Two Toronto Community Housing Corp. senior executives had no conflict of interest and received no special treatment when they bought Regent Park condominiums from a company half-owned by the TCHC, a former top judge concluded in a report released Friday.

The TCHC board of directors hired former Ontario Superior Court chief justice Patrick LeSage to review the condo purchases in the wake of a series of critical March articles by Toronto Sun columnist Sue-Ann Levy. Levy did not say the executives had received preferential treatment, but she suggested they acted improperly by buying the Cole St. condos at all.

LeSage’s findings contradict Mayor Rob Ford’s comments on the issue. In March, Ford said Levy had revealed “a big scam.”

“I want to hear about these — I call ’em scams, I call ’em misappropriation of funds, I just think this is outrageous,” he said on his radio show.

The executives are then-chief executive officer Derek Ballantyne and then-chief financial officer Gordon Chu. Neither still works for the TCHC. LeSage, whose review cost the city-owned social housing provider $125,000, also cleared the two lower-level employees who bought condos.

Ballantyne asked Friday for “a full and unconditional apology” from the people who incorrectly accused him of wrongdoing. He did not say who he was referring to, nor whether he is considering legal action.

“I welcome the confirmation that my purchase of a condominium unit at OneCole did not give me any benefit or advantage whatsoever, and that any allegations of a conflict of interest on my part are unfounded. Sadly, the unjustified allegations against me have caused harm to my reputation,” he said in a statement.

LeSage wrote that the employees “did not receive any benefit or preference not available to the general public.” He left open the question of whether there would be the appearance of conflict in the eyes of a “realistic and practical person.”

“As a precautionary measure,” he recommended that the TCHC create a public registry of transactions between the company and its insiders. Board chair Bud Purves, who believes there was indeed the appearance of conflict, said the TCHC would get to work on the registry immediately.

“Mr. LeSage found that there was no actual conflict of interest, no favouritism, and no special access or deals for anyone at the company. People followed the rules, which is how it always should be,” current chief executive Gene Jones said in a statement to company staff. “Projects funded with public dollars should meet a high standard of fairness and accountability. On the other hand, Mr. LeSage pointed out that greater transparency will help prevent the appearance of a conflict in future. I agree.”

Ballantyne has said his purchase was intended in part to demonstrate personal confidence in the TCHC’s attempt to turn a long-troubled housing project into a vibrant mixed-income neighbourhood. Skeptics of the revitalization project had suggested that people of means would not be interested in buying condos in Regent Park.

“I accept that the individuals who purchased condominiums did so in the belief that their investment in this project would demonstrate to the public that they believed in the revitalization of Regent Park and that it would be a successful venture. Their purchases did enhance the success of the revitalization project,” LeSage wrote.

“All of the TCHC employees and executives,” he wrote, “purchased the condominiums at or above the grid price. None of the four purchasers received upgrades. All of the TCHC purchasers currently own the condominiums they purchased.”

The joint-venture company, called the Dundas and Parliament Development Corp., is half-owned by The Daniels Corp., a development firm.

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LeSage found no impropriety on the part of the Daniels executives who bought condos. He was not asked to study the purchase by local councillor Pam McConnell, who says she, too, got no special treatment.

Ford’s spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.