Thank you, Madam Chair.
I would like to begin by saying that because I'm new to the committee, I haven't had an opportunity to express my public view on this particular sale. I will state quite emphatically that I'm opposed to it; I have some serious reservations as well about how they're proceeding, both with this phase and with the next phase and the development.
I'd like to ask questions of the witnesses; I thank them for coming forward and giving us their presentation.
There is always this myth out there that you sell things and then somehow you're going to actually get a better value for taxpayers' dollars. They point to banks that are selling their properties and then leasing them back as a prime example.
You said the devil is always in the details, and I quite agree with you. We're not always very clear on what the details are. Why is the mythology out there that if you do sell property and lease it back, somehow you're getting good value for your dollars? I'm not necessarily speaking only to this particular sale, but that seems to be a general rule. With your experience of 35 years, could you elaborate on why some of those cases are not always the truth as they come out?