fire halls alleged that Shindico, a Winnipeg-based commercial real-estate developer, received the contract due to favouritism. According to CBC News, the developer was granted building rights after previous correspondence between Shindico and the former fire chief, Reid Douglas, despite being the highest bidder. Katz in particular was criticized due to his long-standing relationship with Shindico, of which he had partial financial ownership until 2013. Katz said his financial ties to Shindico had been severed, and denied any allegations of favouritism or involvement in the fire hall contract. Immediately after the report was published, multiple city councillors asked for Katz's resignation due to the fire hall situation. Katz's friendship with Phil Sheegl, the former City of Winnipeg Chief Administrative Officer who negotiated the fire hall contract, received substantial attention. Katz stated that the councillors were entitled to their opinions but that he would not resign. Uniter opinion piece and lawsuit Shortly after the fire hall report was released, an opinion piece written by a volunteer was published by the Uniter, the University of Winnipeg's main student newspaper. The piece, which criticized the mayor's handling of the fire hall, resulted in Katz's suing the university, the Uniter and the author of the piece. Katz said he was seeking an apology, as he knew that the Uniter did not have the funds necessary for a financial settlement. The university stated that it believed its involvement in the lawsuit was an error, given that it had no editorial oversight of the student paper. As of February 6, 2014, the case had not been heard in court. Honours In 2002, Katz was presented with the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal. In 2003, he received the University of Manitoba Distinguished Alumnus Award. In 2004, he was given the province's highest honour, the Order of Manitoba, for demonstrating an ability to improve the social, cultural and economic well being of Manitoba and its residents. Personal life Sam was married to Baillie, with whom he's had two daughters (born in 2001 and 2005). Katz began divorce proceedings with his wife on October 26, 2006 – one day after his reelection. Katz is married to Leah Pasuta. Electoral record References External links Sam Katz CityMayors profile 1951 births Living people Baseball people from Manitoba Businesspeople from Winnipeg Israeli emigrants to Canada Israeli Jews People from Rehovot Members of the Order of Manitoba Mayors of Winnipeg Sportspeople from Winnipeg University of