Two Saskatchewan Joint-Use Schools Projects reached financial close on August 20, 2015, when Joint Use Mutual Partnership #1 and Joint Use Mutual Partnership #2 entered into Project Agreements with the Province of Saskatchewan (Province) for 18 elementary schools and 9 joint-use facilities. The projects, presently valued at $635 million, are design, build, finance and maintain public-private partnerships, each with an operations period of 30 years from service commencement.
Team members of Joint Use Mutual Partnership #1 and Joint Use Mutual Partnership #2 include Concert Infrastructure Ltd. and Bird Capital Limited Partnership, together with a joint venture formed by Bird Design-Build Construction Inc. and Wright Construction Western Inc., providing design and construction services, and Johnson Controls Canada LP, as service provider.
Approximately $213 million of bonds, underwritten by Scotia Capital Inc., provided the debt financing for the projects.
The Province, through its P3 agency SaskBuilds Corporation, was represented by Aird & Berlis LLP, with a team of Douglas Younger, Heidi Visser, Patrick Oufi and Lorway Gosse.
Joint Use Mutual Partnership #1 and Joint Use Mutual Partnership #2 were represented by Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP’s Jeff Merrick, Catherine Doyle, JP Bogden, Carrie Fleming, Samantha Rossman, Jennifer Chan, Jennifer Ruddick, Arash Amouzgar, Emma Costante and Graham Fulton. Bird Capital Limited Partnership and its affiliates were represented by senior counsel, Todd Mandel. Wright Construction Western Inc. and its parent were represented by James Sproule and Bruce Harrison of McKercher LLP. Johnson Controls Canada LP and its parent were represented by Darryl Brown, Faithe Holder and Lindsay Wong of Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP.
Scotia Capital Inc., as underwriter, was represented by Stikeman Elliott LLP, with a team comprising Jamie Templeton, Scott Perrin and Stan McKeen.
The Fairness Monitor retained by SaskBuilds was Owen Pawson and Chad Eggerman of Miller Thomson LLP.