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YOUR Independent Community Newspaper Vol. 2 Edition 2
Condo project on hold
By Jim Blake jim@chathamvoice.com
“Get out of that grave, now!” That sentence, said to have been uttered by a Ministry of Labour inspector, was the catalyst for a chain of events being blamed for the derailment of the $50-million Boardwalk on Thames condominium project. The working conditions at Everlast Group’s site resulted in stop work orders by the province and sent workers on an eightmonth fight for recognition as employees and the right to unionize. William Lin of the Ministry of Labour said stopwork orders were issued Feb. 21 of last year due to violations of lighting standards, protruding reinforced steel, blocked access routes, and two orders regarding excavations. Work eventually resumed on the site once the violations were corrected. Rob Petroni, who’s union now represents the workers, said the comments made by the inspector scared the men. “There was no trench box. Unstable soil can
shift in a few seconds and bury someone before they know it,” he said. “You need to have trenches with adequate shoring. Without it a worker in it wouldn’t have a chance. It really could have become a grave.” The workers applied for certification March 5, and on Nov. 20, the Ontario Labour Relations Board ruled approved the application. They are now members of Local 625 of the Labourer’s International Union of North America (LiUNA). Petroni is the local’s business manager. Petroni said Everlast “wasn’t even on our radar” when the Boardwalk project began. “The initial (concrete) formwork was being done by a unionized company, Con-Wall Concrete London,” he said. “Virtually every formwork company I know of is unionized and Con-Wall is a phenomenal company. There was no one for us to represent. We didn’t set out to organize anything.” Petroni said Everlast had contended the employees were contractors, but the board ruled otherwise. Continued on page 2
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Jim Blake/The Chatham Voice
Craig Francis, manager at Chatham Kent Pawn Brokers, said construction at neighbouring Boardwalk on Thames site on King Street West in Downtown Chatham never resumed after Christmas.
Parking changes afoot?
By Jim Blake jim@chathamvoice.com
Whatever fate awaits the former Boardwalk on Thames condo project, a nearby local business manager is hoping city hall pays more attention to the effect it has had on local businesses. Craig Francis, manager at Chatham Kent Pawn Brokers, located just east of the project on King
Street, said his business suffered “huge losses” because of on-street parking spots given to Everlast starting in May 2013. “We tried to be a good neighbour, but I’m really disappointed in how things just kept dragging on and dragging on,” he said. “We lost three spots, and if it wasn’t for the CIBC, I think we wouldn’t have even got-
ten the handicapped parking spot back.” The controversial $50 million project has apparently been mothballed by the Everlast group. No workers are at the site and firms doing business on the project have been advised. It has been reported in 2013 that Everlast had sold 80% of the 113 units in the 12-storey building that was supposed to be
completed and occupied last year. Francis said he contacted city officials numerous times complaining about construction debris, parking and other issues, but couldn’t get the problems resolved. “We would have cement trucks surrounding our building at the front, the Cenotaph area and the back.”
Continued on page 3
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