Halifax’s fast-track list of favored developers shouldn’t be kept secret: expert

It’s billed as a win-win: a fast lane for a select list of city developers to get their projects done.

The premier says it will mean more housing, more quickly.

Halifax’s Trusted Partner Program is part of a controversial bill passed this fall by the Progressive Conservatives that shifts planning and development authority from the municipality to the office of the housing minister. 

What we know is that the program will give an exclusive group of developers considerable savings: “expedited administrative and residential development approvals.” 

But the government won’t say whether the public will find out who’s selected to the group and on what basis. That’s a problem, says Carleton University professor Philippe Lagassé, who previously served on an independent panel charged with assessing military procurements.

“If you’re going to enter into a long-term arrangement with any kind of private entity, you want to assure people that it’s all done correctly and according to proper justification,” said Lagassé. 

“People need to know you’re getting value for money.”

That means clearly laying out the methodology and the process of deciding who gets into the program, he said.

SaltWire reached out to the Department of Housing twice in as many weeks to ask whether the names of the developers would be shared with the public. There was no answer. 

Experts have raised concerns about the program, saying millions of dollars are at stake and the risk of fraud and corruption is high without transparency and close independent oversight. 

SaltWire also asked about the criteria for being a trusted partner, who would be overseeing the group and what exactly developers would be getting in return. The department didn’t answer those questions. According to a department spokesperson, the program is in its early stages of development.

“To be clear, no developers have been approved for the program as the program details and criteria are still in development. Upon implementation, the program will be administered by HRM. This includes decisions about Trusted Partners.”

The province had been mulling the idea of the program for more than a year. It was laid out in a report to the minister 14 months ago. The Deloitte report even recommended a program with the same name “whereby developers who meet set criteria would  have an enhanced relationship with HRM.” Advantages of being part of the select group ranged from “fast-track line for approvals” to being at “the table to help develop solutions to macro issues.”

By now, basic information about the program should be available, including some specific criteria about who gets into the exclusive group, said Lagassé.

“On what basis are you determining that they are a trusted partner? There needs to be some methodology applied to selecting these trusted partners.

“Ideally, you’d like some explanation of how you’re going to do this.

“When it comes to public procurement of any kind, you want to be able to show your work. How did you get there?”

Lagassé said he appreciates that the province wants to move fast in the face of the housing crisis, but it should not be at the risk of being reckless.  

“There’s nothing stopping you from going fast but when you’re going to go fast, when you’re going to try to do things differently, you want to be crystal clear about how you’re doing it. Otherwise, you undermine public trust.”