The mayor hints at leads both here and south of the border, sprouting from the hunt for a new hockey franchise, but says his tongue is tied by confidentiality agreements.

Wearing the hat as chair of the city’s Transition and Negotiation Team, Christopher is leading the charge to bring hockey back to the city.

“We’ve talked to agencies from Eastern Canada to Western Canada,” he said. “We’ve talked to a lot of American interested parties, but we have signed a number of confidentiality contracts. We want to make sure that we put our municipality in a good position going forward.”

The mayor seems to be only open to negotiating with hockey-type suitors.

“I would like to have a long-term relationship going forward with a tenant being in the hockey fabric,” he said.

The transition team’s mandate includes, addressing the transition of the Bulls leaving, pursuing all unsolicited leads, addressing the gap lingering from the Bulls leaving and making recommendations to council.

“We have a couple meetings to go and we will bring a detailed report to council,” the mayor said Monday. “It will give us an idea of what direction it’s feasible to go.”

A report filed to council states, “intense study over the past five weeks, the city needs to address several fundamental issues before determining whether it should support an OHL franchise coming back to Belleville and the Quinte Region.

The city needs to assess the various options (renovate or build new) and to then confirm the cost of the facility construction and operation and how these expenses will be financed,” the report reads. “A property needs to be identified that would be suitable for the facility and yield ancillary economic benefits.”

A former Belleville Bulls broadcaster and sitting Coun. Jack Miller declined joining the team pegged to bring junior hockey back to town.

Coun. Miller gracefully declined prodding from Coun. Mitch Panciuk, who called Miller’s hockey connections and knowledge of the sport priceless, before nominating him as the fourth member on the Transition and Negotiation Team, being led by the mayor. The other members include Couns. Mike Graham and Garnett Thompson.

“I have not asked to be on this committee,” Miller said. “I appreciate the thought, but I’m fine with the way it is. If I can assist in any way I’m certainly more than happy to.”

Though saying he would lend his expertise wherever needed, Miller’s refusal to join sparked some disappointment for Jason Easton, and more than a dozen members of the Bring Back OHL Hockey group who were in the gallery at Monday’s meeting.

“I was disappointed that Coun. Miller was not added because I think he would be a tremendous asset,” Easton said.

Easton did leave city hall with some cause for hope following a brief meeting with the mayor.

“Sounds that there may be some progress that may be made in the near future,” Easton said. “Nothing of any particular substance at the council meeting today but we intend to keep coming back to make sure we’re seen.”

More than 5,000 signatures have now been inked to a petition in support of a OHL team returning to Belleville, he said. A website is underway and the group has more than 2,200 members on its Bring the Bulls Back to Belleville Facebook page.

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Other council news

Kellogg Canada is cooking up another expansion at its Belleville plant.

Mayor Taso Christopher said the company, which produces the popular Mini-Wheat brand of breakfast cereals, will be adding a new line at its sprawling College Street East plant. The mayor made no mention of job projections but said the project should be up and running within months.

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City council has rejected a $50,000 Build Belleville radio advertising budget.

Only Couns. Garnet Thompson, Egerton Boyce and the mayor voted in favour of the one-year communication plan that dedicates $50,000 toward advertising project updates on two local radio brands (across four stations), on top of an additional $20,000 to catch public attention via other avenues like print and video display screens at Quinte Health Care. Councillor balked at the radio budget saying there or other more reasonable priced avenues to keep the public abreast of Build Belleville developments.

Council did endorse the spending of the $20,000.

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City staff are hosting a public information session for the Coleman Street reconstruction project.

The meeting planned for May 6, starting at 6 p.m. on the third floor at city hall, will answers questions about the projects objective and costs. Residents will also learn about potential disruption stemming from the project.

jason.miller@sunmedia.ca