I believe that CSEC didn't want to proceed right now anyway due to inflation and cost uncertainty. That's a totally reasonable position, and probably the right decision at the moment.
This whole kerfuffle seems to me to be a play by Edwards and CSEC to weaken Gondek and scare the public that Calgary will lose the Flames. All so they can get a better deal. A better deal might add another $100 million to the Flames' value.
If CSEC wanted to preserve the deal, they wouldn't have put Gondek in such a precarious situation. Sure you can argue that Gondek stepped in it, but if CSEC wanted the deal to go through, they could have and would have saved Gondek from herself.
It's a win-win for Edwards. Apply last minute pressure to a new Mayor and a council full of rookies to squeeze out some concessions. Or apply last minute pressure and blow up the deal over Gondek's pet projects, drop the mess in Gondek's lap and come back in a year and negotiate a better deal.
Why pause the deal for a year and resume the same deal when you can blow it up and try to negotiate a better deal?
Edwards is a negotiator. He knows what he's doing. He does this for a living. Getting the public riled up and blaming the Mayor is his play here. There's a lot of posters who have fallen for it.
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