Tensions rise in Surrey over city contract with U.S. company

Drama is brewing in Surrey over the city’s decision to continue its $500,000 consulting contract with a U.S. company.

Some local officials argue the decision goes against the spirit of supporting Canadian businesses amid a trade war.

The contract was awarded to Chicago-based Hunden Partners last year to conduct a feasibility study for the development of Surrey’s city centre and the future of the Cloverdale fairgrounds.

Now, two Surrey First councillors, Mike Bose and Linda Annis, are calling for its termination.

“I don’t think there’s any appetite whatsoever for companies that are U.S.-based doing business in Canada,” Annis told 1130 NewsRadio.

“We know we’ve got more tariffs coming, and these tariffs are very real and they’re hurting our businesses. We need to be looking to support Canadian businesses.”

Annis adds that the contract, which was offered before the ongoing trade conflicts became clear, should be reconsidered given the current economic climate.

“We are not that far down the road that cancelation wouldn’t be the right choice. I think it’s absolutely imperative that we cancel this contract. There may be a fee, but there’s many businesses in Surrey or in Canada that could do the same work.”

Both Annis and Bose are also frustrated by what they describe as a lack of transparency at Surrey City Hall. Bose, in particular, claims he had to file a Freedom of Information request just to access details about the Hunden contract.

“City councillors need access to all city information in order to do their jobs,” said Bose in a press release Monday.

Annis echoed these concerns, emphasizing the increasing number of decisions being made in “meetings behind closed doors.”

“The public, quite frankly, is being kept in the dark, and contracts like this is just one example. At the end of the day, we as councillors and as the mayor, we have to remember who’s paying the bills, and that’s the taxpayers.”

Mayor defends Surrey’s decision

In response to the growing calls from the Surrey First councillors, Mayor Brenda Locke has strongly defended the city’s decision, calling the push for cancellation “theatrics” and not based on sound leadership.

“Both councillor Annis and Bose voted in favor [of the contract.] Since then, we’ve had a special meeting to which they could have said something at that time, but they did not. They could have come and talked to me, but they never did. We can’t cancel a contract without it going back to council,” said Locke in an interview Tuesday.

Locke adds that the contract with Hunden, which she emphasized “was signed last year,” is more than 50 per cent complete.

“We can’t break a contract without a reason. When we canceled or sent back the previous [U.S. contract]—the one people are familiar with—there was no contract. That was just a proposal. This is a contract. We can’t just break a contract.”

The Mayor also clarified that Surrey’s commitment to supporting local businesses remains strong.

“We always try to use Canadian and especially British Columbian vendors when we can. That is something Surrey is very committed to. We’ve been very aggressive about it and very clear about it, but in this case, this happened last year.”

As for the allegations of secrecy and closed-door decision-making, Locke firmly rejected these claims, stating that the city’s process was entirely in line with legal protocols.

“One of the problems that I think councillor Bose doesn’t understand — and clearly councillor Annis doesn’t either — is that when we have a contract, it’s between the city of Surrey and that contractor. So, in this case, I haven’t even seen the Hunden contract. That is not something that is privy to us. It’s something that our legal team takes care of. We give our staff, who are very professional, the ability to administer contracts. We set the parameters of the cost.”

“It’s complete nonsense.”