First Ontario Courthouse DBFM Transaction Closes

On March 2, 2007 Infrastructure Ontario announced that the design-build-finance-maintain (DBFM) transaction pursuant to which Access Justice Durham Ltd. (AJD) will design, build, finance and maintain a new courthouse comprised of 33 courtrooms, three motions rooms, two conference/settlement rooms and related legal and court services in the Durham Region, Ontario achieved financial close. This is the first courthouse DBFM transaction in Ontario to achieve financial close and is one of the many infrastructure renewal projects being constructed under ReNew Ontario, the government's five-year $30 billion plus public infrastructure investment plan in the Province of Ontario.

The Durham Consolidated Courthouse will be the first Ontario government building to receive the Canada Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design LEED silver certification. It will also be the most energy-efficient new Ontario government building and the most technologically advanced courthouse in Ontario.

Construction was scheduled to begin in April 2007 and is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2009. Over the 30-year service period, AJD will provide facilities management of the courthouse including maintenance, grounds keeping, food services and related services at the Durham Courthouse. After construction is completed, the province will pay AJD monthly service payments for 30 years for the cost to build the courthouse, maintain it for 30 years and pay for building lifecycle repair during that period. Payments are performance-based and subject to penalties if the facilities or services do not meet the established performance standards (including the availability of the facility and delivery of services) set by the province.

Ontario Infrastructure Projects Corporation was represented by in-house counsel with a team led by Steve Richards and Graham McLeod. Ogilvy Renault LLP acted as counsel to Ontario Infrastructure Projects Corporation in the structuring, procurement and negotiation and settlement of the project documents for the transaction with a team which included Jacques Demers, Merie-Anne Beavis, Sandra Nissan and Jennifer Tuer (corporate), Geoffrey Walker (tax), Andrew Pritchard (real estate) and Patrick Moran (environmental).

AJD and the lenders were represented by Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP with a team led by Carol Pennycook, Greg Southam, Derek Vesey, Jason Saltzman, Steven Martin and Patrice Thomas (corporate), John Zinn and Elie Roth (tax) and Sarah Powell (environmental).

The Construction Contractor was represented by Donald Lucky and John Paul Janssens at Reynolds Mirth Richards & Farmer LLP and the Johnson Controls L.P. was represented by Darryl Brown and Faithe Holder of Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP.