"Mike Curries allegation is absolutely untrue," hotel manager says



Stanley Bridge Country Resort/ File photo

Stanley Bridge Country Resort/ File photo

Published on April 29th, 2010
Published on June 19th, 2010
Staff ~ The Guardian RSS Feed

Resort says Wellness Minister Carolyn Bertram did not get involved in dispute over rooms booked for Canada Games

STANLEY BRIDGE - There was no political interference in the P.E.I. Games Host Society's involvement with the Stanley Bridge Country Resort for occupied and unoccupied rooms during the 2009 Canada Games, says Ryan Cochrane, general manager of the resort. "MLA Mike Currie's allegation is absolutely untrue," said Cochrane.

Topics :
Host Society , Canada Games , Stanley Bridge Country Resort , STANLEY BRIDGE

STANLEY BRIDGE - There was no political interference in the P.E.I. Games Host Society's involvement with the Stanley Bridge Country Resort for occupied and unoccupied rooms during the 2009 Canada Games, says Ryan Cochrane, general manager of the resort.

"MLA Mike Currie's allegation is absolutely untrue," said Cochrane.

Responding to Mike Currie's statement that rooms booked by the P.E.I. Canada Games Host Society were released "in plenty of time," Cochrane says in a statement issued to the media this morning: "We had a confirmed booking with the Host Society on Aug. 4, 2006. The original release date was Dec. 30, 2008. In 2007, the Host Society extended this to June 13, 2009.

"The Host Society then cancelled these rooms by telephone on June 30, 2009, two weeks after the release date," he said.

Cochrane said the Resort and the Host Society settled this issue many months ago and that "this was an issue between a private corporation and the Host Society and at no time was Minister Bertram or the Government involved."

… More on this story later today, full details in The Guardian tomorrow.

Comments

  • Username
    Dick
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:35:56

    To Larry....maybe Mike Currie got the story wrong, who knows....but I know one thing for sure....I'm not going to believe anything the Liberals say since all they have done is lie, cheat and steal since they were elected and then lie again to cover it all up. I'm sorry....but I'm gonna believe ANYBODY before I'll believe a word the Liberals say!! I'm sure that in a few weeks, the real truth about this article will be uncovered and the Liberals will be caught in yet another lie to cover up their spending mistakes.

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Juke
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:34:23

    Here we go, Stanley Bridge Resort owner Paul Christensen out front and centre in the politcal fight, slugging as hard as he can for Carolyn Bertram.

    This gentleman was unavailable for the Guardian story on the 28th.

    CBC on the same day stated----


    When asked if Bertram stepped in on his behalf Paul Christensen said, I can't answer that for multiple reasons.

    Interesting guy!!!!

    Will Mr. Christensen be itemizing and explaining these multiple reasons as his new media career takes off?

    And take of it will.. ....

    Paul Christensen is only defending his political boss and benefactor, perfectly acceptable traditional PEI patronage politcs, licking the hand that feeds you.

    And truly exposing himself in public. Wow! Not as destructively as Joe Spriet has done but pretty wild and crazy nonetheless!

    I'll say this though Christensen has a heck of a lot more courage than the dozens upon dozens of Ghiz loving fake businessman who stuffed globs of PNP cash into numbered companies back in 2008 unwittingly as political cover for the true Ghiz favourites who took PNP millions in lawyer protected schemes.

    Do any of these numbered company PNPers stand up and back their crooked political chiefs the way Christensen has done here today? No. No way!!

    Go Paul Go!!!!!

    Do not be discouraged, Paul, by the blatant facts on the public record about your contradictory remarks, saying no today but something really different two days ago.

    Just keep slugging it out for the princeling, the princess, and the rest of the royal Ghiz family in Town. They have 16 more months left to enrich you further.

    Never change, man!

    Wow!

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Juke
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:32:50

    Tom Petty, I follow your logic on this aspect of the issue, Spriet and Christensen getting in sync yes but contradictions remain about Minister Bertam's role in this. Christensen has two different stories as I reference and Bertram has been inconsistent and vague. Here first response three days ago- I don't think I was involved in the process. Wow. Sounds like she was involved here but is uncomfortable that the usual lawyer diversion technique may not hold up for long. This saga is not over. She was involved specifically ( held discussions with Chrsitensen as she stated) and as Minister responsible lost control of a standard approach to the rooms issue. Given the tax dollars involved, she should have provided ministerial oversight ensuring consistency and fairness from the start. Messy!

