Process to verify the structural state of buildings in the Blind River The Blind River board is moving forward with a review to assess the condition of its municipal buildings and, if necessary, consider whether some should be repaired or replaced.
At its meeting on Monday, the council approved a motion by councilman Steve Wells to launch a process to observe the structural condition of existing city buildings to determine if they need repair work or be replaced by a new facility. The plan also requires the board to consider whether an amalgam of services would be best for the interest in any work needed at the city's facilities.
The process, according to Coun. The wells will be long and could last several years, since each building is evaluated and depends on the costs associated with the repair work or the construction of new facilities. The review will be carried out by the CAO Secretary, Kathryn Scott, who will report the results periodically to the council. Coun. Wells noted that his motion did not intend to undertake more engineering studies of municipal buildings.
"Due to the winter events we had this year, our structural engineer was already conducting a review of our facilities," Coun said. Wells said, referring to the month-long closure of the library. "That made me reflect on the general condition and conditions of our facilities. The intention of this motion is to initiate a process to explore future options. "This is something that can not be completed overnight, it may be several years before we have all the information at our disposal."
"We must approach this process with an open mind ... and that it be a clear and open process," he added. "I would like to see a public consultation throughout this process. What I'm looking for is a cost analysis presented to the board and the public based on the analysis. "
The councilman suggested that the discussion on the municipal buildings could be part of the public meetings already established by Mayor Sally Hagman. The next public meeting is expected for July. Coun. Wells said that any consideration about the construction of new facilities must meet several criteria that include accessibility, public safety, built to withstand heavy snow loads that are expected to increase with climate change, environmentally sound and profitable. It would also have to be determined if several services could be amalgamated within a new building to serve the community in the long term.
"I would like a building that does not leak," he joked.
"The only thing I wanted to say is that we did not start another big investigation by the engineers," Coun said. Clifford Spratt said that the staff of the existing municipal buildings and councilors already know that they are inadequate. "If you spend money on engineers, it should be a new building."