Renewal of Agreement to Permit Molson Indy Race

at Exhibition Place for 1998, 1999 and 2000.

The Urban Environment and Development Committee recommends the adoption of Recommendations Nos. (1), (2), (3) and (5), embodied in the joint report (March 4, 1998) from the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services and the Interim Functional Lead, Transportation.

The Urban Environment and Development Committee reports, for the information of Council, having:

(1) concurred with Recommendation No. (4) embodied in the joint report (March 4, 1998) from the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services and the Interim Functional Lead, Transportation, viz:

"(4) that a copy of this report be forwarded to the Toronto Community Council for its meeting on April 1, 1998, for information;"; and

(2) requested the City Solicitor to submit a report directly to Council, for consideration with this matter at its meeting scheduled to be held on April 16, 1998, on whether an indemnity should be obtained from Molson Breweries of Canada Limited in addition to the indemnity obtained from Molstar Sports and Entertainment.

The Urban Environment and Development Committee submits the following joint report (March 4, 1998) from the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services, and the Interim Functional Lead, Transportation:

Purpose:

To obtain authority to enter into an Agreement with Molson Breweries of Canada Limited, Molstar Sports and Entertainment and the Board of Governors of Exhibition Place to permit the staging of the 1998, 1999 and 2000 Molson Indy races.

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

No funds are required in connection with this report.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1) an Agreement between the City of Toronto, the Board of Governors of Exhibition Place, Molson Breweries of Canada Limited and Molstar Sports and Entertainment be authorized to permit the Molson Indy Race to be held in 1998, 1999 and 2000, in a form and content satisfactory to the City Solicitor, the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services and the City Treasurer, and on substantially the same terms and conditions as the previous Agreement executed by the parties;

(2) the approval of the Agreement set out in Recommendation No. (1) above be subject to the renewal of an Agreement between the Board of Governors of Exhibition Place, Molson Breweries of Canada Limited and Molstar Sports and Entertainment for the 1998, 1999 and 2000 Molson Indy races;

(3) should Recommendations Nos. (1) and (2) above be approved, such approval be subject to the condition that Molson Breweries of Canada Limited and Molstar Sports and Entertainment obtain the necessary City of Toronto approvals each year prior to staging the race;

(4) this report be forwarded to the Toronto Community Council for its meeting on April 1, 1998, for information; and

(5) the appropriate City officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto, including the introduction in Council of any Bills that may be required.

Background:

Molson Indy organizers have requested, in a letter dated January 30, 1998, from Mr. James H. Tario, Senior Manager, Molstar Sports and Entertainment to Councillor Chris Korwin-Kuczynski, that City Council ratify an Agreement, as has been the case in previous years, to permit the Molson Indy race to be held for the three-year period comprising 1998, 1999 and 2000.

Discussion:

Under Section 1(2) of the City of Toronto Act, 1978, Council must authorize the racing of any motor vehicles within the City of Toronto.

The City, Molson Breweries of Canada Limited (through its corporate affiliate Molstar Sports and Entertainment for the purposes of the Molson Indy) and the Board of Governors of Exhibition Place (the "Board") have entered into Agreements since 1986 to allow the staging of the Molson Indy race subject to certain terms and conditions including indemnification of the City, adequate insurance coverage, a community and public official consultation process, deadline for submissions of the operating plan for upcoming races and various safety matters. The Agreements have encompassed a three-year period, with the current Agreement between the City, Molson Breweries of Canada Limited ("Molson") and the Board having expired after the 1997 race. A separate agreement between Molson and the Board has also come to an end.

In the letter from Mr. Tario to Councillor Korwin-Kuczynski dated January 30, 1998, Molstar is requesting that City Council approve a further Agreement with the City and the Board to conduct races for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000. Documentation provided by Molstar Sports and Entertainment includes a letter dated January 14, 1998, from Ms. D. Young, Interim General Manager, Exhibition Place, which indicates that the Board is in the process of negotiating an Agreement to permit the 1998 race. It is anticipated an agreement will be in place prior to this year's event. A new Agreement between Molson, Molstar Sports and Entertainment, the City and the Board for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000, should contain substantially the same terms and conditions as the predecessor Agreement, in form and content satisfactory to the City Solicitor, the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services and the City Treasurer. The first year's race would be confirmed, but each of the subsequent two years would be subject to Molson and Molstar Sports and Entertainment successfully negotiating an Agreement with the Board to stage the race at Exhibition Place for each of the years of 1999 and 2000.

Molstar Sports and Entertainment must ensure that for each year, all of the requisite approvals under the Agreement are obtained from the City in accordance with the Agreement.

For the information of the Urban Environment and Development Committee, the existing Agreement permits Council to withdraw its consent on or before March 1 of any year to any or all of the proposed future Molson Indy races if Council believes that the requirements set out in the Agreement have not been complied with, or if Council is not satisfied with the way any particular race was staged, operated or held, including the consultative process utilized for the race preparation.

The terms of the existing Agreement include a requirement for community liaison, under the auspices of a Working Committee which comprises representatives from the Molson Indy organization, Exhibition Place, the neighbouring community and appropriate public agencies . This community liaison process has been an effective means of providing input to the planning of each event, including the "transit-oriented" Transportation Plan, to address impacts which the surrounding neighbourhoods incur during the events and to develop measures to mitigate those impacts. The process should remain an integral requirement of any renewed Agreement.

Required Modifications to the Agreement:

It is noted that a renewed Agreement should reflect the following updates and modifications to the predecessor Agreement:

- the recent amalgamation of the City and Metropolitan levels of government into the "City of Toronto";

- the Molson Indy organization name change from Grand Prix Management Inc. (GPMI) to Molstar Sports and Entertainment;

- an updated race diagram to reflect recent changes to the road layout at Exhibition Place;

- provision of levels of comprehensive general liability insurance in a form and content satisfactory to the City Treasurer.

Conclusions:

The process which has been established to address the Molson Indy event has worked well, and the terms and conditions agreed to by the previous Council should be maintained in any renewed Agreement. Should Council approve a further Agreement between Molson, Molstar Sports and Entertainment, the Board, and the City, the City Solicitor will prepare the necessary Agreement for execution by the parties.

The City Solicitor has been consulted in the course of preparing this report, including legal matters pertaining to the Agreement.

Contact Name and Telephone Number:

Mr. Tim Laspa, Infrastructure Planning and Transportation Division, Toronto City Works Services, 392-7711.

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The Urban Environment and Development Committee reports, for the information of Council, also having had before it a communication (January 30, 1998) addressed to Councillor Chris Korwin-Kuczynski, High Park, from Mr. James H. Tario, Senior Manager, Operations Molstar Sports and Entertainment, requesting that the City of Toronto ratify a three-year Agreement with Molstar Sports and Entertainment for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000.

Councillor Moscoe declared his interest in the foregoing matter in that his "soon-in-law" has a catering contract with the Molson Indy.