Pier delayed to 2013 unless new solution found
Next update: April 20, Community Services Com., 6:30pm, City Hall
You could have heard a pin drop in council chambers when senior staff revealed in March that the retender package for the pier likely won’t go to market till mid-July, with tenders not expected back till Sept. 26. That means this process will cost the city a year. Remember the previous council voted to retender last September!
I didn’t vote to retender the pier because of these kinds of delays. I’m also concerned about continuing our legal battle, which may end up being a Pyrrhic victory: we could win, but at what cost to delays, transparency and legal fees?
That said, now that the path has been chosen by council, I have pledged to do what I can to see this project to a successful completion. To that end, I have requested that every Community Services Committee include public updates on where we’re at, which was unanimously supported by my colleagues. This will increase transparency and allow council to take a more active role in overseeing this project and moving it forward.
My take: I’m glad council and the public will now get regularly scheduled updates on the pier. I still hold out hope that the parties to this dispute will come back to the negotiating table before the tender goes out, and offer a reasonable solution to finish the pier, either with the current contractor or a consortium of other contractors. I’ve always preferred a negotiated settlement to a litigated one – so long as it protects taxpayers and delivers a quality, cost-effective project.
