BLIND RIVER — Blind River council is moving ahead with a review to assess the state of its municipal buildings and, if necessary, consider whether some should be repaired or replaced.
At its meeting Monday, council approved a motion from Councillor Steve Wells to put in place a process to look at the structural state of the town’s existing buildings to determine whether they need remedial work or be replaced by a new facility. The plan also calls for council to consider whether an amalgamation of services would be in the best interest of whatever work is needed on town facilities.
The process, according to Coun. Wells, will be lengthy and could take several years as each building is assessed and depending on costs associated with repair work or construction of new facilities. The review will be carried out by CAO-Clerk Kathryn Scott who will report findings periodically to council.
The plan was put forward after the hospital and library were temporarily closed due to heavy snowloads on the roofs of the buildings.
Coun. Wells stressed his motion was not intended to undertake more engineering studies of municipal buildings.
“Due to the winter events we had this year we were already undergoing a review of our facilities by our structural engineer,” Coun. Wells said, referring to the month-long closure of the library. “That got me to reflect upon the overall status and condition of our facilities. It’s the intention of this motion to initiate a process to explore future options. This is something that cannot be completed overnight it could take several years before we have all the information at our (council) disposal.”
“We should approach this process with open minds… and that it be a clear and open process,” he added. “I would like to see public consultation throughout this process. What I’m looking for is a cost analysis presented to council and the public based on the analysis.”
The councillor suggested discussion about municipal buildings could be part of public meetings already set up by Mayor Sally Hagman. The next public meeting is expected in July.
Coun. Wells said any consideration of building new facilities must meet several criteria including accessibility, public safety, built to withstand heavy snow loads expected to increase with climate change, environmentally sound and cost effective. It would also have to be determined whether several services could be amalgamated within a new building to serve the community long-term.
“I’d like a building that doesn’t leak,” he joked.
“The only thing I wanted to ensure is that we didn’t go off on another big investigation by engineers,” Coun. Clifford Spratt said of existing municipal buildings staff and councillors already know are inadequate. “If any money is spent on engineers it should be a new building.”\
Coun. Jim Dunbar said once options come to council, council at that time should “err on the side of caution,” when considering spending.
Council approved the motion. Coun. HP Roy was absent from the meeting and the vote.