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Former Student
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:29:17

    I was at question period on tuesday when this came up. Currie just asked the question.

    He first asked some questions about who was in charge of these dealings. Bertram answered that it was the host society.

    He then asked if she steped in to resolve the issue. he said she did not.

    Then he asked if any of her staff did steped in. She side stepped the question and said she would get all the information possible and get back on what happened.

    He never said that she did anything wrong, he just said that he heard they got money that other places didn't and I'm thinking that other hotels brought this to him.

    It really seemed like a non issue. The spin on this is that there was some kind of witch hunt

    It was quite clear that she did't know what he was getting at. I doubt she did anything and it is just other businesses wishing that they were paid for these booked rooms.

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Juke
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:27:34

    Larry, Bob Dole, and mra from ri, wow are you guys in for heck of a surprise. This guy has made two public statements on this so far ( see CBC on April 28th) and one contradicts the other. Hold on to your hardhats, Ghiz lovers!

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    hahahaha
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:20:13

    Her mother works there? NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO she never interfered!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    What a joke. My only surprise is that her mother doesn't work at Holland College

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    More questions
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:17:59

    Nice work if you can get it...wonder who the 2nd tourist business is??

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Tom
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:16:28

    And @ hahahahaha, PEI is such a small province that odds are that you're probably related to someone who works there too. Does that make you a liar?

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    bushwacker
    - June 21st, 2010 at 20:01:27

    Why wouldn`t these people say that it is untrue.If you got 30k for empty rooms wouldn`t agree with that paid our $$$$.

    Have some one independent look into this maybe ACBE .

    Ha!Ha!

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    mra
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:57:43

    ahh mike::: open mouth in sert both feet.

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    nitpicker
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:54:30

    What has been described in the story is precisely how this works: an event, be it a conference, sporting event or whatever, needs rooms available at a certain time. To guarantee this, the organizing committee books the rooms and the facility holds them. The stipulations are, if they aren't canceled at a certain time, there is a penalty, because in theory the facility is holding rooms they could have sold elsewhere. Pretty standard arrangement actually.

    Now whether or not the government bailed out the organizing committee with an influx of cash is another story.

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    BOB DOLE
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:53:59

    Imagine that a PC member getting their wires crossed and trying to blame everything on the Liberals......

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    take politics out of this
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:50:39

    we all know she did. they bragged about it here in Stanley Bridge for months

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Joe
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:50:01

    The chorus being belted out by the naysayers is beginning to sound a bit like a song once sung by Helena Guergis...

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Larry
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:48:11

    Yes Know this, Host Society and The Hotel say untrue but because Mike Currie says it is, it must be true- did you eat paint chips as a child?

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Leo
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:47:20

    I have to wonder if any of these people have ever heard the saying about protesting to much.

    People....you should jsut stop coming to betram's defense because with all these denials coming from everywhere YOu are all making her look VERY Guilty.

    I initially thought so what...what is the big deal here. If the rooms were booked and not cancelled in a timely fashion and the hotel couldn't rent them to someone else than YES they should be paid for them. Plus the person from the Host Committee whose job it was to cancel them should be held accountable for the lost money.

    But now a day later and with all these people coming out and saying Bertram done nothing wrong...I am starting to wonder what else is there to this story. It just seems like there is a great deal of overkill going on and now I have to wonder just what is the whole truth about this story.

    Usually where there is smoke there is fire. Maybe it is time for Bertram to stand up in the House under Oath and tell us all just what did go on.


    Would someone teach the Ghiz gang some media and communication skills please.

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    ?????
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:38:54

    I was there that weekend for a wedding and couldn't get a room..I'm guessing the rooms were payed for twice!

    Submit a Comment

  • Username
    Tom
    - June 21st, 2010 at 19:38:01

    Juke Streudel...To say that these stories contradict each other is rediculous. In both all Mr. Cochrane has done is try to explain to people who have no idea how hotel room sales work (Probably because you've never left Charlottetown in your life...other then go Acrosst to shop in Moncton) how the room blocks work. If you read Joe Spriets story you'll notice that both of these match perfectly. The rooms were booked, The cancellation date was moved back TWICE, and they still went past the cancellation date. It doesn't matter whether you cancel one room or an entire hotel, if you go past the cancellation date, you either pay a percentage or the whole amount. Do you need any more clarification on how the system works?

    Submit a Comment

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