie"… seriously if you don't "put something on the market" how do you know what you can get and if you "don't get" a reasonable offer then you don't have to sell.... but at least you tried to live up to your commitment...
For sale signs off provincial golf courses
NIGEL ARMSTRONG
The Guardian
The for sale signs are off the four government-owned golf courses on P.E.I., Tourism Minister Valerie Docherty said Thursday. “We committed to having an evaluation done of the potential salability of the courses,” said Docherty of Dundarave, Brudenell, Crowbush and Mill River. “As well, we had to have legal title searches done because one course in particular, Brudenell, seemed to have property, after property expansions. It was hard to know how many properties were involved. “When the report came back to us this past winter it basically was determined, particularly because of the economic situation, that although the value of the courses were probably acceptable, nobody was going to be willing to pay for it at this time,” she said. “To have a garage sale of our courses just was not in the best interest of Islanders and taxpayers.” Docherty would not say how much the courses are worth, saying the report is being kept confidential “from a competitive perspective.” During the last election, Robert Ghiz promised to sell money-losing provincial golf courses, which are competing against private ones. “Too many Island dollars have been spent on golf,” Ghiz said during a May 2007 news conference. Last year Tim Banks offered $6.6 million for the Links at Crowbush Cove, saying he wanted to put seasonal homes around the course and perhaps turn it into a semi-private affair. At that time Banks told The Guardian that the province had allowed Crowbush to deteriorate from what he predicted could have been a sale value of $20 million or more. Docherty said last July that she was in no hurry to sell and was waiting at that time for the economic and legal report on the golf course sales plan. “If someone came along and made an offer that we could defend very easily to the taxpayers, we would certainly consider it,” she said Thursday. “We don’t have the for sale sign out but that doesn’t mean you can’t come to the table.”

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