Five things about Havana Group Supplies Inc.

A Spectator probe raises questions about the dealings of the paving and construction firm

A Hamilton Spectator investigation Saturday looked into a number of allegations that have surfaced in court documents about the questionable business dealings of a company called Havana Group Supplies Inc., some related entities and their principals.

Here are five things to know about the company, the investigation and the aftermath.

What’s the story so far?

At its grand opening last summer, the company claimed to have won paving and construction contracts worth $110 million per month for five years from Metrolinx, CN Rail and three Ontario casinos. Metrolinx, CN Rail and the casinos indicated to The Spectator they have never awarded any such contracts to Havana Group Supplies, its related companies or its principals.

Attention is now turning to the issue of soil excavation, hauling and dumping that’s taking place at a property in rural west Flamborough.

It’s alleged more than 24,000 loads of soil have been dumped at the site since last summer. Piles of soil approximately 10 metres high are visible from the road.

Much of the soil that needs to be excavated and hauled in the Greater Toronto Area comes from the construction of highrise condominiums, many of them in Toronto.

In some cases, the developers will need to dig down the equivalent of seven stories for underground parking and footings.

What does soil hauling and soil dumping have to do with this?

It’s alleged Havana Group Supplies or companies associated with it have been connected with the dumping of soil at a 40-hectare site on Highway 5 West in Troy, just west of Peters Corners. It’s also alleged Havana Group or its associates were leasing space on the property and dumping soil loads at no charge.

Truck operators are now alleging they haven’t been paid for months, in some cases, for the loads they’ve deposited on the site, which has operated for years as Waterdown Garden Supplies Ltd.

Neighbours allege contaminated soil has been dumped on the site and that loads have sometimes been dumped on site in the middle of the night.

The owner of the site says he’s only holding the property as a mortgagee because of a default court judgment and doesn’t know if contaminated soil has been dumped there.

What role can police play?

Det. Sgt. Greg Doerr, head of Hamilton police’s major fraud unit, said Monday there is no active investigation underway with respect to Havana Group Supplies Inc. He said police can’t initiate an investigation without a complainant. As for the soil hauling and dumping, police can enforce Highway Traffic Act laws and issues related to truck weight but once it leaves a roadway, there’s little police can do.

What role can Ontario’s environment ministry play?

An environment ministry spokesperson says the ministry has no jurisdiction over the movement of clean soil. The ministry is looking into questions about whether or not the soil at the Hwy. 5 site is contaminated.

What about the City of Hamilton?

Ward 12 Councillor Lloyd Ferguson, councillor for Ancaster and rural west Flamborough, said the city has no bylaws in place that prevent the dumping of clean soil on rural land. Ferguson said he’s trying to draft a new bylaw that would require landowners in rural areas to obtain a permit to dump specific amounts of soil in specific places on a property. He hopes to have the new bylaw in place by June.