The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune News Editor

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

LESLIE Miller said the government will move the Road Traffic Department into his Summerwinds Plaza for a rate that is “much better than anywhere else”, adding there is “nothing amiss” and “no favours” involved.

“I wish we could get the rates that the big boys get. I’d be a happy man,” he said yesterday.

He noted that lease agreements for the property under the last Christie administration have been tied up in legal wrangling after previous administrations failed to follow them.

 He spoke yesterday after Transport & Energy Minister Jobeth Colbey-Davis said on Monday that the traffic department will be relocated from the Thomas A Robinson Stadium to a location off Tonique Williams Darling Highway next to the now-closed Mario’s Bowling and Entertainment Centre.

 Mr Miller confirmed his plaza will be the department’s new home and said talks with officials have been ongoing for several months. He said he is waiting for the Ministry of Works to complete mechanical and engineering work, allowing the place to be “ready in 30 to 60 days.”

 He said the plaza has parking space for 300 vehicles.

 “No other place they could go has the parking,” he said.

 Mr Miller sued the government when the Minnis administration refused to honour the leases, seeking more than $66m in damages. Former Finance Minister Peter Turnquest had suggested the Christie administration leases handcuffed his administration’s financial plans and made no sense even though Mr Miller described them at the time as a “win-win” for the government.

 Supreme Court Justice Cheryl Grant Thompson initially ruled that the leases were “valid and binding” and awarded Mr Miller $9.846m in damages.

 However, the Court of Appeal allowed the government’s appeal of the ruling and ordered the case be sent back to the Supreme Court for a hearing before a different judge.

 The parties involved later agreed to negotiate a settlement without further legal action. Mr Miller’s lawyer, Damian Gomez, said yesterday that negotiations are ongoing.

 The Bank of The Bahamas and Bahamas Resolve are parties to the case. Mr Miller’s BOB loans –– secured by the plaza –– were moved to the bail-out vehicle when they became delinquent. He and his companies allegedly owe BOB more than $30.5m.

 The Tribune understands that as settlement negotiations continue, the plaza is no longer under receivership, with the parties determining how Mr Miller’s account will be handled.